Golf’s Ladies European Tour (LET) has announced Alexandra Armas will step down as chief executive in October after overseeing the commercial revival of women’s golf in Europe.
Armas was installed as the LET’s chief in January 2020 after serving as acting chief executive for four months following the departure of her predecessor Mark Lichtenhein.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Under her leadership, the once-dwindling LET has increased the number of tournaments on its schedule, while prize funds have more than doubled on the back of a strong commercial strategy.
In a statement, Armas said: “It has been an honor to serve as CEO of the Ladies European Tour and to contribute to the advancement of women’s golf.
“I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved together – from expanding the schedule and prize funds to building a stronger, more sustainable future through international collaboration. I want to thank the players, partners, board members, and the exceptional team at the LET for their support, passion, and commitment.”
At the time of her appointment, Armas had inherited a difficult situation. When she was asked to step into the role by Marta Figueras Dotti, chair of the LET board, the schedule had fallen to just 15 events annually, with only eight left in Europe itself. Diminishing prize funds compounded the situation, forcing some players to take part-time jobs outside golf to bridge the gap in income.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataWhile initially serving as acting chief executive, Armas played a key role in securing a strategic partnership with the lucrative US Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) – a landmark deal that marked a turning point for the LET.
That partnership created a “pipeline” for players to join the LPGA tour, which was key to earning financial support from Europe’s golfing federations and rebuilding the schedule.
While the partnership lasts, the LET has access to the LPGA’s vast resources and its team of staff. The two tours set an initial three-year criterion, at the end of which they could separate with little disruption to either if the project does not yield positive results.
If they choose to stay together, the partnership automatically renews for another three years, as it did in 2023.
Three months after striking that initial deal, the tour unveiled its biggest calendar in nearly a decade and record prize money – 24 tournaments, 15 of them in Europe, playing for a total prize pot of $19.8 million.
Armas was also tasked with building up the LET’s commercial side, which was virtually nonexistent when she took over the role.
Speaking to Sportcal at the time, she explained: “We don’t have a commercial team, so we get very little corporate support and hardly any commercial revenue into the company, and that’s been the biggest challenge for us in the past, trying to grow.
“The LPGA on the other hand have a great commercial team and many sponsors, which are easy pickings for us, and they have been reaching out to them [sponsors] saying ‘We not what assets in Europe that you can buy into,’ so that’s the starting point for us and we can build from there.
“Brands are funny, once you get one big brand in, they all want a piece of it – it’s just one of those things, but it can be difficult if you’re on your own, so it’s lucky that we can lean on the LPGA’s resources with that too.”
Just last year, the LET and LPGA jointly entered into a two-year commercial deal with Japanese photographic and imaging products company Nikon, while Theresa McCann was announced as the LET’s new commercial director in November.
The tour generated over $300 million in annual net sponsorship value in 2024, as well as over 30,000 hours of global TV coverage.
The golf body also appointed Mediadrive as its advertising sales agency to “manage and optimize” advertising opportunities across its website, mobile, and app.
Its biggest commercial partnership to date came two months after, meanwhile, securing Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund as the title sponsor for a revamped global series of five women’s events on the LET’s schedule.
The newly named PIF Global Series will feature five tournaments across three continents in 2025, with each event featuring both team and individual competitions, and a prize purse of $2 million for four of the tournaments.
The fifth tournament, the PIF Saudi Ladies International, has been added to the 2025 roster of events, offering a prize pot of $5 million, one of the largest in women’s professional golf.
Commenting on Armas’ tenure, Dotti has said: “Alex’s dedication to the LET and the women who compete on it has been extraordinary.
“She has led with courage, clarity, and care for the players and the broader golfing community. Her long-standing commitment to the LET, as a player, executive director, and in her current role as chief executive, has helped shape the modern identity of the LET.
"On behalf of the LET board, I thank her for her outstanding service, and I look forward to seeing how she continues to inspire and support the game she loves.”
The LET board has retained Elevate Talent, the same firm that recently led the search for the new commissioner of the LPGA US-based tour, (with Craig Kessler having been appointed to that role in May).
