Television Tidbits

Spoiler alert, the U.S. Open ratings sucked.  Now that you've spit out the last of your morning coffee, how bad were they?  Per Scooby Axsom:

Martin Kaymer and NBC both posted record low scores this weekend. 

Whether it was Tiger Woods' absence or Martin Kaymer's wire-to-wire blowout win or a

combination of the two, NBC posted dismal numbers in its final U.S. Open telecast from Pinehurst No. 2. 

According to the Sports Business Daily (subscription required), the overnight rating for Sunday's final round -- in which Martin Kaymer cruised to an eight-stroke victory over Rickie Fowler and Erik Compton -- was 3.3, "which could likely end up being the lowest figure for a Sunday at the U.S. Open on record." 

According to Austin Karp, assistant managing editor of the Sports Business Daily, that figure is down significantly from both Justin Rose's victory over Phil Mickelson last year and Rory Mcllroy's eight-stroke victory in 2011.

In an update to this post, Shackelford notes that ESPN's Thursday ratings were down only slightly compared to recent years, though the shock to me is how few viewers are involved.  At certain times on the Thursday's cited, fewer than 1 million people were tuned in.

NBC's classy farewell is getting good reviews, as per John Strege:

After the trophy presentation and the obligatory network promos (“American Ninja Warriors” and all new episodes of “Believe” and “Crisis”), anchor Dan Hicks turned to Miller. 

“Well, this is a moment of our careers here in the U.S. Open, Johnny, that we know is coming to an end here, a moment where we didn’t ever want to greet,” he said. “As many of you know this is the final U.S. Open telecast for all of our NBC crew, and I just want to say to you, Johnny, what a privilege it’s been to sit next to you here at a championship that you’ve loved for so many years. It’s been the highlight of my career. I’ve had the best seat in the house with the best analyst who has ever done this game.” 

It was clearly an emotional moment for Miller, who nonetheless kept his emotions in check. “Twenty years is a lot of fun, but I’ve always believed there’s a time and a season for everything,” Miller said. “Thank the USGA and, of course, NBC for giving me that opportunity. Been a lot of good memories, lot of great champions, a lot of great moments, and I’ve had my share.”

Shack, bless his heart, can't pass up a little snark, noting this:

John Strege reviews NBC's final U.S. Open telecast where other than an Inside Baseball jab at the end thanking USGAers David Fay, Mark Carlson, Sandy Tatum but not Mike Davis:

Alex Miceli got Johnny's comments literally as he descended from the tower behind the 18th green:

Get ready for twelve years of fist bumps:

If you're interested in the mayhem of producing a golf broadcast, this Karen Crouse N. Y. Times piece is well worth a read.  The header,  21 Flat-Screen TVs, 18 Holes, One Pair of Eyes, says it all, but you have to appreciate this commitment to detail from Producer Tommy Roy:

“Producing 10 hours of live golf is the greatest diet in the world,” Roy said. 

His workday starts before he arrives in the truck. Roy stops by the driving range to see what players are wearing, the better to identify them on the monitors. He studies their mannerisms to improve his own performance. That is why Roy doesn't worry about cutting to a shot of Jim Furyk when he first steps up to a putt: He knows Furyk will back off it.

Yes, Furyk would be the litmus test for a golf producer, unless it's Kevin Na.