American TV series or program
Monday Night Golf
is a series of
match play
golf
challenge matches that ran from 1999 to 2005, and was revived in 2012. All the matches have involved
World Number 1
Tiger Woods
, and the first seven were run by his
representatives
IMG
and were broadcast on
ABC
. The eighth was organized by Excel Sports Management, Woods' representatives since he left IMG in 2010. It marked the first time that live golf had been shown in
prime time
during the week in the
United States
.
[1]
The first match was played at
Sherwood Country Club
, and dubbed the
Showdown at Sherwood
. The next three were held at
Bighorn Golf Club
and known as the
Battle at Bighorn
, and the next three were known as the
Battle at the Bridges
and played at
The Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe
.
Monday Night Golf proved to be an initial success, drawing more viewers than the final round of the
U.S. Open
,
[2]
and being second only to the final round of the
Masters Tournament
in terms of golf broadcasts.
[3]
Ratings
increased significantly for the second match,
[4]
but they declined rapidly after that,
[5]
[6]
and the event was initially cancelled after the 2005 edition, with Woods also wishing to take a break from the event. However, on August 15, 2012, it was announced by Excel Sports Management that the first new match in seven years had been scheduled. It took place on October 29, 2012, at Lake Jinsha International Golf Club in China, and featured World No. 2 Woods facing World No. 1 and PGA Champion
Rory McIlroy
.
[7]
1999 Showdown at Sherwood
[
edit
]
The first challenge match was played on August 2, 1999, between Tiger Woods and
David Duval
, then world number 2 and also a client of IMG. In order for the match to be played in daylight and still be shown live during prime time
Eastern Standard Time
, it was held in the West, at Sherwood Country Club in
Thousand Oaks, California
. Sherwood paid $1,000,000 to host the event, which was dubbed the
Showdown at Sherwood
.
[8]
The match was eagerly anticipated as a head-to-head between the two leading players at the time,
[1]
and contested over 18 holes in a matchplay format. Woods won the match 2&1 to collect a check for $1,100,000, with Duval picking up $400,000.
[9]
Both players donated $200,000 to charity, split between the First Tee initiative and charities of their choice. The match proved to be a ratings success, drawing a 6.9 national
Nielsen rating
, higher than what had been predicted by broadcasters ABC Sports.
[10]
Scorecards
[
edit
]
Hole
|
Par
|
Yardage
|
Woods score
|
Duval score
|
Match score
|
1
|
4
|
385
|
4
|
3
|
Duval 1up
|
2
|
5
|
522
|
6
|
5
|
Duval 2up
|
3
|
3
|
188
|
3
|
4
|
Duval 1up
|
4
|
5
|
541
|
4
|
5
|
AS
|
5
|
4
|
457
|
4
|
4
|
AS
|
6
|
3
|
186
|
2
|
X
|
Woods 1up
|
7
|
5
|
537
|
4
|
4
|
Woods 1up
|
8
|
3
|
166
|
2
|
3
|
Woods 2up
|
9
|
4
|
446
|
4
|
4
|
Woods 2up
|
10
|
4
|
341
|
4
|
4
|
Woods 2up
|
11
|
5
|
531
|
5
|
5
|
Woods 2up
|
12
|
3
|
202
|
2
|
3
|
Woods 3up
|
13
|
4
|
459
|
5
|
4
|
Woods 2up
|
14
|
5
|
534
|
5
|
4
|
Woods 1up
|
15
|
4
|
425
|
4
|
4
|
Woods 1up
|
16
|
4
|
449
|
3
|
5
|
Woods 2up
|
17
|
3
|
232
|
3
|
3
|
Woods wins 2 & 1
|
18
|
4
|
424
|
–
|
–
|
|
2000 Battle at Bighorn
[
edit
]
The second challenge match was played over the Canyons course at Bighorn Golf Club in
Palm Desert, California
on August 28, 2000, between Tiger Woods and
Sergio Garcia
, who had made the headlines when finishing as runner-up to Woods at the
1999 PGA Championship
.
[3]
As with the previous year, the match was contested over 18 holes in matchplay format, with the winner collecting $1,100,000 and the runner-up $400,000.
The
Battle at Bighorn
, as it was titled, was won by Garcia 1up, and as in 1999, both players donated a portion of their winnings to charity.
[11]
The match was an even bigger ratings success than the inaugural event, drawing a 7.6 Nielsen rating, which proved to be the highest in the series.
[4]
Scorecards
[
edit
]
Hole
|
Par
|
Yardage
|
Woods score
|
Garcia score
|
Match score
[12]
|
1
|
4
|
429
|
4
|
5
|
Woods 1up
|
2
|
4
|
435
|
4
|
4
|
Woods 1up
|
3
|
5
|
531
|
5
|
4
|
AS
|
4
|
4
|
447
|
4
|
4
|
AS
|
5
|
4
|
367
|
4
|
5
|
Woods 1up
|
6
|
3
|
183
|
3
|
3
|
Woods 1up
|
7
|
5
|
519
|
4
|
4
|
Woods 1up
|
8
|
3
|
220
|
3
|
2
|
AS
|
9
|
4
|
449
|
4
|
4
|
AS
|
10
|
4
|
397
|
3
|
3
|
AS
|
11
|
4
|
434
|
4
|
4
|
AS
|
12
|
5
|
550
|
5
|
5
|
AS
|
13
|
3
|
227
|
3
|
3
|
AS
|
14
|
4
|
351
|
3
|
3
|
AS
|
15
|
5
|
538
|
4
|
4
|
AS
|
16
|
3
|
194
|
3
|
2
|
Garcia 1up
|
17
|
4
|
457
|
4
|
4
|
Garcia 1up
|
18
|
4
|
355
|
X
|
3
|
Garcia wins 1up
|
2001 Battle at Bighorn
[
edit
]
The second Battle at Bighorn saw a change of format, with two mixed teams competing over 18 holes in
foursomes
(alternate shot) matchplay. Tiger Woods and David Duval, who had contested the Showdown at Sherwood two years previously, were joined by the worlds two leading female golfers, as organisers sought to raise the profile of the women's game. Woods was paired with
Annika Sorenstam
, and Duval with
Karrie Webb
.
[13]
The match finished under
lights
and was won by Woods and Sorenstam with a par at the first extra hole. They had come from 2 behind with three holes to play, Sorenstam taking the match into sudden death by holing a 10-foot birdie putt on the 18th.
Woods and Sorenstam shared the $1,200,000 winners check, with Duval and Webb sharing $500,000.
[14]
Viewing figures for this third show were down markedly from the previous year, returning a 6.1 Nielsen rating.
[15]
Scorecards
[
edit
]
Hole
|
Par
|
Yardage
|
Woods/Sorenstam score
|
Duval/Webb score
|
Match score
[16]
|
1
|
4
|
429
|
5
|
5
|
AS
|
2
|
4
|
416
|
4
|
5
|
Woods/Sorenstam 1up
|
3
|
5
|
531
|
5
|
4
|
AS
|
4
|
4
|
447
|
4
|
4
|
AS
|
5
|
4
|
367
|
3
|
5
|
Woods/Sorenstam 1up
|
6
|
3
|
175
|
3
|
3
|
Woods/Sorenstam 1up
|
7
|
5
|
519
|
4
|
5
|
Woods/Sorenstam 2up
|
8
|
3
|
202
|
3
|
3
|
Woods/Sorenstam 2up
|
9
|
4
|
449
|
5
|
4
|
Woods/Sorenstam 1up
|
10
|
4
|
397
|
6
|
4
|
AS
|
11
|
4
|
434
|
6
|
4
|
Duval/Webb 1up
|
12
|
5
|
550
|
5
|
6
|
AS
|
13
|
3
|
227
|
3
|
3
|
AS
|
14
|
4
|
351
|
5
|
4
|
Duval/Webb 1up
|
15
|
5
|
528
|
5
|
4
|
Duval/Webb 2up
|
16
|
3
|
163
|
3
|
4
|
Duval/Webb 1up
|
17
|
4
|
443
|
5
|
5
|
Duval/Webb 1up
|
18
|
4
|
355
|
3
|
4
|
AS
|
19 (18)
|
4
|
355
|
4
|
X
|
Woods/Sorenstam win in 19 holes
|
2002 Battle at Bighorn
[
edit
]
The third Battle at Bighorn took place on July 29, 2002, and saw another change of format as Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia, who had fought out the first Bighorn match, were joined by two of golfs all-time greats in a
fourball betterball
matchplay contest. Woods was paired with 18 time
major
winner
Jack Nicklaus
, and Garcia with 6 time major winner
Lee Trevino
, who triumphed over Nicklaus in a play-off for the
1971 U.S. Open
.
[17]
The match was won by Woods and Nicklaus 3 & 2, with Woods making the major contribution, recording nine birdies in the 16 holes that were played.
[18]
Despite the apparent attraction of some of the biggest names in golf, viewing figures had fallen even further from the previous years low, with this fourth instalment generating a 5.1 Nielsen rating.
[19]
Scorecards
[
edit
]
Hole
|
Par
|
Yardage
|
Woods/Nicklaus score
|
Garcia/Trevino score
|
Match score
[20]
|
1
|
4
|
429
|
3
|
4
|
Woods/Nicklaus 1up
|
2
|
4
|
416
|
3
|
4
|
Woods/Nicklaus 2up
|
3
|
5
|
531
|
4
|
4
|
Woods/Nicklaus 2up
|
4
|
4
|
447
|
4
|
3
|
Woods/Nicklaus 1up
|
5
|
4
|
367
|
4
|
3
|
All square
|
6
|
3
|
175
|
3
|
2
|
Garcia/Trevino 1up
|
7
|
5
|
519
|
4
|
5
|
All square
|
8
|
3
|
202
|
2
|
3
|
Woods/Nicklaus 1up
|
9
|
4
|
449
|
3
|
4
|
Woods/Nicklaus 2up
|
10
|
4
|
397
|
3
|
5
|
Woods/Nicklaus 3up
|
11
|
4
|
434
|
4
|
3
|
Woods/Nicklaus 2up
|
12
|
5
|
550
|
4
|
4
|
Woods/Nicklaus 2up
|
13
|
3
|
227
|
2
|
3
|
Woods/Nicklaus 3up
|
14
|
4
|
351
|
3
|
3
|
Woods/Nicklaus 3up
|
15
|
5
|
528
|
4
|
4
|
Woods/Nicklaus 3up
|
16
|
3
|
163
|
3
|
3
|
Woods/Nicklaus win 3 & 2
|
17
|
4
|
443
|
–
|
–
|
|
18
|
4
|
355
|
–
|
–
|
|
2003 Battle at the Bridges
[
edit
]
The fifth match in the series took place on July 28, 2003, and used the same fourball format as the previous year, but with four top
PGA Tour
players. Woods and Garcia were again in opposition, this time paired with
Ernie Els
and
Phil Mickelson
respectively. The match also had a new venue, The Bridges Club in
Rancho Santa Fe, California
, and was titled
Battle at the Bridges
as a result.
The match finished under lights, with Garcia and Mickelson coming out on top, defeating their then world number one and two ranked opponents 3 & 1. Garcia eagled the 16th hole to put himself and Mickelson on the road to the $1,200,000 winners prize. Woods and Els shared $500,000, with $300,000 being donated to charity.
[21]
For the third year running, viewing figures fell, with the first instalment of a three-year deal at the Bridges recording a 4.6 Nielsen rating.
[22]
2004 Battle at the Bridges
[
edit
]
The second Battle at the Bridges was played on August 2, 2004, in the now established fourball betterball format. The theme was long drivers. Tiger Woods was joined by
Hank Kuehne
to take on the pairing of Phil Mickelson and
John Daly
.
Daly and Mickelson started well and were 2 up through 12 holes, but Woods and Kuehne made three straight birdies followed by an eagle to win the next four holes and take a 2 up lead themselves. They halved the 17th hole to win the match 2 & 1.
[23]
Ratings for the Battle at the Bridges continued to slide, with the 2004 edition producing a 3.6 Nielsen rating, the lowest of the series to date.
[6]
2005 Battle at the Bridges
[
edit
]
The final Battle at the Bridges took place on July 25, 2005. Organisers had wanted this last exhibition to be contested by the big four names in world golf at the time, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson,
Vijay Singh
and Ernie Els but Singh refused to take part,
[24]
so Tiger Woods was teamed up with John Daly, to take on Mickelson and Els. However Els later withdrew and was replaced by
Retief Goosen
.
In the most one sided match of the series, Mickelson and Goosen won 5 & 3, to collect $500,000 each plus $100,000 for each of their nominated charities.
[25]
Woods and Daly picked up $200,000 each, with $50,000 for their charities.
[26]
It was also the first match not to reach the floodlit last three holes, as Goosen made four birdies in six holes to seal the win at the 15th.
With ratings failing to pick up, and Woods stating his desire to take a break from the event, this proved to be the final match in the series.
[27]
2012 Duel at Lake Jinsha
[
edit
]
On August 15, 2012, it was announced that an eighth match (and the first in seven years) would take place on October 29, 2012, at Lake Jinsha International Golf Club in China. It will feature Woods facing Rory McIlroy, who was coming off a four win
PGA Tour
season, and at the time of the announcement had just won the
PGA Championship
. Woods, meanwhile, had won three times during the
season
. He was also ranked first in the
FedEx Cup
Standings at the time, while McIlroy was ranked first in the World Golf Rankings. This was the first match to take place in the FedEx Cup era.
By the time of the match, Woods was the World No. 2, while McIlroy was World No. 1.
While
ESPN
/
ABC
televised the first seven matches, Australian syndicator Spondo distributed a pay-per-view internet feed. At the outset, many of the United States servers were swamped and many viewers had to wait until midway through the front nine to view the stream, at which time the bandwidth was increased, and most viewers could watch.
The match was played in a stroke play format, and was closely contested. McIlroy built a three shot lead after three holes, but with a birdie at seven and a chip-in at twelve, Woods closed the gap to one. Woods missed birdie putts to tie McIlroy at both sixteen and seventeen, and needed to hole a greenside bunker shot at the final hole to salvage extra holes. He lipped out and instead settled for par and a four-under 68. McIlroy brushed in a three-footer for par and a 67 (-5), to win by a shot.
Hole
|
Par
|
Woods
|
McIlroy
|
1
|
4
|
4
|
3
|
2
|
5
|
5
|
5
|
3
|
5
|
5
|
3
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
5
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
6
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
7
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
8
|
5
|
4
|
4
|
9
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
OUT
|
36
|
35
|
33
|
10
|
5
|
4
|
4
|
11
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
12
|
3
|
2
|
3
|
13
|
4
|
5
|
4
|
14
|
4
|
3
|
4
|
15
|
5
|
4
|
4
|
16
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
17
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
18
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
IN
|
36
|
33
|
34
|
TOTAL
|
72
|
68 (-4)
|
67 (-5)
|
Ratings
[
edit
]
1 point is 1 percent of American TVs that were tuned into Monday Night Golf.
[6]
Year
|
Competitors
|
Ratings
|
1999
|
Tiger Woods vs. David Duval
|
6.9
|
2000
|
Tiger Woods vs. Sergio Garcia
|
7.6
|
2001
|
Woods/Sorenstam vs. Duval/Webb
|
6.1
|
2002
|
Woods/Nicklaus vs. Garcia/Trevino
|
5.1
|
2003
|
Woods/Els vs. Garcia/Mickelson
|
4.6
|
2004
|
Woods/Kuehne vs. Mickelson/Daly
|
3.6
|
2005
|
Woods/Daly vs. Goosen/Mickelson
|
3.0
|
Records
[
edit
]
Golfer
|
Win
|
Loss
|
Percentage
|
Rory McIlroy
|
1
|
0
|
1.000
|
Retief Goosen
|
1
|
0
|
1.000
|
Hank Kuehne
|
1
|
0
|
1.000
|
Jack Nicklaus
|
1
|
0
|
1.000
|
Annika Sorenstam
|
1
|
0
|
1.000
|
Sergio Garcia
|
2
|
1
|
.667
|
Phil Mickelson
|
2
|
1
|
.667
|
Tiger Woods
|
4
|
4
|
.500
|
Ernie Els
|
0
|
1
|
.000
|
Lee Trevino
|
0
|
1
|
.000
|
Karrie Webb
|
0
|
1
|
.000
|
David Duval
|
0
|
2
|
.000
|
John Daly
|
0
|
2
|
.000
|
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
Brown, Clifton (May 11, 1999).
"A Woods-Duval Match In Prime Time"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
"Prime-Time Golf Shootout Is a Ratings Success"
.
Los Angeles Times
. August 4, 1999
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
a
b
"Woods to take on Garcia in Match-Play showdown"
.
RTE
. March 23, 2000
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
a
b
Bonk, Thomas (August 2, 2004).
"Tonight's Match Has Commercial Appeal for Some"
.
Los Angeles Times
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
"Monday Night Golf not going anywhere"
.
Sporting News
. July 29, 2003
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
[
permanent dead link
]
- ^
a
b
c
"Battle at the Bridges goes through ratings collapse"
.
USA Today
. August 3, 2004
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
"Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy to Battle"
.
Associated Press
,
ESPN
. August 15, 2012
. Retrieved
August 15,
2012
.
- ^
Sandomir, Richard (July 21, 1999).
"Duval-Woods Rushing to Daylight"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 30,
2009
.
- ^
"Woods beats Duval in prime time"
.
ESPN
. August 3, 1999
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
Brown, Clifton (August 4, 1999).
"Woods-Duval Rates a Solid Par"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 30,
2009
.
- ^
Arkush, Michael (August 29, 2000).
"A Mortal Woods Loses to Garcia, 1-Up"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
April 30,
2009
.
- ^
"Hole-by-hole synopsis"
.
ESPN
. August 28, 2000
. Retrieved
April 28,
2009
.
- ^
Sandomir, Richard (July 27, 2001).
"Women Hoping 'Battle' Will Gain More Fans for Their Game"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
Ferguson, Doug (July 31, 2001).
"Woods and Sorenstam win mixed team match"
.
The Independent
. London
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
[
dead link
]
- ^
Sandomir, Richard (August 1, 2001).
"As Golfers Struggled, ABC Struggled, Too"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
"Battle at Bighorn"
.
Infoplease
. February 1, 2009
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
"Fab foursome – Woods, Nicklaus to team in next Battle at Bighorn"
.
Sports Illustrated
. November 8, 2001
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
Ferguson, Doug (July 31, 2002).
"Woods the ideal partner for Nicklaus"
.
The Independent
. London
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
[
dead link
]
- ^
Bonk, Thomas (August 1, 2002).
"Viewers No Longer Primed for Tiger?"
.
Los Angeles Times
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
"Hole-by-Hole from Battle at Bighorn"
. nicklaus.com. July 29, 2002. Archived from
the original
on May 26, 2011
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
Arkush, Michael (July 29, 2003).
"Sun Sets on Woods and Els in Made-for-TV Showdown"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
May 1,
2009
.
- ^
"Prime-time golf will be back, but will anyone be watching?"
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