One of the most popular golfers in the world winning at one of the sport’s most iconic venues delivered a strong audience for CBS this weekend.
Sunday’s final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am averaged 3.3 million viewers on CBS, the most-watched final round for the tournament since Daniel Berger’s win in 2021 drew 4.2 million viewers. (Jordan Spieth and Patrick Cantlay finished tied for third that year.)
The final round increased by 41% versus 2023 (2.27 million viewers), a weather-impacted round that forced a Monday finish for Justin Rose’s eventual win. Last year’s final round was not played again due to inclement weather. Wyndham Clark was crowned champion after 54 holes, and a replay of Saturday’s broadcast drew 1.2 million viewers during the normal Sunday window.
Still, McIlroy’s win gave CBS the most-watched PGA Tour broadcast since the final round of The Players Championship last March. According to CBS PR, coverage peaked at nearly 4 million viewers.
According to Josh Carpenter of Sports Business Journal, Golf Channel’s lead-in coverage during the early afternoon hours on Sunday also saw strong viewership. The window range from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET averaged 1.06 million viewers. It was the most-watched lead-in window on Golf Channel since last year’s WM Phoenix Open (1.10 million viewers) and the second most-watched lead-in on record.
Despite the great viewership numbers, not all golf fans were pleased — at least with one aspect of Sunday’s broadcast. During the handover between Golf Channel’s early coverage and the CBS broadcast, viewers missed the tournament leaders — including eventual winner Rory McIlroy — play one of the most recognizable stretches of holes in all of golf: No. 6 and No. 7 at Pebble Beach. Fans were rightfully frustrated, though CBS was generally praised for the rest of the broadcast.
In any case, it’s an encouraging start for the PGA Tour, which suffered from significant viewership declines most of last season. It turns out when someone of McIlroy’s stature is contending at a venue he calls a “cathedral of golf,” fans will tune in.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.