2007 Tour Schedule Update...Sort Of

AP's Doug Ferguson gets the latest on the 2007 schedule and new TV deal from Tim Finchem. I'm not really sure what all of this means except that they still haven't figured out what they're going to do.

"You want to grow," Finchem said. "To compete effectively - even if you weren't going to grow, just to maintain your position - you look at who you're competing with. And everyone you're competing with is changing to get better, sometimes dramatically."

Finchem says there are still "a number of options," but two sources who are privy to the discussions said last week that the tour is focused on a playoff race that would begin shortly after the PGA Championship and include four tournaments that lead to the Tour Championship.

"You need to challenge yourself every few years and say, 'Are we taking all the steps necessary to allow us to compete effectively?'" Finchem said. "It may develop that you say, 'You know what? There's no better way to do it, so let's just leave it alone.' It's certainly easier to do that. But I think it's been good to challenge what we're doing, and I think the likelihood is we'll make some changes."

"It's taken a lot longer than we thought," Finchem said. "It's going to be very late in the year before we get to television (negotiations). I would be concerned about that, because we don't like to be within a year of starting the next season. But this year is a little different in the sense we've extended so many title sponsors."