The return of live golf was no ratings blockbuster, but it did well enough under the circumstances.
Sunday’s “Driving Relief” charity golf event averaged 2.35 million viewers across NBC, NBCSN, Golf Channel and digital platforms, which would rank just tenth out of the 19 golf telecasts on broadcast television this season, and last among the ten Sunday windows.
The previous golf window on broadcast — the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on March 8 — averaged 2.59 million on NBC. Viewership was not dramatically higher than the 2.16 million CBS averaged for a re-air of Tiger Woods’ year-old Masters victory on April 12.
It is worth noting that “Driving Relief” was an exhibition consisting of a four-player field. While participants Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson are big names in golf, they lack the drawing power of Woods, Phil Mickelson, or even Jordan Spieth.
It is also worth noting that the event faced formidable competition from the return of the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington, which averaged 6.32 million on FOX.
Even with the relatively soft numbers, “Driving Relief” ranks as the 15th-most watched sportscast since the majority of events were called off on March 11-12, trailing only the ten episodes of ESPN’s “The Last Dance” docuseries, all three nights of the NFL Draft, and the aforementioned NASCAR race.
[Nielsen estimates from NBC Sports]
