The surprise news of the Canadian's resignation came less than 24 hours after the R&A announced Martin Slumbers was retiring as head of the governing body later this year.

Now Pelley has stepped aside to take over Toronto's four sports franchises as head of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE).

He will be leaving at a sensitive time for golf, with the DP World Tour, alongside the PGA Tour, still in merger talks with the Saudi Public Investment Fund over a link-up with LIV Golf.

Pelley, who had been at the helm of the DP World Tour since 2015, will become President and CEO of MLSE, whose brands include the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs and NBA team Toronto Raptors.

"It has been an incredible honour to be the Chief Executive of this wonderful institution for the past eight and a half years," Pelley said on Thursday.

"When I came over from Canada back in 2015, I set out to create a culture of innovation and to grow our prize funds and our tour for our members by ensuring that we appealed to new, younger and more diverse audiences."

"Keith has been a truly transformative leader, both for our tour and for global golf," Eric Nicoli, Chairman of the European Tour group, said.

"So many of the changes we continue to see in the game today are either directly or indirectly because of his commitment to innovation and growth over the past eight and a half years."

Pelley will be replaced by Guy Kinnings, the current DP World Tour deputy CEO and executive director, on April 2.