Paige Spiranac laughs at disbelievers after Genesis Invitational TV ratings release

Paige Spiranac doesn't believe that golf is dying despite what the TV ratings have said in the past. The sport has been engaged in a battle there for years, with fan interest seemingly dwindling. The PGA Tour x LIV Golf dispute and then the shocking merger have played a role in the seeming lack of engagement with pro golf.

However, as Spiranac pointed out, there is clearly not a lack of interest. In fact, the TV ratings are strong right now. Josh Carpenter, a golf journalist, revealed that Sunday's finale of the Genesis Invitational saw 3.4 million viewers, which was a 5% increase from last year.

She posted:

"Remember when everyone was freaking out 3 weeks ago thinking pro golf was dead? lol."

The Genesis saw about the same amount of viewers as it did in 2023, which was again 3.4 million viewers. It was about 800,000 more viewers than in 2022. Despite the narrative, Spiranac believes golf is far from dead.

According to the report, Ludvig Aberg's clutch win in the closing seconds of the Genesis was the most-watched non-Major tournament since the 2024 Players Championship, which is often called golf's fifth unofficial Major.

Despite perceived slow-play issues, the rampant influx of cash, the divide between the stars in the sport, and more problems that fans are experiencing and complaining about, the TV ratings prove that golf is still quite strong.

That doesn't even include the fact that TGL (while not the PGA Tour, it is still professional golf) is blowing ESPN's ratings expectations out of the water in its first season.

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Golf insider reveals why TV ratings matter so much

Fans may have wondered at times why there's such a debate over television ratings. It's prevalent in the NBA as well as golf, as any broadcast for either will mention the fight to get better ratings.

Golf insider James Colgan explained it as he said via Golf.com:

"TV 'money' accounts for a large percentage of a sport’s business, and the cost of commercials is responsible for funding it. Without reliable stats to tell advertisers about the effectiveness of their commercials, commercials would not be nearly as valuable. And without revenue from selling commercials, the TV business would be defunct."

Colgan said that advertisers are key to sports, and they get most of their money from television. That means that the bottom line for a sports league, in this case the PGA Tour, is the TV ratings.

If no one's watching, they're losing money. That's true even if fans spend money to attend the events and advertisers get to put their brand on everything in and around a golf course. That money doesn't compare to TV money in pro sports, according to Colgan.