Rory McIlroy’s ‘not good for anyone’ claim vindicated after The Open

Rory McIlroy’s concern about a dwindling TV ratings appears to be justified after shocking viewing figures for the final round of The Open were revealed.

Rory McIlroy revealed before The Openone of the reasons he softened his stance on the breakaway LIV Golf League was because the constant bickering about money at the top of the men’s game was turning people off. 

And it appears that he might be right after the final round of the 2024 Open Championship at Royal Troon drew its lowest viewership in nearly a decade.

American Xander Schauffele claimed his second major championship title of the year when he prevailed by the Scottish coast last week.

The 30-year-old pulled clear at the 11th hole and never looked back, much to the disappointment of England’s Justin Roseand Billy Horschel.

According to Josh Carpenter of Sports Business Journal, 3.39m turned in to watch the Olympic champion’s victory.

That represents a 4% drop from Brian Harman’s win at Royal Liverpool in 2023, which also saw its lowest ratings since 2015.

Is there a bigger problem at large?

Even The Masters saw a drop of 20 per cent in terms of viewers this year, with CBS reportedly drawing 9.589m viewers on the final day.

The PGA Championship at Valhalla reportedly attracted an audience of five million.

Whilst 11.4m viewers turned in to watch Bryson DeChambeau claim the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No.2.