British Open: when, where and how UAE viewers can watch the action

Tiger Woods celebrates on the 18th hole to win the US Masters on April 14, 2019. The 15-time major winner will be looking to extend his number of titles when the British Open begins at Royal Portrush Show more

UAE viewers seeking to watch live coverage of next week’s British Open will be able to do so online - although once more there will be no live TV broadcast available for a major this season.

The 148th Open Championship, the year’s fourth and final major, takes place at Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland from July 18-21. The Open is garnering even more interest given it was last staged there in 1951 and has not since been played outside mainland Britain.

However, similar to the year's previous three majors, no live TV coverage will be available in the UAE. Instead, viewers can watch the action on Facebook Live through TheOpen.com.

Until the past few months, OSN had shown both the PGA Tour and European Tour, but stripped back its sports coverage from March 31 to only cricket - 11 days before the Masters teed off.

UAE golf fans could watch on Facebook Live Tiger Woods claim his first major in almost 11 years and 15th overall, although May's PGA Championship at Bethpage Black, eventually won by Brooks Koepka, was not screened.

Viewers wishing to watch last month's US Open could follow limited coverage from Pebble Beach on the United States Golf Association website or App. The tournament was won by Gary Woodland.

Meanwhile, since late May Dubai Sports Channel has been broadcasting regular events on the European Tour’s Race to Dubai throughout the Mena region. It will continue through until the end of the season, which culminates with the DP World Tour Championship, at Jumeirah Golf Estates, in November. It is understood discussions with other broadcasters have taken place since OSN pared back its coverage.

The UAE contributes significantly to the European Tour, with the season-long Race to Dubai and its three high-profile tournaments: the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, presented by EGA, the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, and the Tour Championship. The tour makes other stops in the Gulf, in Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar.