Tiger Woods’ prolonged absences and poor play have robbed the PGA Tour of its face and left the world without an undisputed top golfer. With the U.S. Open under way and Tiger at home on his couch, NBC and ESPN are also left wondering whether anyone will tune in.
The “Tiger Effect” is more fact than suggestion at this point — it has been demonstrated time and time again. Last year’s Open was up 35 percent from the year before, due in large part to the presence of Woods and Phil Mickelson near the top of the leaderboard. It was the best final-day rating for an Open that Woods did not win in almost a decade.
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Ratings dip when Woods is not in contention. They plummet when he is not even involved.
Back in 2008 when he missed the British Open and PGA Championship for the first time in the 21st century, both events posted their lowest TV ratings in more than 15 years — the PGA’s were the lowest ratings of any major in 36 years.
ESPN, which carries parts of the first two rounds, began its coverage Wednesday with an hour-long special during which its own Scott Van Pelt and Andy North spoke to the difficulty of identifying a top player. Neither North, nor fellow analyst and former pro Curtis Strange saw a clear-cut favorite.
Even more disconcerting for ESPN and NBC, the latter of which carries not just parts of the first two rounds but all of Saturday and Sunday, is the recent dominance of unexpected winners and European players. A different player has captured each of the last 10 majors, and international players have won five of the last six. This year, early results point to a continuation of this trend, as 22-year old Rory McIlroy, who hails from Northern Ireland, has taken a big lead on day two.
If there is one person who can garner ratings over the weekend, it is Mickelson, ever the fan favorite. In a news conference earlier this week, Mickelson rejected the notion that there is a paucity of skilled America golfers, saying that there was in fact a “plethora.”
Still, questions remain about how much these youngsters and top foreigners can offset Woods’ absence.
