If 2026 is good, we will appreciate these leadership changes for 2025

The past 12 months have had a little bit of everything – a career Grand Slam, Ryder Cup chaos and more. As 2026 approaches, our writers look back at the most memorable moments of 2025 and explain why they mattered.

No. 15 – Zero-torque putter movement | No. 14 — ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ suddenly takes golf | No. 13 – Joaquin Niemann’s 2025 major (also relevant in 2026) | Number 12 – JJ Spaun kills Oakmont | No. 11 – Online invitation | No. 10 – Jeeno Thitikul’s record year | No. 9 – the next role of Tiger Woods | No. 8 – Tommy Fleetwood breaks through | No. 7 – Birth of TGL | No. 6 – Keegan Bradley’s big decision | No. 5 – Europe wins another Ryder Cup | No. 4 – Bethpage Buffoonery | No. 3 – Scottie Scheffler ruled (again)

The greatest golf moments of 2025 No. 2: New sheriff(s) in Town

Golf fans would be forgiven for looking away from another year that ended without significant progress in reunification in the men’s game or top rating metrics from the women’s game. In those parameters, 2025 was not very pleasant. But the year has brought forth an increased impulse to work, visible, meaningful a change in pro golf than it appears. Again why? The answer is simple: Leadership.

Almost every major professional golf tour – with the exception of the DP World Tour – has new leadership as we head into 2026. On the LPGA Tour, Craig Kessler has signed on as the new commissioner after stepping down from the PGA of America and as the world’s first official. At LIV Golf, Scott O’Neil has joined the group, with his hopes The process-The lead time for the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team will provide valuable insight into the golfing journey that is still in its infancy. And on the PGA Tour — arguably the biggest of those hires — the new chief executive was Brian Rolapp, Roger Goodell’s longtime right-hand man and longtime NFL media executive, who was brought in to take over from outgoing (and controversial) commissioner Jay Monahan.

It can often feel wrong to measure the appointment of an officer as one of the big stories of 2025, but there is trust built into that lofty status. The previous generation of Pro golf leadership changed a lot, but its last expansion into the cart was marked by a period of stagnation — battle lines drawn, rules written. The months of those leadership changes have brought forth a new sense of urgency about reimagining golf as we know it and as we watch it. Sometimes, new leadership can be much more than changing the drapes.

Rolapp joined the Tour in mid-summer, shook hands and began planning a new route. A big change came in the form of the Committee for Future Tournaments – a new group tasked with cultivating the ideal future of the PGA Tour, and enlisting Tiger Woods as its leader. We don’t know everything the so-called “FCC” has been brewing for a long time, but we know it starts with a push to create a deficit. In short, we believe that will mean fewer, bigger PGA Tour events on the year’s calendar. For inspiration, Rolapp needed to look no further than the importance of the next week of the NFL schedule – Week 18 – where almost every game is important to securing a playoff, draft position, or postseason dreams. Without such a (relatively) short and small season, these games may not feel (and may not feel be) as important. Sometimes, really little is something More.

O’Neil had to play a slightly different ball game. In addition to any competitive changes, O’Neil first needed to establish himself as a fresh face for the starters. His predecessor, Greg Norman, was patient with almost every governing body in the game, smoothing over the differences between the new league and its rivals. O’Neil had to repair relationships – especially with the Official World Golf Ranking, to achieve major championship eligibility – and was able to work with the USGA and R&A to create additional exemptions for their major tournaments for LIV players. O’Neil admitted that he has a relationship with Rolapp, however tenuous, that offers faint hope for unity in the men’s game. He also released a new calling card for the role he hopes LIV will play on the golf course: Complete, not compete. But whether that happens or not, O’Neil is the captain of the LIV ship and is much more available as a community-oriented leader than his predecessor.

Like Rolapp, Kessler joined the LPGA last summer, coming from the PGA of America, where he was Chief Operating Officer. He appeared in time to preside over the regular season more than Rolapp, and has made himself available to the golf media. Take his recent interview with GOLF.com’s James Colgan, where he talked about changing media trends and the “attention economy.”

“Watching how the next generation of LPGA athletes use media and entertainment has been an eye-opener for me,” Kessler told Colgan. “We’re thinking about winning our share in the attention economy, and we’re taking the right steps in the right direction to succeed.”

In his few months on the job, Kessler secured the Saudi PIF as the tournament’s new sponsor, and locked in the LPGA’s best broadcast from 2026. (50% more cameras, drone footage and improved Trackman shot tracking.) It’s clear that his small attention to detail, important efforts are loved by LPGA professionals. And that’s why these appointments, as a whole, are such an important issue coming out of 2025. They seem to have a lot of support.

O’Neil has as high a world score as anything on his priority list, and it looks like LIV will be checking that box soon. Rolapp arrived with a promise to make “significant change,” and a few months later we’re talking about a Tour that doesn’t start until February. That won’t please everyone, but it will at least start to move the train out of the station and toward a new destination.