Australian Open 2025 preview: Players, prize money, TV schedule and more

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The Australian Open returns! Here is everything you need to know about the second event of the 2026 DP World Tour season.

The new season started with the Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane last week, and the tour will now travel around 1,000 miles to Melbourne.

Rory McIlroy headlines a star-studded field, looking to win the tournament for the second time, so it should be an entertaining watch.

The Golfing Gazette has all the key information about the Australian Open, including the players and prize money.

• READ MORE: Marc Leishman suggests how joining LIV Golf has made him a better player ahead of the Australian Open

When is the Australian Open?

The Australian Open takes place from Thursday, December 4, until Sunday, December 7. It’s the second event of the 2026 DP World Tour season.

Australian Open venue

Royal Melbourne Golf Club have hosted the Australian Open 17 times, more than any other course except The Australian Golf Club in Sydney (22).

Royal Melbourne GC

• Location: Melbourne, Australia
• Established: 1926
• Architect: Dr. Alister MacKenzie
• Par: 71
• Yardage: 7,086

Australian Open players

The Australian Open field includes many of the best Australian players, such as Min Woo Lee, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman, and Cameron Smith.

Rory McIlroy is the standout name from the PGA Tour, and he will be joined by LIV Golf’s Joaquin Niemann.

Australian Open TV coverage

Golf Channel will show live television coverage of all four rounds of the Australian Open for fans in the United States.

Viewers in Australia can watch the tournament on Nine, 9Now, Fox Sports, and Kayo Sports. New Zealanders can tune in to Sky Sport.

What is the prize money at the Australian Open?

The prize money available at the Australian Open this week totals 2 million AUD (1.31 million USD).

The winner will receive 340,000 AUD (222,761 USD).

Australian Open predictions

The Golfing Gazette experts have made their predictions for the winner of the first national open of the 2026 season in Australia.

James Shearman: Rory McIlroy was only a few strokes away from winning the Abu Dhabi Championship and the DP World Tour Championship last month, so he’s still in excellent form. Also, he will not face the same competition as in the UAE, so a similar performance will probably be enough for victory in Australia.

Jordan Harris: Daniel Hillier has been knocking on the door for some time on the DP World Tour, agonisingly falling short of earning a PGA Tour card for 2026. The Kiwi has a fantastic chance of securing the biggest victory of his career to date.

Peter Lynch: Rory McIlroy should be well rested and fully recovered after a busy spell, and he’s definitely got the game to outclass the rest of the field this week.

Charlie Walker: No need to overthink this one! Rory McIlroy has been threatening to pick up yet another impressive win in recent months, and this time around, I expect him to be the class of the field and win another Australian Open.