MARTIN SLUMBERS is to step down as chief executive officer (CEO) of the R&A by the end of 2024 after nine years in the role, the 63-year-old said on Wednesday.
Mr. Slumbers is also Secretary of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, and has been CEO since taking over from Peter Dawson in 2015. Mr. Slumbers will oversee the running of this year’s Open Championship at Royal Troon, the AIG Women’s Open at St Andrews and the Curtis Cup match at Sunningdale, before he steps down.
In his time as CEO, he led a merger with the Ladies’ Golf Union which came into effect in 2017, oversaw the modernization of the Rules of Golf in 2019 and the roll-out of the World Handicap System in 2020.
Mr. Slumbers was also involved in developing the new rules to limit the distance balls struck by the game’s elite players can travel, which will be introduced in 2028. — Reuters