2012 British Open golf tournament July 19-22 on ESPN

England hogs the sports spotlight this month, as the 2012 British Open (sorry, The Open Championship) plays a bit of an opening act for the 2012 London Summer Olympics opening July 27. Golf’s best, including Luke Donald, Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar, Justin Rose, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods will try to capture the famed Claret Jug at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in the western county of Lancashire. Last year, Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke won his first major title.

RELATED: 2012 British Open Preview: Can Tiger fend off the Europeans?

ESPN airs all four rounds July 19-22, plus encore presentations later in the day (see full TV schedule below). ESPN’s telecasts of the first and second rounds on Thursday and Friday will now start at 4:30am ET, 30 minutes earlier, to allow viewers to see Phil Mickelson (4:31am) and Tiger Woods (4:42am) tee off. See ESPN’s press release for additional coverage details.

SportsCenter will air a one-hour preview on Wednesday, July 18, at 2pm ET on ESPN2.

GOLF CHANNEL also has 40 hours of news, press conferences, interviews and analysis during the week. Full press release and schedule from GOLF CHANNEL available here.

The Open Championship – Royal Lytham & St Annes, Lancashire, England

(all times U.S. Eastern)

Day/Date Program Start Network
Wed., July 18 SportsCenter at The Open Championship 2 p.m. ESPN2, WatchESPN
Thu., July 19 First Round 4:30 a.m. ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN
Thu., July 19 First Round 7 a.m. ESPN Radio
Thu., July 19 The Open Championship Today presented by Merrill Lynch 3 p.m. ESPN, WatchESPN
Thu., July 19 Best of The Open Championship 7 p.m. ESPN, WatchESPN
Fri., July 20 Second Round 4:30 a.m. ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN
Fri., July 20 Second Round 7 a.m. ESPN Radio
Fri., July 20 The Open Championship Today presented by Merrill Lynch 3 p.m. ESPN, WatchESPN
Fri., July 20 Best of The Open Championship 7 p.m. ESPN, WatchESPN
Sat., July 21 Best of The Open Championship 4 a.m. ESPN2, WatchESPN
Sat., July 21 Third Round 7 a.m. ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN
Sat., July 21 Third Round 9 a.m. ESPN Radio
Sat., July 21 The Open Championship Today presented by Merrill Lynch 3 p.m. ABC
Sat., July 21 Best of The Open Championship 7 p.m. ESPN, WatchESPN
Sun., July 22 Best of The Open Championship 3 a.m. ESPN2, WatchESPN
Sun., July 22 Final Round 6 a.m. ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN
Sun., July 22 Final Round 8 a.m. ESPN Radio
Sun., July 22 The Open Championship Today presented by Merrill Lynch 3 p.m. ABC
Sun., July 22 Best of The Open Championship 9 p.m. ESPN2, WatchESPN
Mon., July 23 Best of The Open Championship Noon ESPN2, WatchESPN
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