The Open Championship: Tee times, how to watch, odds, purse
It's time for the final major championship of the season.
The British Open Championship — also The Open — is up this week at Royal Birkdale in England, where the iconic Claret Jug is up for grabs once again.
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, who ended his cut streak last week at The Renaissance Club, will try and defend his title from last season. He's a significant favorite alongside Rory McIlroy, who is coming off a top-10 finish at the Scottish Open but hasn't won The Open in more than a decade.
But as always, links golf is a completely different animal. The Claret Jug is anybody's to grab this week.
Here is everything you need to know about The British Open Championship.
Where is the The British Open
The British Open this season is being held at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, Merseyside. The course is located along the coast about 17 miles north of Liverpool in England.
Royal Birkdale last held The Open back in 2017, when Jordan Spieth claimed his win.
When does The British Open begin?
The first round of the British Open will start on Thursday, July 16
What are the first round tee times?
First round tee times will be announced this week.
Where will The British Open be next?
The British Open has the next two sites set up already. It will return to The Old Course at St. Andrews in 2027, and then head to Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 2028.
The R&A uses a course rotation that includes nine total courses. Other than the next two, and Royal Birkdale this season, the others on that list are: Royal Portrush, Royal Troon, Royal St. George's, Muirfield, Carnoustie and Royal Liverpool.
Who won last year's British Open
Scottie Scheffler picked up his first BritishOpen title last season at Royal Portrush in dominant fashion. He got to 17-under on the week and ended up taking a four-shot win over Harris English and the rest of the field. It marked the fourth major championship title of Scheffler's career, and his second in 2025.
The last 10 winners are:
2025: Scottie Scheffler
2024: Xander Schauffele
2023: Brian Harman
2022: Cameron Smith
2021: Collin Morikawa
2020: n/a
2019: Shane Lowry
2018: Francesco Molinari
2017: Jordan Spieth
2016: Henrik Stenson
2015: Zach Johnson
The British Open odds
As of Sunday night, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are significant favorites entering The British Open this week.
The British Open odds (via BetMGM)
Scottie Scheffler (+750)
Rory McIlroy (+800)
Matt Fitzpatrick (+1800)
Tommy Fleetwood (+1800)
Jon Rahm (+2200)
Xander Schauffele (+2500)
How to watch The British Open
The British Open is being broadcast on NBC, USA Network and Peacock this week.
All times ET
Thursday, July 16
Peacock: 1:30 a.m. - 4 a.m.
USA Network: 4 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Friday, July 17
Peacock: 1:30 a.m. - 4 a.m.
USA Network: 4 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 18
USA Network: 5 a.m. - 7 a.m.
NBC/Peacock: 7 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Sunday, July 19
USA Network: 4 a.m. - 7 a.m.
NBC/Peacock: 7 a.m. - 2 p.m.
The British Open purse
The purse and payouts for the tournament will be announced later this week, though The Open typically has the smallest purse of the four major championships.
The British Open trophy
The Claret Jug is among the best trophies in all of sports. The silver jug stands about 20 inches tall and weighs less than six pounds, and is made out of 92.5% sterling silver. The winner's name is engraved on the bottom
The trophy was first introduced in 1872, though only 28 players have actually held the original Claret Jug. Since 1928, a replica trophy has been presented to the winner, who then carries it for a year before returning it to the R&A. They then get to take home a full-size replica of the trophy to keep.
What is the R&A?
The R&A stands for The Royal and Ancient, and dates back to The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews. The R&A formally split from the golf club in 2004, however, and is now separate.
The R&A is one of two governing bodies of golf, and essentially runs the sport everywhere in the world except for in the United States and Mexico. It works alongside the United States Golf Association, and puts on The Open every year.
The British Open vs. The Open
These two are really interchangeable, and which you use really depends on where you live.
In the United States, since we have the U.S. Open, we typically refer to this tournament as the British Open to help differentiate. AP Style dictates that we use British Open, too.
However the R&A — which is the British counterpart to the USGA — calls it The Open. And to their credit, the first version of "The Open" took place back in 1860, a full 35 years before the first U.S. Open. So it did come first.
