LIV Golf boss goes on the defensive: "We're okay with that"

LIV Golf's chief executive Scott O'Neil says there is 'so much more' to the league than just TV ratings. 

Viewing figures from the established North American circuit and the breakaway tour have been heavily scrutinised so far this year. 

SBJ's Josh Carpenter is always on hand to reveal the latest figures and his most recent report painted a dismal picture for LIV. 

Rory McIlroy's recent victory at The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass drew an average of 3.6m viewers and peaked at 6.2m. 

The PGA Tour's flagship event was played in the same week as LIV Golf's stop in Singapore, which reportedly drew an average of 34,000. 

The alarming figures prompted former PGA Tour pro turned Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee to claim LIV was 'dying'. 

"The audience sees right through them, and chooses to watch those that prefer to play for history and legacy," Chamblee said. 

O'Neil, unsurprisingly, took a different approach during a recent conversation with CNBC. 

The 54-year-old American, who replaced Greg Norman in January, was quick to point out the differences in time zones have played their part.

"We are different, though," he added. "We're a global sports league.

"Our first four events we were in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, then we went over to Adelaide, Australia, then Hong Kong and now we’re in Singapore.

"For those of you who've spent time in New York, you might know that some of our events are played at three in the morning, so it might not register on traditional rating scales as you might register a U.S. sports league.

"And we're quite okay with that, especially now that we're starting to get more and more distribution around the world. 

"We're getting quite a few viewers in the time zones we are in."

He continued: "Over time, this notion of being the F1 of golf is one I like a lot. 

"Other than LIV, F1 is the only truly global sports league. 

"They have teams and we have teams and it’s very different for golf to have a team sport. 

"You're definitely playing in a premium market like F1 has."

O'Neil also compared LIV's hospitality experience to an F1 paddock. 

"Walking the pit row is very akin to walking our driving range before an event. It's as close a parallel as you can find. 

"But remember we're three years in and I bet they're 80."