A-B EYES WOMEN'S SPORTS; COULD IT LAND WTA TITLE DEAL?

          A-B is "exploring sponsorship possibilities" with the
     WTA Tour, but company VP/Media & Sports Marketing Tony
     Ponturo declined to say whether A-B was interested in the
     Tour's title sponsorship, according to Jennifer Allen of
     BRIDGE NEWS.  Ponturo did say that he was "happy with the
     exposure the company got as a sponsor" of the WTA's Pilot
     Pen Championships held last month in CT.  Ponturo: "We were
     impressed with what we saw.  We are interested to learn more
     about women's tennis.  We are looking into what are the
     sponsorship opportunities."  Ponturo, on A-B's recently
     renewed WNBA sponsorship: "There is an expectation of what
     we want for the dollars we're giving.  On NBC, you like to
     see it do a 2 [national Nielsen rating] or a little more on
     a household ratings" (BRIDGE NEWS, 9/17).  NBC Sports
     finished with a 1.5/5 this season (THE DAILY).