There may be no easier way to lift golf ratings than to have Tiger Woods play in an event he skipped the previous year.
Sunday’s PGA Honda Classic final round earned a 2.6 rating and 4.0 million viewers on CBS, up 44% in ratings and 45% in viewership from last year (1.8, 2.8M) and up 24% and 25% respectively from 2016 (2.1, 3.2M). Those telecasts aired on NBC.
Justin Thomas’ playoff win, in which Woods finished in a tie for 12th, was the most-watched final round of the tournament since 2012 (4.1M). In addition, it was the most-watched PGA round opposite the Olympic Games since the 2012 PGA Championship (4.9M).
In addition to the viewership highs, Sunday’s 2.6 rating tied the tournament’s second-best mark in the past 15 years.
Already this season, three PGA windows have exceeded four million viewers — the final rounds at Torrey Pines (4.1M), Phoenix (4.1M) and now the Honda Classic. Excluding majors, only one telecast all season topped the four million mark.
Third round action on Saturday had a 1.7 rating and 2.4 million viewers, up 42% in ratings and a third in viewership from last year (1.2, 1.8M) and up 21% and 16% respectively from 2016 (1.4, 2.1M).
The 1.7 rating is tied as the highest for third round coverage since 2004 (1.8).
With Woods having played in three of five tournaments this year, and making the cut at two of those three, PGA ratings are unsurprisingly on the rise. Of the ten windows on CBS this season, six have posted increases in ratings and viewership — each by at least 30 percent.
Lead-in coverage on Golf Channel delivered a 0.7 (+47%) and 1.1 million (+51%) on Saturday and a 1.0 (+60%) and 1.6 million (+63%) on Sunday.
[Wknd. numbers via ShowBuzz Daily 2.27]
