PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA TOUR announced today that longtime executive Bill Calfee, who has served as President of the Web.com Tour since 2006, has decided to retire at the end of this year.
Further, the TOUR announced that Dan Glod, Senior Vice President and Chief of Operations of the Web.com Tour, is being promoted to President, effective January 1, 2017. Following the transition, Calfee will continue to assist the Web.com Tour on strategic initiatives through 2017.
“We greatly appreciate all that Bill has done for the PGA TOUR since joining the staff 25 years ago,” Commissioner Tim Finchem said. “In particular, he has played a tremendous role in the growth and success of the Web.com Tour. As a former member of the PGA TOUR, Bill has maintained a keen sense of awareness of the members’ best interests while applying his experience to help build the overall quality and business aspects of the Tour. Overall, he has been a great asset for the entire PGA TOUR and we are pleased that Bill will consult on important aspects of the Web.com Tour over the next year as Dan settles into his new role.”
A 1971 economics graduate of the University of Maryland, where he was Scholar-Athlete of the Year as a senior, Calfee competed on the PGA TOUR from 1976-1985. He started his own financial planning and investment consulting business in Tampa, before being hired by Finchem in 1991 as the TOUR’s Director of Player Benefits and Services.
Calfee became Vice President of Player Relations in 1993, and in 1995 was placed in charge of Competitions for the PGA TOUR, PGA TOUR Champions and the Web.com Tour. In 1999, he was named Chief of Operations of the Web.com Tour before stepping into his current role in 2006.
“I’ve been extremely fortunate to spend virtually my entire career with the PGA TOUR as a player and on the business side,” Calfee said. “I’ll be forever grateful for the opportunity that Tim offered to me to come work at the TOUR in 1991, and later to oversee the Web.com Tour. I feel we’ve made tremendous strides in building the Tour over the past decade, both in terms of growth and consistently producing tremendous players on the PGA TOUR, and I’m proud to have played a role in that.”
Under Calfee’s watch, the Web.com Tour has had a number of significant developments, including Jacksonville-based Web.com being introduced as the new umbrella sponsor in 2012 through a 10-year agreement.
“Sponsorship of the Web.com Tour has proven to be a good fit for us and an important part of that has been Bill’s passion and commitment to the Tour, sponsors and players,” said David Brown, Web.com’s Chairman, CEO and President. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with Bill over the past four years and sincerely appreciate his strong commitment to looking out for our best interests and providing value for our involvement. Bill will be leaving with a strong team in place and I look forward to seeing how the Web.com Tour will continue to evolve in serving the greater golf community.”
Another major development under Calfee’s guidance was the Web.com Tour’s role of becoming The Path to the PGA TOUR in 2013 by awarding all 50 TOUR cards each year, half from the final Regular Season standings and half based on performance in the new four-tournament Web.com Tour Finals that were implemented.
The Tour also has developed a stronger international flavor, evidenced this year with 86 members representing 21 countries outside the U.S. and six tournaments being held in five Latin American countries.
The Web.com Tour’s overall influence on makeup and success on the PGA TOUR has continued to increase, as well, as three out of four TOUR members this year have Web.com Tour roots. The number of PGA TOUR victories by alumni since the Tour’s inception in 1990 has risen to nearly 450.
Glod has served in his current role since 2014, working closely with Calfee on business operations and strategy. He came to the PGA TOUR in 2003, starting in Business Development/Corporate Marketing with various roles of increasing responsibility, culminating as Vice President in 2010. Glod has also held leadership roles with PGA TOUR Champions and THE PLAYERS Championship. A graduate of the University of Florida, Glod began his career in golf as a Golf Professional in 1995 and spent several years in the financial industry prior to joining the TOUR.