Guy Kinnings, the Chief Executive of the European Tour group, has been elected as the new Chairman of the International Golf Federation (IGF) Board.
Following the latest Board meeting conducted on Wednesday, 10 April, at Augusta National Golf Club, Kinnings will now serve in the role through 2027, inclusive of the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympics Games.
Antony Scanlon, Executive Director of the IGF, said: “We are pleased to have Guy serve as the Chairman of the IGF Board, and alongside IGF President Annika Sörenstam, they will provide leadership and guidance as we continue to encourage the international development of the sport of golf.
“Guy brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our Board and coupled with his history at Le Golf National from the 2018 Ryder Cup, he will play a vital role as we approach the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.”
Kinnings said: “I am extremely honoured to accept this role with the International Golf Federation as we continue to develop our sport globally and embrace the Olympic and Paralympic Movement.
“I have known Annika and Antony for a number of years, and I look forward to working together, alongside the individual member Federations and Tours, to showcase the inclusive nature of our game and to show the world that golf is a wonderful sport for all.”
Kinnings takes over as the IGF Chairman from former European Tour Group Chief Executive Keith Pelley, who recently joined Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd in Toronto, Canada.
A law graduate from the University of Oxford with more than three decades experience within the golf industry, Kinnings joined the European Tour Group prior to the 2018 Ryder Cup at Le Golf National in France and as Executive Director – Ryder Cup and has overseen the growth of the biennial contest’s Worldwide Partner programme. He also had overall responsibility for the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome – the most successful edition to be staged in Europe.
Additionally, Kinnings served as the European Tour Group’s Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Commercial Officer, overseeing the growth of the Tour’s commercial operation. Alongside the DP World Tour’s Board and the Executive Leadership Team, Kinnings helped secure the Strategic Alliance with the PGA TOUR in 2020 and was also central to the agreement with DP World to become title partner of the European Tour group’s main Tour at the start of the 2022 season.
Early in his career, Kinnings was a member of IMG’s legal team in London in 1989 prior to moving to its golf division in 1991 where he worked with and managed some of the world’s leading players in the professional game. He went on to become IMG’s Senior International Vice President and Global Head of Golf, leading the company’s worldwide golf business, comprising both clients and events, as well as managing its key relationships with all governing bodies and brands involved with the sport.
