Is The Open Championship On The BBC This Year?

It’s a question a lot of golf fans will be asking, especially those who do not have a subscription for Sky Sports and the Sky Sports Golf channel, which will be showing round-the-clock coverage from Royal Liverpool.

Those wanting to watch live coverage on terrestrial television in the UK will be disappointed, however, with the BBC only showing highlights in the evening of the final men’s Major Championship of the season.

It’s not such bad news for those who will be working throughout the day Thursday through Sunday, with Eilidh Barbour presenting highlights on BBC Two at 8pm every day (July 20-23).

The BBC announced in 2015 that it had given up on live rights to The Open, with Sky taking over the following year in a £15m-a-year deal that ran up until 2021 – rights that were then renewed.

For those craving live coverage of all the action at Hoylake, Sky Sports Golf will be showing all four rounds from dawn until dusk.

Wall-to-wall coverage will commence from 6.30am for the first two days of the tournament, ahead of the opening tee shot at 6.35am, with the action live until 9pm for each of the opening two rounds.

Day three coverage begins at 9am and runs through until after the conclusion of the action. The same offering will be available for Sunday's final round, starting at 8am instead, running through until long after the final putt drops.

Sky will also have additional analysis available in 'The Open Verdict' show after each day's play, while the red button will feature live early play on Saturday giving golf fans the fix that they need. 

For viewers in the United States, a combination of NBC’s streaming service Peacock and the Golf Channel will provide coverage on Thursday and Friday with NBC taking over on Saturday and Sunday.