LIV Golf today announced that David Phillipps has been named Chief Financial Officer; Ross Hallett has been named EVP, Head of Events; Katie O’Reilly has been named EVP, Head of Team Business Operations; Tim Taylor has been appointed to a new EVP role and will also lead LIV Golf’s London office; and Pam Sacree has been named Head of Human Resources.
All of these new executive positions will be based in either LIV Golf’s New York or London offices and will start working over the coming weeks.
Phillipps joins LIV Golf from the Equinox Group, where he was Chief Financial Officer of the global collective of luxury lifestyle brands including Equinox, Equinox Hotels, Soul Cycle and Blink Fitness. Prior to Equinox, he served as the SVP of Finance at Endeavor, the global entertainment and sports company, which includes the talent agency William Morris (WME), IMG and the UFC.
Phillipps also worked for Starwood Hotels where he served as the CFO of both the Americas and Europe, Africa, and Middle East divisions as well as various corporate roles across FP&A and Investor Relations.
He held strategy and corporate finance roles with L.E.K. Consulting and Deloitte earlier in his career.
Phillipps will report to CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman and will be responsible for the management of all financial planning and analysis, budgeting, accounting, tax, financial reporting, procurement, and related functions across the global business.
Hallett brings to LIV extensive leadership experience across the golf ecosystem.
He most recently served as Senior Vice President and Head of Golf Events EMEA for IMG, and during more than 26 years in the industry has managed golf tournaments for each of the main golf tours and in every major territory around the world.
He managed a team of executives across event operations, marketing and communications, strategy, business development, partnership management and creative, while also coordinating a wider team responsible for broadcast, digital operations, course setup, legal, finance, ticketing and hospitality, and merchandise.
Hallett will report to Chief Operating Officer Lawrence Burian and will be responsible for leading world-class and innovative event delivery for all LIV Golf and International Series tournaments across the globe, including the development of events in new and emerging markets and further enhancement of LIV Golf’s five-star guest experience.
O’Reilly will lead LIV Golf’s Team Business Operations after serving as Chief Revenue Officer for the Philadelphia 76ers, where she oversaw all team-controlled revenue across multiple verticals including ticket sales and service, corporate partnership sales and partnership marketing, broadcast, merchandise and more.
O’Reilly previously served as the team’s Chief Marketing Officer overseeing all creative, digital content, fan development and brand efforts, leading the organization to global recognition in both a “Team of the Year” CLIO Award and “Cult Brand” distinction by The Gathering.
Prior to the Philadelphia 76ers, O’Reilly served as the Director of Partnership Marketing for Insignia Sports & Entertainment and as National Program Director for IMG College in New York City.
She also previously held positions with the National Basketball Association’s renowned Team Marketing & Business Operations group and at Madison Square Garden.
O’Reilly will report to Burian and will be responsible for building and managing all aspects of team business efforts to drive effective operations and management, brand development and commercialization while serving as the liaison between Team Management, Team Boards, and other core league-wide functions.
O’Reilly is a 2024 recipient of Sports Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 annual recognition.
Taylor takes on new responsibilities after managing LIV Golf’s global financial operations for more than two years.
The industry veteran has held leadership roles in international finance and information technology throughout his career and will help lead the continued growth of the league’s global business.
Sacree joins LIV Golf with a diverse background in human resources, strategic organizational development, and driving people-centric initiatives for high-profile international companies.
She has held human resources leadership roles with global and large U.S.-based organizations such as Madison Square Garden, Cablevision Systems Corporation and AIG.
Most recently, she served as Chief People Officer with First Agency and then Blue Stream Fiber, where she partnered with executive teams and leaders to assess the impact of the people function and identify strategies and projects that strengthen business priorities, organizational culture, and employee needs while enhancing the business scale and growth.
Sacree reports to Burian and is responsible for leading strategic people and engagement initiatives that reflect business priorities.
She will play a key role in driving the League’s talent management and organizational transformation while fostering a culture of collaboration, growth and innovation across offices in New York, West Palm Beach and London.
“LIV Golf is building a global organization with a team of talented professionals whose excellence is rivalled only by our players on the course,” said Norman.
“We’re proud to continue building on our tremendous success so far with the addition of top-flight executives across our business divisions.
Our players, our team franchises and our growing staff are laser-focused on the league’s long-term future, supporting the game, attracting more fans to the sport that we love, and establishing a truly international golf league.”
“We’re excited to welcome this team of proven and highly respected leaders whose breadth of experience makes them uniquely suited to help lead LIV Golf into the future,” said Burian.
“As LIV Golf continues to build on its momentum and transform the sport, dedicated and veteran professionals like David, Ross, Katie, Tim and Pam will be the backbone of our growing global businesses.
We’re thrilled to have these leaders on our team who share LIV Golf’s values, passion and commitment to elevating our league for years to come.”
“LIV Golf’s business model presents an exciting chance to grow and innovate golf globally, as we continue building on the strong foundation created over the last few years,” said Phillipps.
“On top of the world-class play on the course, LIV provides an improved and differentiated value proposition for sponsors, media partners and fans.
The potential for LIV is significant, and I’m excited for the journey ahead.”
“I’m thrilled to join this team of innovators leading a revolution in the global game of golf,” said Hallett.
“LIV Golf presents a unique opportunity to bring the sport to new fans and new markets in bold ways, and I believe in what the league is building.
I’m excited about the opportunity to support the League schedule, build meaningful new partnerships and grow the International Series both in its own right and to expand on existing pipelines into LIV Golf for players and fans.
I can’t wait to get started and support LIV Golf in its mission to deliver best-in-class competition and entertainment for fans around the world.”
“LIV Golf has made tremendous strides in expanding the golf ecosystem and I’m thrilled to join that effort,” said O’Reilly.
“LIV provides a unique opportunity to collaborate with the best golfers in the world in building 13 teams with global reach into established businesses with globally renowned brands, passionate fans, and strong commercial partnerships.
Along with LIV Golf’s world-class executive team, now is the time to continue the push towards innovation and focus on building sustained growth.”
The sport’s first truly global league, LIV Golf’s 2024 schedule features events in eight different countries.
With offices in New York, London and West Palm Beach, the league’s star-studded, international field features the sport’s biggest names including 2023 Masters Champion Jon Rahm (Legion XIII), five-time major champion and defending PGA Championship winner Brooks Koepka (Smash GC), 2022 Open Champion Cameron Smith (Ripper GC), 2023 LIV Golf Individual Champion Talor Gooch (Smash GC), 2020 U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau (2023 Team Champions Crushers GC), six-time major winner and World Golf Hall of Famer Phil Mickelson (HyFlyers GC), two-time major winners Dustin Johnson (4Aces GC), Bubba Watson (RangeGoats GC) and Martin Kaymer (Cleeks GC), and many more.
