An unbelievable Sunday finish delivered the most-watched final round of the Masters in seven years for CBS.
Rory McIlroy’s thrilling victory to complete his career grand slam averaged 12.71 million viewers on CBS, up 33% versus last year’s final round audience of 9.59 million viewers for Scottie Scheffler’s second green jacket. Naturally, coverage peaked during the 7 p.m. ET quarter-hour when McIlroy secured his victory in a playoff against Justin Rose. At peak, 19.54 million viewers were tuned in for McIlroy’s historic win.
CBS Sports on Sunday delivered the most-watched final round of the Masters since 2018, as Rory McIlroy won in a playoff to capture his first green jacket along with golf’s career grand slam: pic.twitter.com/72JWrmZ8B6
— CBS Sports PR (@CBSSportsGang) April 14, 2025
Given the circumstances — a roller coaster round featuring two of golf’s biggest viewership draws, McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau—and a finish that came down to the wire — it’s no surprise that CBS earned its largest final round audience since Patrick Reed’s tight win over Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth in 2018. Nevertheless, Sunday’s audience marks a key turnaround for a property that has leaked viewers in recent years.
Prior to Sunday’s final round, three of the last four Masters tournaments had failed to eclipse the 10 million viewer threshold. Only Jon Rahm’s win in 2023, which was aided by increased out-of-home viewership from Easter Sunday, cracked eight figures.
Not to mention, PGA Tour viewership, while on an upward trajectory so far this season, hasn’t exactly reached its standards from prior years. Before the Masters, the PGA Tour saw final-round viewership gains in nine of its previous 10 tournament broadcasts versus 2024. But on the flip side, 10 of the first 13 PGA Tour events this season have seen final-round audience declines since 2023.
Rory McIlroy’s win may well serve as a momentum builder. Reaching nearly 20 million viewers for arguably the most historic moment the sport has seen since Tiger Woods’ Masters win in 2019 is no small feat. And an average of nearly 13 million viewers over a five-hour broadcast window is nothing to scoff at either.
It should be noted that Sunday’s viewership numbers are Nielsen’s fast national measurements and will likely increase when a full rundown is released on Tuesday. Another caveat, as with all sports viewership post-February 2025, is that these figures include Nielsen’s newly expanded out-of-home viewership, which now covers 100% of the country (as opposed to about two-thirds prior).
