As the CBS blackout on Time Warner Cable carries on, golf fans in New York, Los Angeles and Dallas will be the ones in the rough this weekend.
That's because the final two rounds of the PGA Championship — one of golf's four majors — is being carried by CBS, which recommends fans instead turn to TWC competitors like DirecTV and Verizon Fios. For its part, the cable company suggests consumers stream the tournament via PGA.com or tune in to Rounds 3 and 4 on TNT.
Either way, without a resolution before Saturday, Time Warner Cable subscribers in several major markets will have to find a different way to see whether Tiger Woods can win his first major since the 2008 U.S. Open (Woods is 6 strokes back after Thursday's first round of the PGA — not insurmountable, with three rounds to go).
Last year, a total of 347,000 viewers in those markets tuned in to CBS on the Saturday of the tournament. An additional 574,000 watched the tournament on CBS on Sunday. That weekend was up against the Olympic games on NBC. The previous year, 389,000 watched on CBS on Saturday, 719,000 on Sunday.
It's important to note that the above-quantified viewership is not entirely from Time Warner Cable customers — CBS was unable to provide numbers specific to each cable provider.
“We’d like nothing more than to have the PGA Championship available to all of our viewers," a CBS spokesperson told The Wrap. "However given Time Warner Cable’s action to drop CBS it will most likely not be possible for many in New York, LA, Dallas, among other places.
The network continued, "In most instances, there continue to be options for fans to explore other programming providers including Verizon FIOS, RCN, DirecTV and others," the spokesperson continued. "We look forward to being fully back on the air in these markets as soon as possible.”
Also read: CBS Slams Time Warner Cable Over Broadcast Fees for L.A. Lakers, Dodgers Games
CBS provided TheWrap with the ratings, share and total viewership for the PGA Championship in the three blacked-out markets from 2011 and 2012.
New York
Saturday, 2011: 1.6 rating/4 share, 109,000 viewers
Saturday, 2012: 1.7/4 135,000 viewers
Sunday, 2011: 3.5/7 329,000 viewers
Sunday, 2012: 2.8/7 223,000 viewers
Los Angeles
Saturday, 2011: 2.2/6 180,000 viewers
Saturday, 2012: 1.8/5 149,000 viewers
Sunday, 2011: 3.2/8 247,000 viewers
Sunday, 2012: 3.4/8 263,000 viewers
Dallas
Saturday, 2011: 2.9/7 100,000 viewers
Saturday, 2012: 2.0/5 63,000 viewers
Sunday, 2011: 4.2/9 143,000 viewers
Sunday, 2012: 2.6/5 88,000 viewers