Scottie Scheffler’s Stardom Questioned as Embarrassing Masters’ Ratings Disappoint Golf Fans

Less than 10 million people were interested in watching Scottie Scheffler Don the Green Jacket twice in three years. For comparison, Caitlin Clark’s NCAA Championship match against South Carolina drew 18.7 million viewers on ESPN and ABC. This year’s final round ratings were a 22.8% decline year over year as well. 

Last year, Jon Rahm’s four-shot triumph over Brooks Koepka drew an average of 12.59 million eyeballs to the TV. Comparably, this year’s coverage at this peak, when Scheffler’s round ended, was at 12.562 million. The 88th edition, in fact, ranks as the least-watched Masters since 1993, Jay Busbee of Yahoo Sports reports. The jarring numbers have put the World No. 1 stardom in front of an ever-growing question mark. 

Disconnect between Scheffler and golf fans?

Notably, the 9.59 million viewership is lower than Scheffler’s maiden green jacket, which averaged 10.17 million. While Scheffler’s ball-striking is reminiscent of peak Tiger Woods, his personality doesn’t match the 15-time Major Champion’s electrifying presence. 

Previously, Scheffler’s triumph at the Arnold Palmer Invitational witnessed a 30% drop. Moreover, despite a thrilling PLAYERS Championship final round, there was a 15% drop. Comments like “Whilst Scheffler is a great player he does not attract new viewers,” “He’s too dominant and boring,”  and “Scottie Schefflers boring persona” filled the internet. But there appears to be some caveat here.

A large section of fans also pointed out that they preferred the Masters coverage on the app rather than on CBS. Due to Augusta’s unique policy, CBS couldn’t broadcast the entire round from start to finish. And fans, who started on the Masters app, didn’t switch to TV. 

Secondly, last year’s final round fell on Easter Sunday. It resulted in a 21% out-of-home hike in the numbers. This year, the number was a paltry 8%. Also worth remembering is the match effectively wrapped up by the time golfers exited Amen’s Corner. Only Ludvig Aberg continued to exert whatever little pressure he could on Scheffler. 

But there is no denying that the numbers are going to cause some serious headaches. The PGA Tour pros and LIV Golfers came together this April for the first time since last year’s Open. It was expected that the viewership would only increase, and that appeared to be a trend as well. Until it wasn’t. 

Is Scottie Scheffler caught in the crossfire?

ESPN reported that the first round earned 3.2 million viewers, the highest since 2015. It was a 28% year-to-year increase compared to the 2.5 million average audience last year. Friday’s round was even better at 3.6 million, a 69% increase from 2023. 

While that seemed to bolster the argument against Scottie Scheffler for some, it is also worth noting that many top-rated golfers’ futures hung on the line on cut day. The cutline moved from a predictable 4-over to a 6-over.

Nevertheless, the downtrend, similar to the PGA Tour viewership, only muddies the situation further. Fans are not impressed with the division in golf. Players like Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, and others got wind of the matter too. “I just think with the fighting and everything that’s gone on over the past couple of years, people are just getting fatigued, and it’s turning people off men’s professional golf, and that’s not a good thing for anyone,” Rory McIlroy said ahead of the first major of the season.

Then Fred Ridley was asked the same question. The 71-year-old tacitly agreed. “Certainly, the fact that the best players in the world are not convening very often is not helpful. Whether or not there’s a direct causal effect, I don’t know. But I think that it would be a lot better if they were together more often.” The question is, is this truly a Scottie Scheffler problem, as the golf world is making it out to be, or is there more to it than the easy target?