LIV Golf has announced the appointment of Lawrence Burian as its new Chief Operating Officer.
Burian replaces former LIV Golf COO Atul Khosla, who resigned in December 2022 at conclusion of the Saudi-backed league’s first season. Gary Davidson, Group Chief Operating Officer of Performance54, had been serving as acting COO since that time.
As COO, Burian will oversee a wide range of responsibilities including corporate development and strategy, the successful delivery of LIV Golf’s global schedule of 14 LIV Golf League events, the management and commercialization of the league’s teams, the full integration of the International Series, investor relations, global impact and sustainability, events, production, information technology, human resources, procurement, and general day-to-day business operations.
As a former Executive Vice President with the Madison Square Garden family of public companies, Burian has extensive experience across the sports, entertainment, media and hospitality sectors. During his more than a decade of simultaneous service to MSG Sports Corporation, MSG Entertainment Corporation, and MSG Networks Inc, Burian worked closely with each company’s Board of Directors and executive management teams to lead significant corporate and strategic transactions and initiatives that strengthened the group’s portfolio of businesses and built long-term shareholder value.
“Lawrence is a proven leader and a proven winner, and we couldn’t be more excited to have him on our executive leadership team,” said LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman. “After more than two years of breaking molds and pushing boundaries, LIV Golf is on the precipice of significant growth. Lawrence’s decades of business experience are exactly what we need to keep us competitive and moving forward.”
Commenting on his appointment, Mr Burian said: “I am excited to join LIV Golf as Chief Operating Officer and look forward to harnessing my more than two decades of senior executive experience to help build on the progress and momentum that is well underway.
“The creation of a new global sports league in less than two years was nothing short of extraordinary and now is the time to capitalize and build on that success. LIV Golf has a very bright future as we seek to continue growing the game of golf, engaging new audiences, enhancing the guest experience, innovating our event and media production and building franchise value, all while creating a compelling home for our world-class athletes. I’m committed to working with my talented colleagues at LIV Golf towards achieving our ambitious goals.”
LIV Golf Acting COO Gary Davidson added: “Adding Lawrence to the LIV executive team is the clearest indication of the next phase of this league’s growth and future aspirations. Lawrence is an excellent addition to the senior management team and brings a wealth of experience which will be invaluable as we enter the exciting next phase of the business. We are thrilled to have him on the team and I’m excited to continue supporting him and LIV Golf into 2024.”