Michael Phelps is turning out to be a bigger draw than Charlie Sheen, Howie Mandel, Donald Trump or Paul Hamm.

With Phelps tying the Olympic record for career gold medals Monday night, NBC turned in the best performance for any network on the night since 2004, bettering Monday hits like Mandel’s “Deal or No Deal,” Trump’s “The Apprentice” and Sheen’s “Two and a Half Men.” It also marked NBC’s best Monday night performance since 2002.

The network averaged 29.7 million total viewers in primetime, from 8 to 11:36 p.m., up 9 percent from 27.1 million on the equivalent night in Athens, when Hamm led the U.S. men’s gymnastics team to a silver medal.

NBC averaged a 17.4 household rating and 28 share, 5 percent better than a 16.6/27 for Athens.

NBC also averaged a 10.4 rating among adults 18-49, the best for any network since Fox in January 2004. It marked the network’s best Monday since February 2002. In total viewers, it was the best performance for any network since Fox in February 2003 and for NBC since 2002.

Through four nights of coverage, NBC is averaging 30.4 million total viewers, 23 percent better than 24.7 million for Athens. Among households, NBC is averaging a 17.1 rating, up 16 percent from a 14.7 in Athens and well ahead of the number the network had guaranteed advertisers.

It marks the best start to a non-U.S. Summer Olympics in 16 years, since the 1992 Barcelona Games averaged a 17.4 rating for the first four days.

And the momentum should continue for NBC due in large part to Phelps, who captured his 10th and 11th career gold medals last night and remains on pace to become the first athlete ever to win eight gold medals in one Games.

Phelps, who won six golds and two bronzes in Athens, is fast becoming the breakout star of these Games. All five of his wins thus far have come in world record time, and his victory as part of the winning 4x100-meter freestyle relay team Sunday night has generated more than 1 million streams on NBCOlympics.com.

He’s got a huge amount of buzz online, where Nielsen reports he’s by far the most-searched-for Olympic athlete. In fact, he’s even the most popular athlete in Britain, according to Hitwise.

That means ratings may have soared even higher last night, when Phelps moved more than halfway to his goal. He has three more races to go, and all will air live in primetime over the next few nights.

Meanwhile, NBC also said yesterday that 157 million viewers have watched some portion of the Games on broadcast or cable so far, pacing 15 million ahead of Athens.

And NBCOlympics.com has already surpassed the totals for the entire Athens Games in terms of page views, video streams and unique users.