Jay Monahan Profile: "Restoring Faith" In The PGA Tour?

Jim McCabe files an informative profile in this week's Golfweek on new PGA Tour Deputy Commissioner Jay Monahan.

The 43-year-old was named deputy last week and appears on track to replace Commissioner Tim Finchem in late 2016 or 2017.

He can cite impressive numbers – that PGA Tour players in 1995, Finchem’s first full year on the job, competed for $62.9 million and this year have $298 million up for grabs – to support his claim, but Monahan is adamant. To him, what the promotion means is, “I’ll work even more closely with and learn even more from the greatest commissioner in sports.”

Down boy, down!

Jay has plenty of well-deserved fans, especially because he's a golfer.

“But the thing is, Jay loved golf. He grew up with the game. His family ties to the game are enormous,” said Faxon, who wasn’t surprised when Monahan in 2008 took the job as director of The Players Championship.

“Jay is a golfer – and that was something that had been missing (high up) in our organization for a long time.”

And there was this from mentors Seth Waugh, Paul Spengler and an unidentified tournament official:

“Jay has opinions,” Waugh said, “but he doesn’t say yes blindly. He’ll say yes to something, then figure out how to make it work.”

Added Spengler: “It’s been a great rise to success, but it’s well-deserved. He’s honest and trustworthy.”

They are qualities that could serve the PGA Tour well because as profitable as business has been, it hasn’t been satisfying for everyone. Said one PGA Tour tournament official who has worked with Monahan and endorses him: “I could give you a list of tournaments that have been treated poorly or been abandoned by some in the PGA Tour. Jay does what he says he’s going to do every time. He will restore some of the faith in the Tour that has been lost.”