What Will Woods’ Absence Cost Golf?

What will Woody’s absence cost golf? Perhaps not as much as you might think, according to Larry Novenstern, executive vice president of Optimedia, an advertising services company:

For the 15 or so tournaments where Woods might have been expected to play this year, Novenstern estimated the resulting advertisingloss to networks would total between $10 million and $20 million. In comparison to other economic hardships challenging broadcasters right now, he says, “This is just a speed bump.

And what about the 20% to 50% loss in viewers in Tigerless Tournaments?

“But a certain percent of Tiger’s audience is not the traditional golf audience and, in effect, is not what many advertisers are looking for,” says Neal Pilson, president of Pilson Communications, a media consulting firm, and a former president of CBS Sports. “If Tiger’s in an event, you expect a 50 percent increase in ratings. You don’t necessarily negotiate a 50 percent increase in the advertising rate.”

So the casual viewers are nice, but they’re not what the advertisers are looking for, or necessarily counting on. It supports my thesis that Tiger’s impact is not as big as everyone thinks.