There was some discussion down below on the post on Lorena Ochoa's opening round at the HSBC about the LPGA television deals. Or lack thereof. The HSBC Champions is getting only a one-hour highlight show on the Golf Channel, but we're probably lucky - given the time differences - that it's getting any U.S. TV time at all.

I thought it would be interesting to take this opportunity to explain the LPGA's TV deals.

There are two ways an LPGA tournament can get televised:

1. Right-fee purchases by the network. For example, the PGA Tour's TV deal is entirely rights-fees. The networks pay a negotiated fee to the PGA Tour for the rights to broadcast specific events. The NFL TV deal is rights-fee, as another example.
2. Time buys. Time buys involve the organization that wants its event televised purchasing a block of time on the network, and the network airing the requested programming. It's up to the organization whose event is being televised to sell advertising and - hopefully - recoup its investment or make a profit.

I contacted Sandi Higgs, the LPGA's Senior Director of Television and Emerging Media (Sandi has a cool title; henceforth, I wish to be known as the Senior Director of Blogging and Emerging Media for Waggle Room) and asked her about the LPGA's TV deals.

"Nearly all LPGA telecasts are time buys," Higgs said. "All of our events on (the major broadcast) network are time buys and all of our ESPN events are time buys.

"Golf Channel events are slightly different in that for up to 10 Golf Channel events, the LPGA does receive a bit of a rights fee for each event, but it's not a large sum."

So here's the deal:

1. LPGA majors negotiate their own TV deals.
   
2. Any other LPGA events on the broadcast networks are there via time buys; all of the LPGA's ESPN events are time buys.
   
3. The Golf Channel has a rights-fee package - the network pays the LPGA - for "up to" 10 tournaments. Any tournaments beyond those 10 that air on the Golf Channel would be time buys.

But then, if the LPGA were making lots of money on its time buys, it wouldn't need to do time buys. The networks would recognize that advertiser interest and ratings were sufficient to warrant bidding on the rights.

Time buys are the fallback position. But they do have one good feature (aside from being the only other way to get your programming on the air, that is): flexibility.

Case in point: The NW Arkansas Championship. It was rained out last year, but no television coverage was planned anyway. This year, the LPGA snagged Proctor & Gamble as title sponsor. The event changed dates, and one reported reason for the date change is that P&G is going to get the tournament a broadcast network slot. That will be a time buy, either by the giant P&G itself, or by the LPGA (surely with the promise of enough P&G ad buys to recoup its investment).

The nature of the LPGA TV deals also explains why most tournament pages on LPGA.com do not yet list any TV information. The specifics of that TV coverage - part of the Golf Channel's rights-fee package, or a time buy? - may not be determined yet. Or whether there is going to be a time buy may not be determined yet.

So, to sum up: In the U.S. television market, the sad fact is that the LPGA has to pay to get most of its tournaments on the air. This is certainly another reason the LPGA is moving more strongly into Asia, where women's golf is hugely popular and where the LPGA should be able to do more rights-fee deals.