LPGA Current Schedule For Next Year Has Just 14 Committed Events

The LPGA yesterday released a list of 14 events that are "committed to the tour next season" in an "attempt to show that the 2010 schedule is starting to shape up and to ease questions about just where the tour stands now," according to Larry Bohannan of the Palm Springs DESERT SUN. The 14 committed events is "down for the moment from 28 official money events in 2009," not including two planned events "that were never played." That means players presently are "looking at playing in 2010 for perhaps half of the nearly" $50M in purse money the LPGA "touted at the start of the 2009 season." Bohannan notes "only eight of the 14 committed events are in the United States, while two events, the Acapulco tournament and an event in the Los Angeles area in the spring, are first-year events." Meanwhile, the LPGA indicated there is a list of 15 events from the '09 schedule that are in "on-going discussions." The released list shows "how much work" LPGA Acting Commissioner Marty Evans and the tour still have to do in the coming months to "satisfy the players" (Palm Springs DESERT SUN, 7/22). Evans said, "I've got a couple of top priorities. Certainly, nailing down the 2010 schedule is critical. ... I want to finish up the negotiations. There are a number that are in varying states of discussion. And then we have a host of prospective partners that we want to move forward and get them to commit" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/20 issue).

STAR SEARCH: In Chicago, Carol Slezak asked with Evans replacing Bivens on an interim basis, "Where does the tour go from here? And why can't I shake the feeling that its fundamental problem is its lack of a charismatic star?" If the LPGA can "produce a great, compelling player, the rest will follow." Golfer Michelle Wie has yet to win a tournament, and if she is to "become the breakout star the LPGA needs, Wie must take the next step." Wie is 19 and "still has plenty of time," but "does the LPGA?" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 7/19).

WHO'S NEXT? NBC and Golf Channel analyst Dottie Pepper listed Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic Tournament Dir Judd Silverman, Frys.com Open President Duke Butler and LPGA Championship Exec Dir Alice Miller as her "under-the-radar favorites" to become the LPGA's next commissioner (GOLF.com, 7/20).