With the Olympics as a major culprit, final round coverage of the PGA Championship earned the second-lowest rating in three decades.
Final round coverage of the 2012 PGA Championship drew a 3.4 final rating and 4.884 million viewers on CBS Sunday afternoon, down 17% in ratings and 20% in viewership from last year (4.1, 6.107M), and down 21% and 25%, respectively, from 2010 (4.3, 6.511M).
This marks the lowest rated and least-viewed final round of the PGA Championship since 2008 (2.8, 4.020M) — the last time the event aired opposite the Olympic Games.
Overall, the 3.4 rating is the second-lowest for the final round of the PGA Championship of the past three decades. Only the 2008 final round earned lower numbers.
Of the seven lowest rated final round telecasts since 1982, four have taken place in the past five years alone. The only exception was 2009, when Tiger Woods‘ second-place finish to Y.E. Yang earned a 6.6 rating — the seventh-highest final round rating since ’82.
Even compared to non-major tournaments this season, the 3.4 rating is not particularly impressive. The Memorial (3.5), the Northern Trust Open (4.2), the Arnold Palmer Invitational (4.3), the AT&T National (4.4) and the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am (4.9) each drew higher final round ratings this year.
On Saturday, third round action drew a 2.0 and 2.801 million viewers — down 13% in ratings and 16% in viewership from last year (2.3, 3.338M), and down 29% and 31%, respectively, from 2010 (2.8, 4.085M).
Saturday’s telecast included over two hours of rainout coverage.
Ratings For the Final Round of the PGA Championship
Past three decades
(Weekend numbers from Sports Business Daily)
