Wednesday
Jan232008
"The two-network average showed an increase of 111%, or 4.0 compared with 1.9."
Thanks to reader Hugh for emailing this Thomas Bonk piece picked up in The Age, but run originally in today's L.A. Times. These numbers may cause dangerous health effects in tournament directors who never see Tiger Woods:
According to research that traced Woods' effect on television ratings in 2007, tournaments in which he finished in the top five had a 171% increase in CBS' ratings over those in which he did not play or wasn't in contention.
The ratings were 4.6 compared with 1.7.
In similar tournaments on NBC, the ratings increase was 59%, or 3.5 compared with 2.2.
The two-network average showed an increase of 111%, or 4.0 compared with 1.9.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008 at 06:48 AM
Reader Comments (5)
Does anyone know what the viewer ratings were like back when Jack and Arnie were playing?
Are we seeing something that has never been done before, in any sport???
Finchem can't move the ratings needle, but TIGER certainly can. Let's all recognize once and for all that Deane Beman and Tim Finchem have little to do with people wanting to be entertained by watching great players like Arnie, Jack, Watson, Ballesteros, Norman and Tiger.
Now, if the question for tournament directors is how to get the worlds number one player to play their event I suggest they ask Deane Beman, he, at the very least had Norman playing a varied schedule. Finchem can't be credited with as much. Taking it a step further, Beaman would never have allowed the Mercedes, Sony, Bob Hope and Buick in San Diego to be televised by a cable network all four rounds where the real exposure for these title sponsors can only be found on major network (CBS - NBC - ABC) television. Finchem is great at slaping himself on the back but in truth he has been the negative cause and effect of a sport sliding backwards, if it wern't for Tiger (IMMHO) Finchem would have been gone a long time ago.