Kanako Arai
Fostering the PGA Tour’s Asian presence
Shortly after graduating from Tokyo’s Keio University in 2017, Kanako Arai began her career with the PGA Tour. Her first opportunity with the tour – as a business development intern – was purely coincidental.
At the time, she had no knowledge of golf. In fact, she had learned about the opportunity after asking her former internship supervisor if he knew of any openings. Luckily, he had just met with the PGA Tour, which had recently opened its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Tokyo.
One individual he met with, Chris Lee, senior vice president and managing director, Asia-Pacific, mentioned he was seeking someone to join his team. Before long, Arai interviewed with Lee and learned about the PGA Tour’s vision to expand its presence in Asia.
“I am deeply appreciative that Chris took a huge chance on me and welcomed me into the team,” she said.
Since accepting the internship in August 2017, Arai has had a successful career with the PGA Tour. Once the internship concluded, she was immediately offered a full-time role as coordinator, business development, which she held until March 2020. From there, she was promoted to senior coordinator and, ultimately, manager of the business development department.
“Business development originally consisted of me and Chris Lee, and our primary focus was to secure a title sponsor for Japan's first-ever PGA Tour tournament,” she said. “We successfully found a partner with Zozo Inc. and had our inaugural event in 2019.”
In addition to seeking a title sponsor, Arai was involved in various projects outside of business development, eventually leading to a change in her department’s name (to business affairs) in April 2023. One year later, she received another promotion – to senior manager, business affairs – resulting in further responsibilities.
“I value being able to leverage my bilingual and bicultural background to bridge the gap between organizations in Asia and the PGA Tour’s U.S.-based headquarters.”
Currently, Arai is involved in managing several projects that are critical for the PGA Tour as it conducts its Asian operations. Projects’ focuses tend to shift from year to year. For instance, in 2024, she helped find a new title sponsor (Baycurrent) for the former Zozo Championship, while also securing a new host venue, Yokohama Country Club.
As she prepared for the launch of the Baycurrent Classic earlier this month, Arai managed all sponsor relationships. She’s also managing new, strategic initiatives that aren’t associated with any existing department in her office.
“I love that my role allows me to work across various areas of our business, rather than being confined to a single department,” she said. “This exposure allows me to garner a comprehensive understanding of our business and helps me connect the dots between different functions to determine what will be best for our business in Asia.”
Arai has an opportunity to engage with numerous stakeholders, too, from golf courses to golf associations to sponsors. While doing so, she’s constantly engaging with internal departments outside of Asia as well.
“Every day is different, and the learning is truly endless,” she said. “I also value being able to leverage my bilingual and bicultural background to bridge the gap between organizations in Asia and the PGA Tour’s U.S.-based headquarters.”
With almost 10 years of experience, Arai is excited about the future. There are countless opportunities to grow golf in Asia, and she can be highly involved in doing so.
“I’m eager to continue developing my skills so I can make an even greater contribution to the PGA Tour’s business growth in Asia,” she added. “I’m committed to playing an active role in advancing golf’s popularity throughout Asia.”
Chris Lewis
