How to watch the Honda Classic live online, TV schedule, radio and more

The PGA Tour swings east for the first time this season and the real run-up to the Masters begins now. The Florida Swing has always served as a sort of unofficial Masters prep circuit for the top players in the world. The Honda Classic had been one of the lesser tournaments on the rota, deferring more to the WGC title at Doral and Arnold Palmer’s Invitational at Bay Hill. But in recent years, the Honda has shot up in notoriety and is now annually drawing loaded fields with most of the top players in the world rankings.

Part of that draw for the best players is location. PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens is an easy driving distance for so many pros who know make their lavish homes in the South Florida area. That’s the case for the best player in the world, Rory McIlroy, who will make his PGA Tour debut at the Honda this week. Rory has attended the Honda throughout his career, starting in 2009. McIlroy won it in 2012, walked off the course in frustration (blaming a toothache) in 2013, and lost in a playoff last year. So he’s got a bit of a history here, which is down the road from where he now resides full time in the States.

It was at PGA National in 2014 that the “Year of Rory” really started in full. Sure, he blew a lead down the stretch, but that 5-wood from 236 yards at the 18th was a shot that no one else in the game could make, given the circumstances.

The shot was a long way from the prior year when Rory was a mess with his new Nike sticks and just decided to quit midway through his round, perhaps the low point of his career so far. This year, he arrives as the most dominant player in the world, and by a wide margin. The primary goal of his season is finishing the career slam at Augusta. His game looked sharp as ever in a couple early-season starts over in the Middle East, but the push for the Masters starts now.

The PGA Tour’s move to Florida also brings a shift in coverage with a new broadcast crew. NBC now takes over CBS, which gives up golf after the West Coast swing to focus on NCAA basketball until the Masters. Between the Honda Classic, Doral, and Bay Hill, this may be NBC’s best golf stretch of the season, given that they no longer have the rights to the U.S. Open. The Florida swing and the last three legs of the FedExCup are the primary stages for Dan Hicks and Johnny Miller, who are starting their 16th year together, the longest of any network tandem for golf.

The main benefit of a switch in coverage from CBS is that Golf Channel and NBC are Comcast sister networks, so there’s a lot of cooperation and additional coverage options. There’s no annoying half-hour blackout period on Saturday and Sunday when coverage switches from GC to CBS. There always seems to be lead changes and plenty of shuffling during that half hour, but the coverage goes dark while graphics and broadcasters are switched out. With NBC, there’s no need for that switch out and coverage rolls right over to NBC with no intervening wait.

The fact that both networks are under the same umbrella also allows Golf Channel to run a concurrent broadcast opposite the main coverage on NBC. This experiment is now a couple years old, and it will continue this Saturday and Sunday with more Golf Channel “Spotlight Coverage” from PGA National’s infamous “Bear Trap.” Those three holes, from Nos. 15-17, are some of the trickiest and most dangerous on the Florida swing and they always cause regular blowups and carnage.

The Spotlight Coverage will have its own broadcast announce crew but they will be posted up at just those three holes for two hours each day on the weekend. The screen will also be covered in data, from season-long stats, daily hole stats, ProTracer graphics, Trackman numbers, and ShotLink info. All those chryon offerings have been called the “future of televised golf,” and GC will keep it up again this year.

It’s an interesting way to watch, especially for the diehards who are into the analytics that continue to gain more widespread use and understanding.

In addition to the multiple TV broadcasts, there will also be multiple online streams offered all four days at the Honda Classic. PGATour.com will have their Live@ stream up and running each round, and should focus on a “featured group” for the morning and afternoon waves. Golf Channel will have their usual simulcasts going, including one of the Spotlight Coverage on the weekend. And NBC’s broadcast of the conclusion on Saturday and Sunday’s finale will also be simulcast streamed via their LiveExtra service.

Here are all your media options for the week:

2 to 6 p.m. -- Golf Channel

2 to 6 p.m. -- Golf Channel simulcast stream

2 to 6 p.m. -- Golf Channel simulcast stream

1 to 3 p.m. -- Golf Channel

3 to 6 p.m. -- NBC

3 to 5 p.m. -- Golf Channel “Spotlight Coverage” of the Bear Trap (holes 15 through 17)

1 to 6 p.m. -- Golf Channel/NBC Sports LiveExtra simulcast stream

1 to 3 p.m. -- Golf Channel

3 to 6 p.m. -- NBC

3 to 5 p.m. -- Golf Channel “Spotlight Coverage” of the Bear Trap (holes 15 through 17)

1 to 6 p.m. -- Golf Channel/NBC Sports LiveExtra simulcast stream