Pelley rolls out Rolex Series
dubai — Ever since Keith Pelley took over as the CEO last April, there has hardly been a dull moment on the European Tour.
The Canadian is out to revolutionise the sport on the Tour, especially since it faces stiff competition from the USA’s PGA Tour.
And after a few tweaks like introducing the ‘Beat the Pro’ shot competition and also allowing players to wear shorts during practice rounds, Pelley, as part of the evolution, has embarked on what could be a “game-changer” for the European Tour.
Starting 2017, the European Tour is set to roll out the Rolex Series, consisting of seven events, which also includes the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
The Rolex Series was officially launched at the sprawling Jumeirah Golf Estates, the venue of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, on Tuesday.
Pelley revealed that the seven events, with the promise of more to be added in the coming years, will be offering a minimum prize purse of $7 million, except the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, which boasts of $8 million in prize money.
The series will start in May with the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Club in England and will be followed by the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open hosted by the Rory Foundation at Portstewart and the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open at Dundonald, both to be played out in July.
The Italian Open at the Olgiata Golf Club in Rome will be the fourth event, in October. The final three events of the Series will be held in November beginning with the Turkish Airlines Open at Regnum Carya Golf and Spa Resort, the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City in South Africa and the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai at Jumeirah Golf Estates, again bringing the season to a close.
Pelley didn’t divulge the details of the sponsorship with Rolex but said it was a multi-year deal and he spelt out three reasons for launching a series such as this.
“The first reason, we believe that the success and the growth of a high-profile series like the Rolex Series will elevate our tour, its brand, and all other events. Two, and we really strongly believe this, that we need a stronger content offering to enable us to reach larger audiences across multiple platforms, and that’s what the Rolex Series is about. And the third, we need a product that can grow and grow over time that provides a strong financial offering for our young players so they don’t have to go to the United States,” Pelley said on Tuesday.