From the fairway to the bunker, PGA Tour golf offers up the sport's biggest names and best moments. So where should you tee off?
Update: We have a dedicated article about the PGA Championship here.
How good is golf? If you're a huge fan of golf, one of the world's richest sports, then you'll know that there is almost always a tournament on somewhere in the world. The questions is; where can you watch it? The most comprehensive golf broadcaster in Australia is Foxtel, but it in itself isn't a singular option.
All eight of the Fox Sports channels, two ESPN channels, and three beIN Sports channels are available through Foxtel directly (either view Foxtel Now or Foxtel IQ) or through the new streaming service Kayo Sports. Kayo being a sister product to Foxtel owned by the same larger corporation.
So what golf can you watch on Foxtel and Kayo Sports? And which of these two services is right for you?
2019 Australian Golf TV Schedule
The following games and tours are currently scheduled to be broadcast live on Foxtel and on Kayo Sports in 2019. These will not all be available on demand, however. That said, those golf tours that aren't fit to be on demand will be re-broadcast as highlights shows and as replays in the normal channel schedule. For actual specific event dates, we have a Global Golf Calendar available.
| Tour | Events Broadcast | Live | Replay | On Demand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGA Tour/Fedex Cup | All | Yes | Yes | No |
| PGA Tour Champions | All | Yes | Yes | No |
| Web.com Tour | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| European Tour | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Asian Tour | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| PGA Tour China | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| USLPGA Tour | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ladies European Tour | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| British Senior Open | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| The Masters (Major) | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| The British Open Championship (Major) | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| US Open (Major) | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| PGA Championship (Major) | All | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Where and when to watch The Masters
Starting on April 12 in Australia, The Masters Tournament (or U.S. Masters) is the first big major of 2019. We've got a detailed hub page for this mighty event for you to dive into, but the quick summary is that Fox Sports 505 will show every round live through both Foxtel and Kayo Sports. Here is a more detailed breakdown of when you need to tune in, depending on your location.
| Event | East Coast | Perth | Darwin and Adelaide | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round Start Time | 5:00 | 3:00 | 4:30 | 7:00 |
Is golf on Kayo Sports any good?
Yes, it's excellent. Kayo Sports allows you to stream all of the golf on the above schedule to a host of devices in high-definition. This includes PC, Mac, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Telstra TV, Android TV and ChromeCast. It doesn't work natively through your TV at this stage – which may be off-putting to some – but it is quite simple to connect via ChromeCast. We have a guide to help you through the process.
What's great about Kayo Sports is its availability (it's always with you), its supplementary content (specials, highlights, talk shows, documentaries) and its unique sports viewing features. The latter includes the ability to use SplitView to watch up to four channels at once, as well as a picture-in-picture mode, an option to hide results, jump to a key moment and more.
In addition, for specific events - such as The Masters Tournemant - Kayo Sports is broadcasting four different channels (each with a different camera view) of the event. You can then use SplitView to watch all four of these at once, giving you unparalleled access to the Augusta course from the comfort of your lounge-room.
As well as golf, you also get access to 50 other live sports, and the ability to stream on two different screens simultaneously. There is no lock-in contract, and at $25 a month it's excellent value. There is an easy to opt-in and opt-out 14-day free trial so you can test it out easily, too.
There's a full guide to Kayo sports here.
Is golf on Foxtel any good?
Golf on Foxtel can be excellent, but its high price point and invasive installation process mean it is only a good fit for the very high-end fan. The Foxtel IQ box must be installed by a technician at an additional cost and on a contract. This can involve cabling, outlets and possibly even a satellite dish. You also must subscribe to the base channel pack and the HD pack before you can access the sport pack in all its glory. That's a cost of $68 a month and potentially a whole bunch of channels you don't need.
The good news is that the Foxtel IQ4 set-top box is capable of showing golf in 4K. The golf needs to be broadcast in 4K, and you need to have a 4K TV, to see it, but there's no doubt it's glorious. You can also record to the box, giving you control of when you can watch those tournaments – like the PGA Tour – that aren't available On Demand.
The Foxtel Go app does come with a Foxtel IQ subscription, which means you can stream golf to your mobile devices as well as watch it on the TV for no extra cost. But given that both Kayo Sports and Foxtel show the exact same live sports experience, it's hard to justify the extra cost of Foxtel IQ unless it meets your particular needs for 4K, or additional non-sporting channels.
It would also be remiss of us not to point out that while Foxtel has confirmed 4K broadcasts of Cricket, AFL, NRL, Football and Motorsport in 2019, it has not yet confirmed if it will show any golf tournaments in this resolution.
Get more information about Foxtel here.
