US Women's Open Ratings Down 19% From '08: How Come?

by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 15, 2009 11:55 AM EDT Comment 26 comments

The ratings for the US Women's Open are out and they're not all that great. Sports Media Watch reports:

Final round coverage of the U.S. Women's Open drew a 1.3 overnight on NBC Sunday, down 19% from a 1.6 last year, and the lowest overnight for final round coverage of the event since at least '97. Saturday's third round coverage drew a 1.1, down 21%.

Not good. What's worse is that the USWO has shown a consistent decline in ratings.

The 1.3 overnight is the lowest for the final round of the U.S. Women's Open since at least 1997. Since drawing a 3.2 in '06, overnight ratings for final round coverage of the event have declined 59%.

A curious correlation has developed between the champion (and contenders) in the event and the ratings.

This is a tough trend to swallow if you're a fan of the LPGA Tour and truly believe that there should be no negative impact on ratings based upon the nationality of contenders and champions.

In 1999 and 2002, Juli Inkster moved the needle a little bit. Karrie Webb did not. The argument that she was the David Duval of the LPGA Tour may well have impacted the ratings. The spikes in 2005 and 2006 were for single players - Michelle Wie's contention in 2005 and Annika's coronation (albeit in a playoff) in 2006. Cristie Kerr doesn't seem to bring fans into the fold when she wins (2007) or contends (2009).

The Sunday ratings for the last two Opens - both won by players of Korean descent - have been bad. Really bad. It seems that the issues with the ratings may be more easily pinned on who was not there than who was winning. There was no Annika this year, and she wasn't in contention last year. Lorena Ochoa does not move domestic meters. Michelle Wie wasn't in the field this year as she didn't qualify.

That is not to say that there is a direct link between Korean players winning the national championship and poor ratings. Americans were in contention in both of those Opens and the ratings were still lousy. Rather, it may speak to a few things - (1) the notion that women's sports may well not generate much interest in the general public or (2) the LPGA Tour lacks superstar power - other than Michelle Wie - that compels the public regardless of the languages they do or do not speak.

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I'll be honest....

I can personally attest to this. It’s not me being racist, it’s me wanting to watch people I know. Though Michelle Wie is American she has a very Korean last name. However, we know her. It is really hard to get to know the athlete when they do not speak English or speak it well. I love watching good golf as much as the next person, but for me to watch a womens sport I want to be able to ‘relate’ to them in some way, get to know them, like/dislike them. It’s hard to do that with ladies like Ji.

"I have come that you may have life, and life to the max"

by UNFNOLE on Jul 15, 2009 12:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I’ve said before that Americans want to watch Americans win. Or, with no alternative, they want a person that speaks English to win. It’s why so many Americans don’t care about soccer, or if they do, it’s the Premier League – not La Liga.

Email me any comments or questions at ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com.

by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 15, 2009 12:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Kerr is Korean ?

WHO KNEW ??

You’re basing statistical analysis of an entire final round based on who had the lead on the last putt of the day ? Not very solid. Kerr had the lead overnight, and wasn’t out of the tournament until the last 3 holes. That right there blows this idea that it was Ji and Kung who were the reason that nobody watched.

Sorry – my gut tells me that people were watching the last weekend of their baseball teams – we finally had a nice weather day over most of the country – so a lot of people (you and me included, RB) were on the golf course.

The other thing – still gut feeling – is the garbage over Bivens that got more attention than the tournament. The media yammered on so much about Bivens that I found myself flipping away all week to avoid another idiotic statement.

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 15, 2009 1:01 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I didn’t say the whole thing had to do with who won.

That is not to say that there is a direct link between Korean players winning the national championship and poor ratings. Americans were in contention in both of those Opens and the ratings were still lousy.

I do agree with you that this Biv mess may have had a negative impact. But 19%? I don’t think so. But, I do think this may destroy the notion that any PR is good PR.

Email me any comments or questions at ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com.

by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 15, 2009 1:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I blame most of this kind of thing on NBC and the feminization of their coverage of the Olympics – which has spread to every area of sports. It isn’t the game that actually matters anymore – it’s the “story” that people have been brainwashed into following. The idea wasn’t so bad – they wanted to include women in the audience, and women care less about the action than men – women want to know the gossip. The hole in their theory is that women don’t watch sports in the same percentage as men. Over time, the Olympics have fallen off the radar because they show more “stories” than events – the vignet has become more important than the game.

Now we have to “CONNECT” with the player on some ridiculous emotional level – we are supposed to “care” about the player and their story. People used to pull for great players because they performed. What they did away from the field was none of our business unless we found out that they were cheating or doing harm to someone else. What we see today is paparazzi and tabloid reporting – which appeals to women more than men – as the central focus of sports instead of the sport itself.

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 15, 2009 1:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

To some extent that is true. My feeling is that sports where there are not constant action suffer. They suffer because they need SOMETHING to fill the gap between the action. Seemingly, that’s personality or backstory or some kind of unathletic hook.

Email me any comments or questions at ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com.

by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 15, 2009 2:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

what sports would that be ?

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 15, 2009 3:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

maybe the print media rode the Bivens thing too much

but I think I only heard ESPN bring it up a couple of times and maybe NBC did once. I think the ratings were down because:

1) Michelle Wie wasn’t there.
2) Many people think LPGA means “KLPGA” now.
3) A lot of people don’t like Cristie Kerr even though she’s American

by hound dog on Jul 15, 2009 1:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

i forgot one

4) Paula Creamer shot her way out of the championship on Saturday.

by hound dog on Jul 15, 2009 1:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, I think all of those reasons pretty well sum it up. So, why then does nobody give a crap about Cristie Kerr?

Email me any comments or questions at ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com.

by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 15, 2009 2:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Here's a solution

Have IK Kim put a blonde wig on and change her name to Ingrid Johansson(Or Hansen, or Myklbust). Will fans focus on the blonde hair and wonder if someone has lost their mind?(Besides me)

by Bill Jempty on Jul 15, 2009 2:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

does IK…errr….Ingrid know you’re stalking her ? :-)

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 15, 2009 3:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

it's not that they don't care about Kerr

It’s that they think she’s a b-tch.

by hound dog on Jul 15, 2009 6:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

the next frivilous law suit...

…how about NBC and the USGA suing Michelle Wie for not playing well enough to get into the Open ? :-D

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 15, 2009 1:59 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Morgan Pressel effect?

That great rating when Birdie Kim won must be because Morgan was in contention down the stretch. I hereby proclaim her—and Hilary Lunke—the saviors of the LPGA and require that each wins every other 4th week.

by The Constructivist on Jul 15, 2009 4:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Hahahahaha. That’s awesome :)

Email me any comments or questions at ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com.

by Ryan Ballengee on Jul 15, 2009 4:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Hmm…I don’t know TC. You know – you start encouraging foot stamping temper tantrums and the next thing you know, you have players pulling hair and rolling around on the ground…followed by oil and mud wrestling…and….ummm…hey – you could be on to something !!! :-D

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 15, 2009 4:49 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

here's another

Cristie Kerr is killing the tour.

I kill myself!

by The Constructivist on Jul 15, 2009 11:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

wonder what the ratings were in Japan, btw

At Mostly Harmless, I’m about to post a taste of the kind of coverage the Miyazatos and Ueda got at the USWO on Japanese tv.

by The Constructivist on Jul 15, 2009 4:29 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Interesting comments by everyone…and I think everyone has good points.
I agree with UNFNOLE’s comments about wanting to connect with the players (but maybe that’s because I’m a girl!)
CG’s comments were interesting…and probably true. But for me, the connection makes me a fan of a player, but I DO watch golf for the sport, not just to watch my favorite players. I appreciate great play, but I’ll admit that if my favorite players are in contention I’ll be more apt to make time to watch.
I’m also a sucker for the underdog, so I was rooting to Jean Reynolds.
And I’ll admit Christie Kerr is not on the top of my fan list…but I was rooting for her on Sunday – maybe because she’s an American??

The crowds looked good though!

by red tees on Jul 15, 2009 10:27 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Kerr wasn't even the low american

It was Candie kung

by Bill Jempty on Jul 16, 2009 8:08 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I had forgotten that she had gotten her US citizenship. She even gave up her citizenship to Taiwan.

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Jul 16, 2009 11:55 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

connection suggestions

Check out Brian Heard’s profiles of various Asian players at Women Sport Report. Check out Happy Fan’s Seoul Sisters blog and Seoul Sisters.com. And check out Hound Dog LPGA and Mostly Harmless….

I was pretty pumped about the leaderboard b/c I’ve been hoping for a Candie Kung comeback for years, I’m a fan of In-Kyung Kim, and my favorite player, Ai Miyazato, played her last 68 holes in E (too bad about those 1st 4). But it became clear to me that I’m a much bigger fan of Ai-chan than anyone except Moira Dunn (old golfing buddy)—when she’s in contention, I’m pumped up, but with Inky and Candie, I was less nervous for them.

Everyone has favorites.

by The Constructivist on Jul 15, 2009 11:36 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs