It’s that time of year again for golf fans. Time to get up early and grab yourself a cup of coffee, or grab yourself a cup of coffee so you can stay up late. Whatever the case, you’ve got options as you come up with the best strategy to watch the 152nd British Open Championship on television or streaming online from Royal Troon in Scotland.
Once again, NBC Sports has all-day coverage of the year’s final men’s major, from the opening shot each round to the last putt. (OK, maybe it’s all-night coverage for West Coast viewers willing to stay up past their normal bedtimes.)
Combining the broadcasts on Peacock, USA Network and NBC, viewers will be treated to almost 50 hours of live championship coverage. As was the case at the U.S. Open last month, NBC will use two-person teams to share the coverage duties, with play-by-play commentators Dan Hicks and Mike Tirico paired with analysts Luke Donald and Brad Faxon, respectively.
“Really fond, fond memories of Troon in 2016 because it was our first at NBC,” Hicks said during a media teleconference this past week, NBC broadcasting the Open for the first time eight years ago. “In all the golf years that I’d been covering the sport, I’d never been to an Open, so I was really anxious to get there. I’d always heard about how special the Open Championships are, and that year lived up to everything I had heard and more.”
Meanwhile, this will be the first major for Donald in the NBC broadcast booth, after playing in the Open at Troon in 2004 and 2016.
In addition to “traditional” tournament action, streaming coverage following featured groups and featured-hole coverage that will include the “Postage Stamp” par-3 eighth hole boosts the overall number of hours of live golf to more than 200.
Below is the listing of the live TV schedule and the schedule for alternative coverage being offered through various online streaming services.
1:30-4 a.m., Peacock (streaming)
4 a.m.-3 p.m., USA Network
3-4:15 p.m., Peacock (streaming)
Shown on Peacock, NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app
3:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Featured Holes
4:35-9:35 a.m., Featured Group 1
4:46-9:46 a.m., Featured Group 2
9:36 a.m.-2:36 p.m., Featured Group 3
10:09 a.m.-3:09 p.m., Featured Group 4
3:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Featured Holes
4:35-9:35 a.m., Featured Group 1
4:46-9:46 a.m., Featured Group 2
9:36 a.m.-2:36 p.m., Featured Group 3
10:09 a.m.-3:09 p.m., Featured Group 4
TBD, Featured Groups 1, 2, 3, 4
5:45 a.m.-1 p.m., Featured Holes
TBD, Featured Groups 1, 2, 3, 4
4:45 a.m.-12 noon, Featured Holes
Play by Play: Dan Hicks, Mike Tirico, Terry Gannon, Steve Sands
Analyst: Luke Donald, Brad Faxon, Paul McGinley, Notah Begay III
On-Course Reporters: John Wood, Smylie Kaufman, Jim “Bones” Mackay, Curt Byrum
Is it the British Open or the Open Championship? The name of the final men’s major of the golf season is a subject of continued discussion. The event’s official name, as explained in this op-ed by former R&A chairman Ian Pattinson, is the Open Championship. But since many United States golf fans continue to refer to it as the British Open, and search news around the event accordingly, Golf Digest continues to utilize both names in its coverage.