AdAge On What The Open's 18-year Ratings-High Means

Anthony Crupi of AdAge takes an in-depth look at the Tiger Woods effect on Open Championship ratings and overall in 2018.  The Open final round out-rated the U.S. Open for the first time. 

Of note is the impact on other tournament numbers enjoying a small bump even when he isn't in the field, suggesting (possibly) that he has had an overall impact on interest in golf. 

Also of note is the boost in ad spending and ad approach in this little renaissance. 

Crupi notes:

Among the markers who spent the most in order to bask in Tiger's reflected glory were Mercedes-Benz, Geico, Rolex, Pacific Life, Travelers, U.S. Bank, Farmers Insurance, Toyota and Volkswagen. According to iSpot.tv estimates, Mercedes racked up some 60.6 million impressions during Sunday's round, which works out to a very reasonable CPM of $25.60.

Callaway also got a fair amount of milage from the Open, as the golf gear brand throughout the four-day tourney was featured several times in NBC's "Playing Through" ad format. Designed to keep viewers plugged into the action on the links while giving the sponsor a chance to shill its wares to a highly-targeted audience of golf enthusiasts, the split-screen execution offered a window on the goings-on in Carnoustie on the left side, while Callaway spokesman Phil Mickelson warned viewers that one of his Chrome Soft balls was about to pass through their living rooms.

Given the amount of complaints I saw on social media, hopefully Playing Through used this way will get more advertisers to endorse the concept for more consistent usage in golf and other sports where there are no natural breaks.