The Farmers Insurance Open is an event synonymous with the great name of Tiger Woods - with the 15-time Major champion having won this particular event a record seven times. Woods also tasted success at Torrey Pines on an eighth occasion in the 2008 US Open.
But the common theme that linked all of those tournaments is that they concluded on a Sunday, often with Tiger lifting the trophy in his famous red Nike top. And while Woods may have plans to launch his own brand called 'Sunday Red' in partnership with TaylorMade, the 48-year-old won't be able to repeat his past heroics at the Farmers if the recent pattern of bringing it forward continues.
After the tournament began in 1952 as the San Diego Open - before later relocating to Torrey Pines and becoming the Andy Williams San Diego Open - each running followed the age-old pattern of starting on a Thursday and showcasing four rounds on consecutive days.
But in September 2021, a few months before the 2022 tournament, it was announced that the Farmers would become the first - and so far only - event to begin on a Wednesday and end on a Saturday.
Why Does The Farmers Insurance Open Not End On Sunday?
The reason for this is simply down to the number of people expected to choose the NFL over the PGA Tour. Recent figures from a report in the Sports Business Journal stated telecasts relating to the NFL covered 96 of the top-100 most watched sports events in the US last year. Golf's most-watched event - the 2023 Masters - came in 131st.
And starting with the 2022 running and continuing in the two subsequent years, the NFL's Championship weekend has clashed with the Farmers Insurance Open. So instead of trying to compete with highly-anticipated games between the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs plus the San Francisco 49ers hosting the Detroit Lions on Sunday night, the PGA Tour and its tournament opted to stand aside and allow the relevant TV networks to broadcast both.
When the change was first made official in September 2021, Marty Gorsich - CEO of the Century Club of San Diego, which runs the Farmers Insurance Open - said in a statement: “We are excited about the opportunity that these changes present and fully embrace the uniqueness that comes with being the only tournament on the PGA Tour schedule with a Saturday-evening finish."
During the final round of the 2022 Farmers, official data showed a little more than 2.6 million people tuned in to watch Luke List defeat Will Zalatoris in a playoff on Saturday night. Rather worryingly from the event's point of view, the 2023 version attracted half-a-million fewer fans on TV as almost 2.2 million sat down to see Max Homa take the title.
Overall, though, viewing figures across the final day's play on the PGA Tour remained strong in 2023 versus the previous year, with the Genesis Invitational - featuring a certain Mr Woods - attracting almost 1 million more US viewers than its previous edition.
Back in October, at the Ryder Cup, US viewership numbers for NBC’s coverage of Singles Sunday dropped by more than a million compared to 2018, with 1.414 million tuning in during Saturday afternoon's action, compared to 1.315 million over the course of the final day’s play.
Over in the UK, though, Sky Sports reported record viewing numbers for a single Ryder Cup. The British broadcaster said the 2023 event was the most-watched edition ever thanks to an average of 785,000 fans tuning in during Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, up 38% from Whistling Straits in 2021 and 25% from Le Golf National in 2018.
