Main Event ratings drop
More than 2.1 million Americans watched 21-year-old Joe Cada become the Youngest World Series of Poker Main Event winner in history Tuesday.
However, the numbers were down slightly from the 2.36 million viewers who watched 22-year-old Peter Eastgate set the same record in 2008.
In the days prior to the taping, ESPN officials predicted ratings would go up considering the presence of one of the game's best players, Phil Ivey, and a major increase in Main Event coverage on the network leading up to the final.
Instead, the ESPN telecast's 1.8 household coverage rating, meaning the show was on in an average of 1,806,113 households this year, was down slightly from the 1.9 rating earned for the 2008 final table.
But despite the small dip, it appears the four-month final table delay continued to draw interest.
The numbers remained up from the 1.3 rating and 1.55 million viewers the final table received in 2008.
ESPN's total 15-week schedule of WSOP coverage, including 31 telecasts, broke even with last year, averaging a 1.0 rating.
However, the network's plan to broadcast more Main Event coverage than ever before appears to have helped increase averages for households up 9% to 1,024,901 and viewership up 7% to 1,228,008.
Plus, there was a 13% jump in viewership in the Male 25-54 demographic, poker's target market.
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Comments
2Dan Blake
2009-12-15Perhaps the ratings are down because of the quality of coverage. It's not about the game anymore, or the way the consistance players play.
Hype might be something that goes with and action sport, although that's become more about the commentators and their attempts to impress the audience as well,but hype is not something that fits with a game of thought and calculation.
Why can't these morons understand, not everybody watching is like themselves, a moron. Duh, trying to impress us with their knowledge of poker terms, as they so like to throw out there and bouncing from table to table in the middle of a hand, with no clue as to what the hole cards are.
How about just mentioning things, instead of the entire history of each player, over and over. Maybe less focus as to how much money each player has, over and over. What ever happened to just watching the hand and how each player plays out his or her hand. Oh, lets us not forget to hammer away as to how many women are still in the game.
It's not about the leader board, it's not about the constant chip count, it's not about last year's winner, or how many real young players there are. It's about the hand being played NOW. Last year is gone, yesterday is gone, the last hand is gone and the next one hasn't been dealt yet. What is importent, as it is with each player, is the hand being played....either winning, losing or just surviving until the right moment arrives, when the card begin to fall for me, the player. Reading, calculating and/or making a decision, here and now, as to fold, call or raise and hoping the right one was made.
If I want to learn something about the game, I want to watch a pro, not listen to some wanna be who knows nadda...if he did, the he would be sitting in the game for the big bucks, not trying to impress those watching with what he don't really know, himself.
One only needs to return to the earlier tapes of poker when it was on the travel channel and the commentators were like the rest of us...learning something!
Thank you....Dan Blake
poker lady
2009-11-14I can understand why the powers that be brought in the delayed finish, but get rid of the carnival atmosphere in the penn and teller.
How can anyone seriously play for life changing money in a zoo? Go back and look at the coverage of espn pre 2008. Great coverage, great commentary and plenty of hands shown.
Two years ago WSOP brought in the hevad khan rule, yet now they allow the audience to go crazy. Is this a really good for poker 's
image when you are trying to promote it as a sport. Many of my friends felt espn's last two episodes made it look like a crap shoot.