David Cook may have won American Idol in May.

But it took six months for the singer to become a true success.

Cook's self-titled debut CD landed at number-three on The Billboard 200 album sales chart after selling 280,000 copies during its initial week of release. These figures are significantly higher than those of American Idol sixth-season champion Jordin Sparks; her self-titled debut sold 119,000 copies in its first week.

Cook also defeated runner-up David Archuleta once again, as the talented teen sold 183,000 copies of his self-titled debut during its initial few days of release one week earlier.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.