CBS scored its biggest television audience in more than a decade Sunday as golf fans tuned in to watch Rory McIlroy defend his Masters title at Augusta National Golf Club.
The final round drew an average of 13,995,000 viewers, representing the largest CBS audience for Masters Sunday coverage since 2015 when Jordan Spieth claimed his first major championship, according to Front Office Sports.
Sunday’s viewership marked an 8% jump compared to last April’s final round, which attracted 12.71 million viewers when McIlroy achieved golf’s career grand slam in a dramatic playoff victory over England’s Justin Rose.
This year’s tournament delivered plenty of drama as well. McIlroy started strong, sharing the first-round lead before building a commanding six-stroke advantage at the halfway point. However, that margin disappeared by Saturday, leaving McIlroy tied with Cameron Young heading into the final round.
Saturday’s third round also benefited from the excitement, drawing 8.1 million CBS viewers – a 14% boost from the previous year’s 7.6 million and the highest third-round audience since Tiger Woods’ 2019 Masters triumph.
The final day’s tension peaked as Scottie Scheffler, currently ranked number one in the world, mounted a charge from four shots behind. Despite Scheffler’s pressure, McIlroy managed to secure the victory by a single stroke, joining an elite group that includes Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods as the only golfers to win consecutive Masters tournaments.
Viewership reached its highest point at just over 20 million viewers during Sunday’s broadcast – the tournament’s largest peak audience since Adam Scott’s 2013 victory when Woods finished tied for fourth. Last year’s peak reached 19.54 million viewers.
The 2026 Masters marked the first tournament measured using Nielsen’s new Big Data+ Panel system. This updated methodology aims to provide more comprehensive and precise audience measurement, typically resulting in higher ratings for live sporting events compared to previous tracking methods, Front Office Sports noted.
