TNT, TBS, truTV and HLN combined to average 5.8 million viewers for “The Match II” on Sunday, marking the most-watched golf telecast ever on cable TV. The one-day charity event, which featured Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning defeating Tom Brady and Phil Mickelson, peaked at 6.3 million viewers from 5:45-6:00pm ET. The four-network average of 5.8 million was just above what ESPN and ESPN2 recently averaged for 10 episodes of “The Last Dance” (5.6 million), but below the 6.3 million viewers for the return of the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington on Fox on May 17. For some golf comparisons: the 5.8 million is better than three of the last five final rounds of the U.S. Open on Fox. It also topped the final round for the ’19 PGA Championship on CBS (5 million for Brooks Koepka’s win), but was well below the final round from ‘18 when Koepka held off Woods (8.5 million on CBS). “The Match II” topped the final round of the ’19 Open Championship on NBC (3.7 million viewers on NBC for Shane Lowry’s win), but was well below the 6.5 million viewers in ’18, when Woods had a lead on Sunday before Francesco Molinari eventually won (Austin Karp, THE DAILY).
JUSTIN.TV: PGA Tour regular Justin Thomas served as an on-course reporter for the event, and GOLF.com's Dylan Dethier wrote Thomas "was a revelation." He was "effortlessly himself -- insightful and confident." He "added to the conversation but didn’t feel any need to fill empty space unnecessarily" (GOLF.com, 5/24). USA TODAY's Nate Scott wrote Thomas, 27, "stole the show." He "consistently made the event more fun, more personable." Scott: "Thomas was perfect for the event, and I can imagine every golf TV executive in the world right now is counting down the days until he retires and they can get him in the broadcast booth" (USA TODAY, 5/25). Golf writer Geoff Shackelford wrote Thomas' "knowledge of the course and quick adoption of the medium was impressive, particularly [how] confidently and succinctly he delivered his points" (GEOFFSHACKELFORD.com, 5/24). GOLFCHANNEL.com's Rex Hoggard wrote Thomas is "going to be the game’s most insightful and straightforward television analyst in 25 years," as he made "numerous unfiltered observations" (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 5/24).
