Tiger Deserves 4.9 Million Shares In NBC/Universal For Single Handedly Saving Them Sunday

Not that those shares would get his attention, but hey, it's a gesture for making the putt and averting a disastrous Monday playoff.

From the PR folks at NBC/Universal/GE/Sheinhardt Wigs (that's for all 3 of you fellow 30 Rock watchers).

Woods Sixth Title at Bay Hill Scores Highest Event Rating in 7 Years & 23% Increase Over Last Year

NEW YORK – March 30, 2009 - NBC Sports' final round coverage of the Arnold Palmer Invitational yesterday (2:30-8 p.m. ET), which stretched into primetime, earned the best overnight rating for a golf event since the 2008 U.S. Open and the highest for any PGA TOUR event (excludes major championships) in more than two years (Jan. 28, 2007, Buick Invitational) according to Nielsen Media Research. The 4.9 overnight rating and 10 share was the best for the final round of Bay Hill in seven years (2002 - 5.7/11, Woods victory) and an increase of 23 percent over last year (4.0/9) which Woods also won with a birdie putt on the final hole.

The rating peaked at a 7.8/13 from 7:30-8 p.m. ET as Tiger Woods secured the one-shot victory with a birdie putt on the 18th hole as the sun was setting, his sixth Bay Hill title and first since last year’s historic U.S. Open victory.

The Bay Hill rating outperformed two of last year’s major championships: 48 percent higher than the final round of the British Open (3.3) and 75 percent greater than the final round of the PGA Championship (2.8).

Saturday’s third round coverage on NBC delivered a 2.7/6, 17% higher than last year (2.3/6).

Top metered markets for Sunday’s final round coverage of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on NBC are as follows:
1. Fort Myers, 11.6/20
2. Orlando, 10.6/20
3. West Palm Beach, 8.8/15
4. Tampa, 7.6/15
5. Providence, 7.4/12
6. Buffalo, 7.1/13
7 Milwaukee, 6.9/13
T8. Minneapolis, 6.4/14
T8. Baltimore, 6.4/11
10. Cleveland, 6.1/11