A six stroke lead entering the final round going head-to-head against the World Cup isn’t a great recipe for success. So for golf’s US Open and NBC, their Sunday final round viewership numbers have to be seen as something of a success.
While Wyndham Clark started the day with that huge advantage, he had Scottie Scheffler in the final group with him, pursuing the career grand slam. However, it was Sam Burns that provided the stiffest challenge to Clark as he came within one shot on multiple occasions. Alas, Clark held on to win his second US Open title in four years.
NBC averaged 5.5 million viewers for the final round, up ever so slightly from the 5.4 million viewers for J.J. Spaun’s surprise win last year. NBC says it is the second highest-rated US Open on the east coast since 2013. Ironically, it’s down from Clark’s first US Open victory at Los Angeles Golf Club in 2022 where he beat Rory McIlroy head-to-head. That final round drew 6.2 million viewers, boosted by more of a primetime coverage window.
The predominant story of the day was the crowd at Shinnecock Hills vociferously voicing their disapproval for Clark and actively rooting against him like he was Colin Montgomerie kicking a cute puppy off a bridge. Even Clark admitted that his past antics, like tearing up a locker room at Oakmont and hurling his club close to a volunteer, brought some of the hate and mistrust upon himself. But what he experienced on Sunday crossed the line for many individuals throughout the golfing world.
It’s clear that Clark doesn’t want to be a villain, but sometimes villains can help sports thrive anymore. At the very least, it’s one more interesting story for the golf world to try to tell moving towards the final major of the year at the Open Championship.
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