For true golf fans, the 2014 Masters is a must-watch even if Tiger Woods isn't there. However, the same can't be said by much of the viewers, as this year's Masters has been experiencing record low ratings.
According to ESPN, the first-round telecast of the Masters was down 800,000 viewers compared to last year's. In addition, the viewership on Thursday was the lowest in history since ESPN began airing the tournament seven years ago.
However, could it really be just Tiger Woods affecting this? It definitely does have somewhat of a factor.
The Masters have usually been around 2.3 to 2.4 million viewers for the opening round. This year, it was 2 million so it isn't all that bad.
The only time they had a huge spike for the opening round was because of, you guessed it, Tiger Woods.
It was in 2009 when the opening round had nearly 5 million viewers because it was Woods' first major appearance since the 2008 U.S. Open. Along with that, ESPN aired almost all of Wood's opening round.
So yes, it is the Tiger Woods factor.
