BBC to show The Open in HD

The BBC has confirmed plans to show The Open Championship in high definition for the first time.

For the 150th anniversary of The Open, the BBC will broadcast 40 hours of live coverage on BBC One, BBC Two and BBC HD, starting on July 15 at 9am. There will also be 40 hours of content available via the Red Button.

The BBC's coverage team will once more be led by Hazel Irvine, with expert analysis coming from Peter Alliss, Ken Brown, Sam Torrance, Mark James, Wayne Grady and Andrew Cotter.

For 2010, French golfer Jean Van de Velde will join the on-course team of Maureen Madill and Philip Parkin, with reports coming from Dan Walker, Shane O'Donaghue and Russell Fuller.

Before the action gets underway, BBC Two will air a one-hour highlights programme from The Open's anniversary special event, The Open Champions Challenge, on July 15 from 7pm.

The challenge, which features past Open winners such as Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods, will also be made available via the Red Button between 3.30pm and 6pm.

BBC Sport Online will carry live streaming of the network feed (for UK users only), along with highlights, live leaderboards and video clips. All coverage will also be made available on BBC iPlayer after transmission.

BBC Radio 5 Live will broadcast extensive coverage from The Open, with John Inverdale presenting live from the event every day.

Among highlights from the station's coverage will be golf fanatic Chris Evans fronting a two-hour special 5 Live Sport Open Preview from St Andrews on July 14 from 7pm.