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The Match II becomes golf's most-watched cable telecast ever

Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images Sport / Getty

"The Match: Champions for Charity" was a smashing success, and the television ratings prove it.

The charity event featuring Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Tom Brady, and Peyton Manning drew an average of 5.8 million viewers to become the most-watched golf telecast in cable TV history, according to Turner Sports.

Peak viewership reached 6.3 million from 5:45 p.m.-6 p.m. ET across TNT, TBS, truTV, and Headline News in the United States.

In golf's second broadcast since the Players Championship was canceled in March, Woods and Manning defeated Mickelson and Brady in a match-play showdown that was decided on the 18th hole at the Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida.

The competition also raised $20 million for COVID-19 relief efforts.

Last week, NBC reported an average of 2.35 million viewers tuned in for the TaylorMade Driving Relief skins game that Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler, and Matthew Wolff competed in.

Additionally, The Match II outperformed "The Last Dance" episodes in average viewership, according to The Action Network's Darren Rovell.

For comparison, the Masters draws over 10 million viewers annually with the other majors hovering around 5 million, according to Sports Media Watch.

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