After opening at a 17-year viewership high, the PGA Tour’s return at Colonial finished at a 16-year mark.
Sunday’s final round of the PGA Tour at Colonial averaged a 2.1 rating and 3.09 million viewers on CBS, per Nielsen fast-nationals — the tournament’s largest final round audience since 2004 (3.98M). The 16-year high bookended a tournament that opened with its largest first round audience since 2003.
Daniel Berger’s win, which peaked with a 2.6 and 3.88 million from 5:45-6 PM ET, increased 50% in ratings and viewership from last year (1.4, 2.06M) and 62% and 57% respectively from 2018 (1.3, 1.97M).
The Colonial was the first PGA Tour event since the season was halted in mid-March. Compared to the previous final round at Bay Hill on March 8, ratings increased 26% (from 1.7) and viewership 19% (from 2.59M), with the caveat that the March telecast faced the once-usual slew of competing sporting events.
For the season, it ranks third among PGA Tour telecasts behind the final round at Pebble Beach in February (2.3, 3.51M) and the final round at Torrey Pines in January (2.1, 3.25M). Keep in mind that a number of events that would have rated higher — the Players Championship, Masters and PGA Championship — were truncated or postponed.
Including exhibition events, Sunday’s telecast was no match for “The Match” last month, the two-on-two competition pitting Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady (5.8M). It comfortably topped “Driving Relief,” whose four-person field consisted of Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff (2.35M).
Third round action on Saturday averaged a 1.5 and 2.13 million, up 50% in ratings and 43% in viewership from last year (1.0, 1.49M) and up 50% and 44% respectively from 2018 (1.0, 1.48M). The third round figures exceeded all final rounds at the tournament since 2016 (1.9, 2.93M).
[Nielsen estimates from CBS Sports]
