Parade Ratings Top Those for Golf

Everybody loves a parade, particularly if it’s a Laker victory parade.

TV ratings for Los Angeles show there was much more interest in Monday’s parade than in the U.S. Open golf playoff.

The golf on Channel 4 earned a 3.2 rating with an 11 share of the audience, while the parade and rally coverage on Channel 7 alone got a 7.3/26.

Channel 9 got a 2.5/8 for its parade and rally coverage, Channel 11 a 2.2/7, Channel 13 a .8/3 and Fox Sports Net a .5/2.

Channel 4’s pre-parade coverage got a 4.7/18, and its delayed parade coverage after the golf earned a 3.8/11. Delayed coverage on Fox Sports Net Monday night got a .9/2.

Channels 2, 5 and 34 had also planned to televise Laker festivities but did not.

Channel 52 supplied Spanish-language coverage, but its ratings were not available.

Nationally, the Open playoff earned a 4.0 rating and a 12 share.

Also, NBC announced Tuesday that the final national rating for Sunday’s final round of the U.S. Open was a 7.2/19, the second highest numbers for the final round of a U.S. Open since 1987.

Last year, with Tiger Woods winning by 15 strokes at Pebble Beach, the rating was 8.1/21. In 1987, when Scott Simpson beat Tom Watson by one shot, the rating was a 7.6/20.

NBC’s coverage Saturday and Sunday averaged 6.2/17, also second highest since 1987. The combined average last year was 6.7/18, and in 1987 6.5/19.

The final two regulation rounds of the U.S. Open drew 48 million viewers, second most to last year’s 53 million.