TGL's ratings rebound in Tiger Woods vs Rory McIlroy overtime thriller
Yesterday at 08:34 PM
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy faced off for the first time in the TGL arena on Monday night. They are co-founders of the league through their venture TMRW Sports and put on a show. It was the league’s most competitive match yet but was not the most watched. Josh Carpenter of Sports Business Journal has the latest ratings from TGL on ESPN.
“TGL’s four-week viewership trend. Week 1: 919K (9pm, Tuesday), Week 2: 1.05M (7pm, Tuesday), Week 3: 682K (7pm, Tuesday), Week 4: 864K (630pm, Monday),” Carpenter reported. “Yes, last night’s match was best yet, but guessing the early start time + different night kept the [average] below 1M.’
TGL has outperformed the ratings expectations to this point of the season but expected bigger numbers on Monday. The match was likely moved to Monday because of the ongoing PGA Tour West Coast Swing. With the Farmer’s Insurance Open ending on Saturday and the Pebble Beach Pro-Am coming up, they gave the players an extra day.
Fans should also note that TGL’s schedule is not routine like it was the first two weeks. They are back on Tuesday next week, then have a week off before a President’s Day triple header. TGL must hope fans respond to the schedule changes moving forward.
TGL got their competitive match
The first three matches of TGL were not very competitive. Each of them was over long before the 15th and final hole and didn’t provide many important shots. Monday night was a back-and-forth affair that led to the league’s first overtime. Jupiter Links won 4-3 in the closest-to-the-pin overtime after a fantastic singles session.
Jupiter Links and Boston Common finished the nine-hole threesomes set tied at one. The six-hole singles session featured two hammer throws, which doubles the worth of the hole, and a few big putts. It saw the teams get emotional after good and bad shots and fans in the arena getting involved.
TGL needed a competitive match to show the potential of the format and the competitive juices of the players. They got that with their two biggest stars with no big games going directly against it. But an issue from the match was the length, as they ate deep into the Duke basketball game that followed.
Things are still looking up for TGL as they look to bring fans to the PGA Tour. They have not seen that in the Tour ratings, with Torrey Pines’ ratings tanking this week, but they should turn around soon.
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