Most-Watched Final Round of The Open in Eight Years

(SOUTHPORT, ENGLAND) – NBC Sports Group’s comprehensive coverage of Jordan Spieth’s dramatic victory at The 146TH Open concluded Sunday with a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 4.97 million average viewers across NBC and NBC Sports Digital, as well as a 3.2 U.S. household rating (9:14 a.m.-2:08 p.m. ET), according to Nielsen Fast Nationals.

The 4.97 million TAD for The Open at England’s Royal Birkdale Golf Club was +1% vs. 2016 at Scotland’s Royal Troon (4.94 million TAD), with a combination of 4.91 million average TV viewers on NBC (Even vs. 2016) and 59,200 streaming average minute audience (37,592 average minute audience, +60% vs. ‘16) across NBC Sports’ streaming platforms. TAD measures consumption across multiple platforms, combining the Average Minute Audience (AMA) for television and digital.

This makes 2017 the most-watched telecast of The Open since the 2009 Final Round at Turnberry on ABC (5.55 million), which ended in a 4-hole playoff with Stewart Cink defeating a 59-year-old Tom Watson.

TV-only viewership on Sunday peaked with 7.33 million average viewers (1:15-1:30 p.m.) as Jordan Spieth clinched the Claret Jug with his winning putt, making him the Champion Golfer of the Year.

Most-Streamed NBC Sports Golf Event Ever – 100.8 Million Live Minutes:
Across all four days, The Open totaled 100.8 million live minutes of streaming, a record for an NBC Sports’ golf event, and a remarkable +96% vs. ‘16. Streaming also garnered 917,000 unique devices (+51% vs. ‘16) and an Average Minute Audience of 34,000 (+92% vs. ‘16) across 50 hours of coverage. Sunday’s Final Round garnered 20 million minutes of live streaming (+60% vs. ‘16), 300,000 unique devices (+19% vs. ‘16).

NBC Sports’ Coverage of The 146TH Open Final Round Additional Highlights:
· NBC's Final Round telecast is the only major championship with a final round viewership increase vs. 2016 year-to-date and is the most-watched golf telecast on NBC since Tiger Woods’ win in the final round of the 2015 Players (5.07 million).
· The 3.2 rating for NBC’s 2017 coverage of daytime finish of The Open is +4% vs. 2017 U.S. Open Final Round’s primetime finish on FOX (3.1 U.S. Household Rating).
· NBC’s Third Round coverage (3.11 million TAD) is the most-watched Saturday golf telecast on NBC since Saturday of the 2016 Ryder Cup (3.33 million TAD, 9 a.m.-7:17 p.m., Oct 1).

Golf Channel’s Second Year of Covering Golf’s Oldest Major Championship
· On Thursday with coverage of The Open’s First Round, Golf Channel was the #1 cable sports network by 135% and #7 out of all 114 Nielsen rated cable networks from 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
· On Friday with coverage of The Open’s Second Round, Golf Channel was the #1 cable sports network by 344% and #5 out of all 114 Nielsen-rated cable networks from 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
· The Open was the #1 sports telecast of the day on Friday by 46%.
· Golf Channel on Friday from The Open posted its most-watched day (567k average viewers) since Ryder Cup Friday in September 2016 and the network’s 4th most-watched day ever.