GUIDE: How to watch the PGA Championship on TV, Streaming and more
Good news golf fans. The Major season is very much underway, and the PGA Championship is set up beautifully. Scottie Scheffler is on a historic hot streak, Rory McIlroy is the second-betting favorite, Tiger Woods will be teeing up, and we have a bigger-than-usual cohort of LIV contenders with a point to prove. Valhalla Golf Club will play host to this latest pillar of the golfing calendar, hosting defending champion Brooks Koepka as he tries to fend off a loaded field of the best golfers on the planet.
In this article, we will detail the television viewing options available to you and which one brings the best value. It is going to be four days of thrilling pin-hunting action, so read on to make sure you don’t miss a shot.
Key information:
- Date: Thursday 16th - Sunday 19th May
- First tee: 7:50 am (estimate)
- Reigning Champion: Brooks Koepka (3-time champion)
- Number of golfers: 156
- Purse: $11million
- TV Streaming Rights: CBS, ESPN and Golf Channel
Viewing Options: Detailed Comparison of Services
Cable and Satellite Services
For watching the PGA Championship, we will be recommending a streaming package, but there are still plenty of people who prefer to stick to cable and satellite options. These still hold merit in the wider television landscape, offering unrivaled channel packages. Our choice is DirecTV because of its vast channel variety and access to regional sports networks, but Dish, Verizon Fios and Cox are all good options as well. These will all have NBC and ESPN, alongside a wide array of other channels to keep you entertained.
- Cox: $61.00–$152.00/mo.
- DirecTV: $69.99–$159.99/mo.
- Dish: $84.99-$114.99/mo.
- Verizon Fios: $69.00–$129.00/mo.
Streaming Services
Streaming options look the way to go for the PGA Championship, with several enticing options ranging from $10.99 a month up to $79.99 a month, depending on your preference. FuboTV ($79.99 per month), YouTubeTV ($72.99 per month) and Sling TV ($55 a month) all offer NBC and ESPN alongside a wide array of other channels, but, with the PGA Championship in mind, our choice is Hulu + Live TV ($76.99 a month).
Not only does this one host CBS and ESPN, but it also includes ESPN+ to give you the broadest access to all the golf content you need throughout the PGA Championship. This will give you access to the early coverage, featured groups, featured holes, and additional analysis. As an added bonus, you also get Disney+ included as well, for when the golf finishes and you need to switch over to something a bit different.
If you want to catch every shot without incurring the full streaming fee, then opting for ESPN+ is the best route for you. At just $10.99 a month, ESPN+ comes in at $60 a month cheaper than most streaming and cable options, whilst still giving you elite PGA Championship access. You will sacrifice the additional channels that come with the likes of Hulu and FuboTV, but your golf fandom will be more than satisfied.
How to Watch the PGA Championship for Free
The best thing about the PGA Championship is that it only lasts four days, which means one free trial from a streaming service should cover you. These free trials are becoming a bit less common from streaming services, however, DirecTV offers a very nice 5-day window, and some Fubo packages come with a 7-day free trial. Utilizing one of these will cover you for the length of the tournament, giving you completely free access, so long as you remember to cancel your free trial at the end. If you don’t, you will incur a hefty fee.
Another option, whilst technically not free, is to watch through an over-the-air antenna. The antenna will cost you a small amount, but it will allow you to tune into the CBS coverage if you are in the range of a CBS station.
Tournament & Course Information
The PGA Championship is one of golf’s four major championships and will be held in Louisville, Kentucky, at Valhalla Golf Club. This is the fourth time that the Jack Nicklaus-designed course has played host to the tournament. For this edition of the PGA Championship, the course will be playing a challenging par-71 that stretches 7,609, making it very well suited to the longer hitters on tour.
There will be several key holes to watch out for. Of course, as is the case with any major, hole 18 will produce some of the biggest moments of the tournament. It is a majestic 570-yard par 5 with two different routes into the large green. If players need a good finish to the round, this a fantastic risk-reward hole that promises to produce some heart-stopping moments. Before you get to the 18th though, the challenges arise early at Valhalla, with the second hole offering up a daunting 500-yard par 4. The par 5 for members dog-legs around a sunken wetland adding plenty of jeopardy for the contenders.
Preview & Predictions
Of course, as has been the case for over a year now, if Scottie Scheffler is playing, Scottie Scheffler is your betting favorite. 7/2 is an outrageously short price for a favorite in a golf major, but that tells you all you need to know about how good Scheffler is striking it at the moment. He won the first major of the season, The Masters, a month ago, adding to an impressive tally that includes 4 wins already in 2024.
Rory McIlroy is next best in the betting odds, followed by youngster Ludvig Aberg, and then a couple of superstars from the LIV tour, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka. Rahm hasn’t seemed himself since joining LIV, whereas Brooks is fresh off a victory in Singapore and looks primed for a title defense.
Author: Venuse, Inc