If you woke up today thinking there’s nothing but football on the tube, you’re missing out. Big time. While the NFL is hogging the headlines with divisional playoffs, the 2026 golf season is already in high gear across three different time zones. It’s a weirdly beautiful day for the sport. Honestly, if you aren't flipping between the palm trees of Oahu and the desert vibes of Dubai, you aren't doing Sunday right.
The headline act for golf tournament tv today is, without question, the final round of the Sony Open in Hawaii. It’s Sunday, January 18, 2026, and Waialae Country Club is looking like a postcard. But here is the thing: because it’s a West Coast/Hawaii event, the timing is a bit of a trip for those of us on the East Coast.
Where to Find the Sony Open Finale
Let’s get the big one out of the way first. You've basically got two ways to watch the drama unfold at Waialae.
Golf Channel has the main broadcast rights for the evening windows. You can catch the leaders coming down the stretch from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET. If you’re a night owl or just can’t get enough, they usually loop the final round broadcast starting at 11:00 PM ET.
But what if you want more than just the "official" broadcast? That's where ESPN+ comes in. They have been killing it with their "PGA Tour Live" coverage lately. Today, they are running featured groups and featured holes starting way earlier. We’re talking a massive window from 12:15 PM all the way to 10:00 PM ET. If you want to see every shot from the early movers or just park it on the iconic par-3 17th, that’s your play.
Nick Taylor is the defending champ here, and the vibe at Waialae is always a bit more "chill" than the raucous atmosphere we’ll see in Phoenix next month. But don't let the floral shirts fool you. With a $9.1 million purse and $1,638,000 going to the winner, the pressure on that back nine is very real.
The Early Bird: DP World Tour in Dubai
If you were up at the crack of dawn (or never went to bed), you might have caught the Dubai Invitational. It’s the first stop of the International Swing on the DP World Tour.
They finished up their final round at the Dubai Creek Resort earlier today. The broadcast aired on Golf Channel from 2:30 AM to 7:30 AM ET. It’s a bit of a niche watch for American fans, but the field was surprisingly deep. If you missed it live, keep an eye on the Golf Channel’s afternoon "Golf Central" updates or check their streaming app; they often keep the final round replays available for a few hours.
Don't Forget the Seniors and the Korn Ferry
There is a lot of "off-Broadway" golf happening today that most people totally overlook.
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- PGA Tour Champions: The legends are out in Hawaii too. The Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai is the season opener for the over-50 crowd. Watching Ernie Els and the boys navigate the black lava rock of the Big Island is honestly more relatable for most of us than watching the young guns hit it 350 yards. You can usually find this coverage tucked into the Golf Channel schedule right before or after the main PGA Tour event.
- Korn Ferry Tour: The future stars are in the Bahamas. The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic kicked off its first round today. It’s a Sunday-to-Wednesday tournament (yeah, you read that right), which is a quirky scheduling move to avoid getting buried by the NFL. You can find live coverage on Golf Channel from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM ET.
The Streaming Struggle: Peacock and More
I get it. Subscriptions are a mess. If you don't have cable, you're probably leaning on Peacock. While Peacock is the go-to for NBC events, since today's PGA action is technically a Golf Channel/ESPN+ split, your best bet for the Sony Open is definitely the ESPN+ app.
NBC won't really take over the Sunday afternoon "big network" slots until we get back to the mainland for the Florida swing. For now, it's a cable and streaming game.
What to Watch For on the Back Nine
When you finally tune in to the Sony Open tonight, keep an eye on the wind. Waialae is a short course by modern standards—it’s a par 70 that barely hits 7,000 yards—but if the trade winds kick up, it becomes a nightmare.
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Look at the guys who are "ball-strikers" rather than "bombers." This isn't a long-drive contest. It’s about positioning. The 18th hole is a reachable par 5, which almost guarantees a swing in the leaderboard at the very last second.
Your Sunday Golf Checklist
- Lunchtime (12:15 PM ET): Turn on ESPN+ for the Sony Open featured groups. It’s great background noise while you do literally anything else.
- Afternoon (2:00 PM ET): Flip over to Golf Channel to see the Korn Ferry Tour in the Bahamas. It's windy, it's chaotic, and it's fun.
- Prime Time (7:00 PM ET): This is the main event. Golf Channel for the Sony Open final round. Grab a drink, ignore the playoff scores for a minute, and watch the finish in Hawaii.
If you are looking for specific tee times for the leaders, they usually head out around 1:00 PM local time in Hawaii, which translates to 6:00 PM ET. That gives you just enough time to finish your Sunday dinner before the real drama starts.
To stay ahead of the curve, make sure your ESPN+ subscription is active before the 12:15 PM window starts—there’s nothing worse than missing a hole-in-one because you were resetting your password. Check your local listings if you're on the West Coast, as some providers might tape-delay the Golf Channel broadcast, though the live stream on the NBC Sports app usually bypasses that headache.
Next Step: Check your streaming login for ESPN+ now so you don't miss the 12:15 PM ET start of the featured groups at the Sony Open.