Director for local PGA Tour stop being replaced

For the third consecutive year, the Las Vegas PGA Tour stop will have a new tournament director.

When the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open tees off next Oct. 9, it will be under different stewardship as Ian Knight will not return to run the event.

Knight, who replaced Charlie Baron last spring, was hoping to continue his job by commuting between Las Vegas and his Menlo Park, Calif., home. However, the tournament's board wants someone full time in Las Vegas, and Knight was not willing to relocate.

"I support their decision," Knight said Wednesday from the Bay Area. "I was hoping to split my time between here and Las Vegas, but it's probably best that there's someone living and breathing the tournament there on a daily basis."

Tournament chairman Gary Davis said a search is under way for a replacement.

"We're looking at a couple of candidates who have experience running a PGA tournament that are willing to relocate," Davis said. "Ian did a great job, but the bottom line is we ... need someone to build relationships in the community, and I think it's important that the person we hire be part of the community."

Next year's tournament will have a different format. There will be a one-day celebrity pro-am Oct. 8 with just the pros playing the four days of the tournament, Oct. 9-12. The entire event will be played at TPC Summerlin.