JACKSONVILLE, USA // Jon Podany is currently Chief Commercial Officer of the LPGA. In this role Jon is responsible for the business/commercial side of the LPGA, including sales and marketing, television, digital media, tournaments/title sponsors, branding and creative services, and licensing.

Jon joined the LPGA in March, 2010, after a successful 15 years with the PGA Tour, and was one of new LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan’s first key hires. The LPGA has undergone a dramatic resurgence in the past six years since Mike and Jon came onboard – the tournament schedule has grown from 23 to 35 events, prize money is up from $40 million to $67 million, revenues are up more than +50% and the LPGA’s fan base is up significantly across all key metrics (television viewership, website visitors, social media following, international reach, etc.).

Prior to the LPGA, Jon was with the PGA Tour for 15 years from 1995 – 2010. Jon started as the Director of Business Development responsible for securing sponsorship relationships, was quickly promoted to Vice President of Business Development, then asked to run Brand Marketing for 5 years, and finally returned to lead Business Development as a Senior Vice President from 2005-2010.

During Jon’s Business Development tenure, he was instrumental in securing more than $2 billion in sponsorship revenue, including many of the PGA Tour’s biggest deals such as FedEx, BMW, Shell Oil and IBM. While managing the PGA Tour’s brand, Jon spearheaded the “These Guys are Good” campaign, played a key role in the development of the “ShotLink” scoring system, rebranded the “Senior PGA Tour” to “Champions Tour,” and launched several charity campaigns such as “Giving Back – The Heart of the PGA Tour” and the “Drive to $1 Billion.”

Jon’s career began at Procter & Gamble from 1987 – 1995 where he worked on several iconic brands, including Ivory, Oil of Olay, Safeguard and Pert Plus. Jon was the Brand Manager of Safeguard soap at age 26 and then became Brand Manager of Pert Plus, which at the time was one of the biggest brands in the Beauty Care Division.

Jon received a B.S. in Finance from Miami University (Ohio) in 1987. He played quarterback on Miami’s football team for two years, was President of his fraternity and President of a junior honorary organization.

Jon resides in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, is married and has three daughters.