Continuing a season-long trend, PGA Tour ratings hit another multi-year high last weekend.
Last Sunday’s final round of the PGA Tour Heritage Classic earned a 1.9 rating and 2.9 million viewers on CBS, up 36% in ratings and 29% in viewership from last year (1.4, 2.3M) and up 19% in both measures from 2016 (1.6, 2.5M).
Satoshi Kodaira’s playoff win was the highest rated and most-watched round at the the event in three years (2015: 2.3, 3.5M).
It was the 11th of the last 12 PGA rounds on broadcast television to hit a multi-year high in ratings and/or viewership. For the season, 18 of 24 have hit a multi-year high. Of the six exceptions, four aired opposite the Olympics.
Third round action last Saturday pulled a 1.3 and 1.9 million, up 18% in ratings and 23% in viewership from last year (1.1, 1.5M) and the tournament’s highest third round marks since 2015 (1.4, 2.0M).
CBS is now averaging a 2.0 rating and 3.1 million viewers for PGA coverage this season, up 18% and 16% respectively from last year. This season ranks as the highest rated on CBS in five years and the most-watched in six.
Lead-in coverage on Golf Channel had a 0.42 (+27%) and 648,000 (+39%) on Saturday and a 0.59 (+84%) and 898,000 (+80%) on Sunday.
[Numbers from Nielsen via ShowBuzz Daily 4.17; CBS Sports PR/Twitter 4.17]
