Tiger Woods’ presence on the greens and fairways was sorely missed by the PGA Tour, which achieved a massive spike in ratings during his return to the course.
Over the weekend, Woods competed alongside his son, Charlie, in the PNC Championship in Orlando, Florida. The family affair marked his first time playing since undergoing a sixth surgery on his lower back in September.
Tiger Woods’ presence at the PNC Championship provided the PGA Tour with a ratings boost (Image: Getty Images)
Prior to the Father/Son Challenge, Woods’ last tournament appearance came at The Open Championship back in July. Over the last four seasons, he’s only managed to make 13 combined starts on the PGA Tour while battling a myriad of health setbacks.
Though Team Woods were ultimately forced to settle for second place behind Team Langer, the duo provided fans with several unforgettable moments throughout the weekend – perhaps no more memorable than Charlie’s first-ever hole-in-one on the par-3 fourth hole.
“That was the thrill of a lifetime to be able to have that moment with Charlie, make his first hole-in-one, [daughter] Sam on the bag, just our family and friends. That’s what this event is about. It’s about bonding and family,” Woods said.
“I know we didn’t win, but it was the fact that we competed. No one really made a mistake out there. We had to earn it, and that’s what you want to have. Hats off to Langers. They played amazing.”
Tiger Woods and his son, Charlie, placed second in the PNC Championship ( Image: Getty Images)
Woods’ dominant performance was a welcome sight for fans, many of whom tuned in to watch the golf legend and his son join forces. According to Sports Media Watch, day one of the PNC Championship averaged 2.92 million viewers across Nielsen and Adobe Analytics – a whopping 147% increase from last year.
The audience turnout additionally marked the highest-ever on day one of the tournament dating back to 1995. The second day, meanwhile, averaged 1.42 million – up 32% from 2023.
The PNC Championship’s strong viewership numbers – which can likely be attributed to what many have called the ‘Tiger effect’ – are a stark contrast to the dwindling figures of other major tournaments this year.
Back in July, the 152nd Open Championship garnered its smallest audience since 2015 after only 3.39 million viewers tuned in. Several months earlier, the final round at the Masters additionally suffered a 20% drop in viewership from the year before.
Addressing the dip in ratings, Rory McIlroy attributed the lackluster viewership to the ongoing feud between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. “If you look at the TV ratings of the PGA Tour this year, they’re down 20 percent across the board. That’s a fifth. That’s big. I would say the numbers on LIV aren’t great either in terms of the people tuning in,” he said earlier this year.
“I just think with the fighting and everything that’s gone on over the past couple of years, people are just getting fatigued, and it’s turning people off men’s professional golf, and that’s not a good thing for anyone.”
