On an Sunday afternoon bereft of major sporting events, the WGC Match Play scored a solid bump in the overnights.
Final day coverage of the PGA/WGC Match Play Championships earned a 2.2 overnight rating on NBC Sunday afternoon, up 22% from last year (1.8) and up 10% from 2014 (2.0). The 2.2 is the highest for any day of the Match Play Championships since 2012, when Sunday coverage drew a 2.5.
Last year’s coverage aired in mid-May opposite the NBA Playoffs and NASCAR, and coverage in 2014 aired in February on CBS opposite NBC’s Olympics coverage.
By contrast, this year’s coverage faced an unusually light slate of sporting events. The NCAA Tournament Elite Eight did not air until the evening, and both the NBA on ABC and NASCAR on FOX had the week off. The only other sporting event on broadcast Sunday afternoon was the tape-delayed NCAA Women’s Frozen Four final, which had a 0.5 overnight on CBS.
Saturday’s action drew a 1.7 overnight, down 15% from last year, when coverage aired in primetime after the Kentucky Derby (2.0) but up 13% from coverage opposite the Olympics in 2014 (1.5).
(Wknd. numbers via Sports Business Daily)
