CBS' record-setting overnight Nielsen rating for
Sunday's final round of the PGA Championship, which featured
a playoff between Tiger Woods and Bob May, "registered
numbers that would do 'Survivor' proud," according to Ron
Rapoport of the CHICAGO SUN-TIMES. CBS Senior
VP/Programming Rob Correa: "It could not have worked out any
better. We saw what Tiger could do in a blowout; now we've
seen what he can do in a close match" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES,
8/22). CNNfn's Beverly Schuch noted the last half hour of
CBS' Sunday coverage "averaged nearly 25 million viewers."
Schuch: "And proof of Woods' appeal to younger viewers, CBS
scoring a 6.3 among adults age 18-49" ("Biz Buzz," CNNfn,
8/21). FSN's Jim Rome, on the match going into a playoff:
"This is exactly what golf needed. ... It's so much more
compelling when someone is there to push Tiger" ("Last
Word," FSN, 8/21). Noting the 10.0/23 Nielsen overnight
rating for Sunday's broadcast, CBS Sports President Sean
McManus said, "It's the first time [Woods] came from behind
to win a major, and the first time someone made him scramble
to win." In N.Y., Richard Sandomir writes that since CBS
"carries the most golf, it benefits the most when Woods
conjures his magic." CBS said that through the British
Open, golf events are averaging a 4.7 rating for tournaments
when Woods "contends or leads, but a 2.7 when he is not
contending or playing." Sandomir: "That's a 74 percent
Tiger Effect. For CBS, NBC and ABC, the 2000 Tiger Effect
is 104 percent" (N.Y. TIMES, 8/22).
HEAD TO HEAD: In Canada, TSN's coverage of Sunday's
final round of the PGA Championship was the network's "most-
watched golf program ever." An average audience of 884,000
viewers tuned in, with viewership peaking at more than 1.4
million between 7:00-7:30pm ET. Overall viewership for the
PGA Championship was up 51% from 290,000 viewers last year
to 439,000 viewers this year (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 8/22).
ELECTRONIC MEDIA notes the PGA coverage "put a slight
damper" on second-day coverage of the U.S. Women's Olympic
Gymnastics Trials, which posted a "second-ranked" 5.3/10
overnight rating from 7:00-8:00pm ET. But the second hour
of gymnastics, from 8:00-9:00pm ET, was up 66% to an 8.8/15
(ELECTRONIC MEDIA, 8/22). In Boston, Howard Manly writes
Sunday's PGA final round earned a "staggering" 22.3/38 local
rating during the event's last 30 minutes. In comparison,
Sunday's Bucs-Patriots preseason game on Fox from 4:00-
7:30pm ET earned a 10.5/22 local rating. Manly calls CBS'
PGA ratings "remarkable for golf" (BOSTON GLOBE, 8/22). In
Tampa, the PGA earned an 11.3/21 local rating, compared to a
19.6/33 local rating for the Bucs-Patriots on Fox. However,
during the playoff, "golf fans apparently switched over and
the PGA surged" up to a 19.5/31 (TAMPA TRIBUNE, 8/22).
THEY'VE GOT TO PRAISE YOU LIKE THEY SHOULD: CBS'
McManus: "People who never, ever watch golf -- wives and
young kids and daughters who never watch golf -- are tuning
in to watch Woods. I don't see it leveling off for a long
time" (AP, 8/22). McManus: "The best thing about the summer
of Tiger Woods is that all three networks, who have so much
invested in professional golf, had their moment in the sun.
NBC with the U.S. Open, ABC with the British Open and CBS
with the PGA Championship each benefited from these historic
athletic performances" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 8/22).
The N.Y. Post's Michael Shain, on Woods: "[Tiger] has really
single-handedly turned golf into a television event. ... It
really is a remarkable one man band in terms of ratings. ...
Tiger is going beyond that CEO kind of [golf] audience and
really getting a popular following and he could very well be
the guy who makes golf into a popular television sport"
("Biz Buzz," CNNfn, 8/21). Mediacom's Jon Mandel: "In the
heat of the summer, to find that the PGA can throw off
ratings like that shows the power of sports." Pilson
Communications President Neal Pilson: "Tiger's more than
sports. He's become a national figure" (USA TODAY, 8/22).
KARRIE ON? In Toronto, Mark Atchison notes suggestions
that Woods face LPGA player Karrie Webb in a made-for-TV
event and writes that while it "looks good on paper," the
likelihood of IMG, which handles both players, "ever
allowing either to be embarrassed is very remote. Besides,
Tiger's image would take a beating if he dominated Webb or,
heaven forbid, lost to her" (TORONTO STAR, 8/22).
THE TOP TEN: On the "Late Show," CBS' David Letterman
listed the Top Ten "Tiger Woods Pet Peeves." No. 10) PGA's
pointless insistence I complete all 18 holes before they
fork over cash. No. 8) Only "groupies" are doughy 60-year
old men. No. 6) You show a woman your long iron and she
says, "Nice putter." No. 5) Satan calls at all hours of the
night to remind you of the agreement. No. 4) When buying
personalized license plate at Disneyland, closest you can
get is "Timmy." No. 3) You play the best game of your life
and it's on CBS. No. 2) At press conference, not allowed to
admit, "I kicked everyone's ass because I'm much, much
better than they are." No. 1) How would you like to spend
all weekend watching golf? ("Late Show," CBS, 8/21).
