With Tiger Woods flirting with his first major victory in a decade, British Open ratings hit an 18-year high in the metered markets.
Sunday’s final round of the British Open earned a 5.0 overnight rating on NBC, up 38% from last year (3.6), up 28% from 2016 (3.9) and tied as the highest for the tournament since Tiger Woods’ first victory there 18 years ago (2000: 7.5). This year’s final round matched 2005 and 2006, also won by Woods.
Woods entered the final round in a tie for sixth, just four shots off leader Jordan Spieth. Woods at one point held a share of the lead on Sunday before ending up back in sixth.
The 5.0 is the highest for any non-Masters major telecast since 2015, when the PGA Championship scored a 5.1. Keep in mind overnights do not include NBC’s first two hours of coverage from 7-9 PM ET. Lopping off those first two hours has been the traditional practice dating back to when ABC carried the tournament.
Overnights peaked at a 6.7 from 1-1:30 PM ET, the second-highest rated half hour of the season.
Since returning to broadcast television two years ago, the final round has had at least a 3.6 overnight each year. In the previous six years on cable, overnights reached that mark just once.
[Numbers from NBC Sports]
