Nearly 19 million viewers tuned in to either the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl football game or Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic basketball tournament, according to ESPN Regional TV, which owns and operates the properties.

That amounts to about 12 percent of U.S. television households, said David Matlin, executive director of the events.

The figures, he said, are for net reach, which takes in two ESPN, three ESPN2 and eight ESPNU telecasts and includes unduplicated viewers who watched any part of the events.

The Dec. 24 Hawaii Bowl was sandwiched by the eight-team Diamond Head Classic that ran Dec. 22, 23 and 25.

"We are very pleased that nearly 19 million viewers watched the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl and the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic," said Matlin. "It is always special to showcase our tropical weather, sun, beaches and tourist attractions as people in many mainland cities are contending with freezing temperatures during the holiday season."

The viewership for 2012 was slightly higher than 2011, when 17.7 million viewers turned in, Matlin said.

The Hawaii Bowl, which was held on a Monday for the first time in its 11 years, was seen in approximately 13 million homes. This was despite a blowout in the Christmas Eve Hawaii Bowl, where Southern Methodist University held a 22-0 halftime lead and won 43-10.

SMU coach June Jones said, "one of the reasons we wanted to come to the Hawaii Bowl was the tremendous amount of people who will see it all across the country when it is the only football game on."