Golf
Why The Masters Does Not Make Any Money From Domestic Broadcasting Rights In The United States
Kieran Lynch is a sports writer specialising in football and Formula One. He is a sports journalism graduate of Leeds Trinity University and completed a Press Association NCTJ course in Newcastle. He previously worked as a news reporter for the Eastern Daily Press in Norfolk and spent five years as a sports writer at the MailOnline.
Get to know Kieran Lynch betterPublished07 Apr 2025
The Masters is the most popular golf tournament in the world and here we explain how much the tournament makes from TV rights.
Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and more will be competing for the famous green jacket at Augusta National this week.
The tournament will be shown across the world and attracts huge viewership figures each year.
However, the Masters is a tournament like no other when compared to other major sporting events.
The food and drink on offer is far cheaper than at other sporting events and they limit the number of sponsorships they take on.
Unlike other sporting events including fellow golf major tournaments, the Masters earns $0 from their domestic broadcasting rights.
How Much Does The Masters Make From Domestic TV Rights?
The Masters doesn’t take a penny from their domestic broadcasting rights in the United States. ESPN agrees to show the first two rounds of the Masters while CBS hosts the weekend coverage.
Neither ESPN nor CBS pay a cent for their rights to show golf’s most prestigious tournament.
This allows the organisers of the Masters to be in control of how the tournament is shown and sets them apart from every other major sporting event on the calendar.
As per Sportico, the NBA make $5 billion in annual revenue from TV rights, while the NFL makes over $10 million. Sportico also report that estimates suggest the Masters could make $125m per year from domestic broadcasting rights.
Some would argue that the Masters is leaving money on the table. This compares to the U.S. Open which is reportedly worth $90m and is split between Fox and NBC.
Though there have been declining viewership figures over recent years, the Masters still drew in huge numbers for Sunday’s final round in 2024 when Scottie Scheffler won.
CBS drew 9.59 million viewers for the final day, which is still a big win for them when they don’t have to pay a penny to host the tournament.
Most major sports properties make hundreds of million–or billions–from media rights. @TheMasters makes $0.
Inside the most unique broadcast deal in all of sports. pic.twitter.com/myNzWd8Hh8
— Sportico (@Sportico) April 12, 2024
Why Does The Masters Televise For Free In The United States?
The Masters doesn’t charge for domestic broadcast rights as the tournament’s organiser, Augusta National, maintains strict control over broadcasting rights.
Augusta National prioritises maintaining a unique and traditional atmosphere.
The networks have to agree to air a minimal amount of commercials. This is typically around four minutes per hour. Limited commercial time is covered by a few Masters sponsors such as Mercedes-Benz and AT&T who pay a fee to air their ments.
How Much Does The Masters Make From International Broadcasting Rights?
Unlike the domestic rights, the Masters does make money from their international broadcasting rights.
The Masters reportedly makes around $25m from international broadcasting of the tournament across the world.
How To Watch The Masters In The United Kingdom
Sky Sports since 2020 have held exclusive broadcasting rights of the Masters in the United Kingdom.
The tournament which will run between April 10 and 13, will be available to watch on Sky Sports Golf and Main Event.
Golf fans can also watch the action via those channels on the Sky Go and NOW TV app if they are on the move.
Note: Fans must have Sky Sports or Now TV subscriptions to watch the Masters via TV or live streaming.