British Open tee times moved up for final round due to threatening weather forecast

In a rare move by The R&A, the final round of the 2019 British Open has been moved up due to ominous weather forecasted for the Portrush, Northern Ireland, area on Sunday afternoon.

The first tee time on Sunday will be at 7:32 a.m. local (2:32 a.m. ET) and the final pairing will tee off at 8:47 a.m. ET.

While Sunday tee times have yet to be announced, this move appears to push up tee times by at least an hour or two. For the third round on Saturday the final pairing went off at 10:50 a.m. local. And last year at the British Open at Carnoustie the final Sunday pairing was 9:45 a.m. ET

Strong wind and rain are expected to hit Portrush on Sunday, which includes a 40-percent chance and wind gusts up to 35 mph.

British Opens have long been associated with harsh weather conditions that change frequently and are often difficult to predict, so for organizers to go ahead and move tee times in advance, one would assume some rough weather looms.

Announcement 📢

Sunday tee times have been moved forward due to the adverse weather forecast. The first tee time will be at 7:32am with the leaders beginning their final round at 1.47pm #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/5SHjs3SACX

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 20, 2019