Ty Votaw is leaving his full-time job at the PGA Tour after a storied career in the golf industry at the ripe age of 60, but he’ll still be around the game he’s helped grow.
Votaw, who held the role of LPGA commissioner for seven years, announced on Tuesday he’ll leave his post as the PGA Tour’s executive vice president of international affairs in June. According to a release from the Tour, however, he will remain as a key consultant to commissioner Jay Monahan.
Votaw’s job was one that paid handsomely — according to the Tour’s tax returns, the Ohio native made just over $1 million in 2018.
Among Votaw’s biggest accomplishments was the reinstatement of golf as an Olympic sport, in which he was regarded as instrumental in masterminding while holding the position of executive director and then vice president for the International Golf Federation. Among Votaw’s other titles while with the Tour was Chief Marketing Officer.
“I’d like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Ty for his immeasurable impact to our organization and his overall contributions to our sport,” said Monahan. “His combination of leadership, business acumen and diplomacy has undoubtedly changed the LPGA, the PGA Tour and the global game for the better. Having spent over half his life within the industry, his depth of knowledge and strength of relationships are second to none, and we are appreciative that we can continue to draw upon that expertise as he moves into retirement but stays close to the Tour and our interests.”
Votaw first joined the LPGA as general counsel in 1991 and was promoted a year later as LPGA commissioner Charles Mechem’s special assistant. In 1997, he was promoted to vice president of business affairs. He replaced Jim Ritts as commissioner in 1999.
In 2000, he helped orchestrate a yearlong celebration of the tour’s 50th anniversary. In 2002, Votaw formed the LPGA’s first player summit, where he introduced a five-year, fans-first strategic business plan that has helped produce double-digit percentage increases in tournament attendance and television viewership. Votaw also played a key role in the development of the World Congress of Women’s Golf in 2004.
“In thinking back over the last 30 plus years, I consider myself the luckiest guy in the world to have worked with and learned from visionary leaders like Jay Monahan and Tim Finchem at the PGA Tour, Charlie Mechem and Jim Ritts at the LPGA and countless other talented players and individuals in both organizations and across the golf industry,” said Votaw. “It was an honor and a privilege to team with [then CEO of The R&A] Peter Dawson in leading the industry’s efforts to bring golf back to the Olympics in Rio.
“Moving forward I am looking forward to helping and supporting the PGA Tour and the game of golf in any way I can.”
