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Sir Nick Faldo looks ahead to joining the Sky Sports commentary team for The Open at Royal Troon

Sky Sports has strengthened its unprecedented coverage of The Open even further, by adding six-time major winner Sir Nick Faldo to its team of commentators and experts.

Viewers can enjoy insight and analysis from the former world No 1, a winner of 41 tournaments worldwide during his playing career with three Open titles among his six major championship victories.

Sir Nick will join Sky Sports' award-winning golf team that will offer golf fans an entire channel dedicated to The 145th Open at historic Royal Troon, with live coverage of all four days' play from the opening tee shot and commentary and analysis from a team that already includes Paul McGinley, Colin Montgomerie and Butch Harmon.

Sir Nick Faldo won his first Open title in 1987

He said: "I am happy to have the opportunity to work with the Sky Sports team in presenting The Open. This championship and its storied history means a lot to me. I hope to share insight, entertainment and a little local knowledge with Sky Sports viewers.

"Apparently, I'm going to be there for the first tee shot at 6.30am on Thursday morning, calling that, so that's great. That's modern television now that we are actually wall-to-wall for the full 72 holes of The Open, covering every single shot. That's the era we are in now which is very cool.

The Open and its storied history means a lot to me. I hope to share insight, entertainment and a little local knowledge with Sky Sports viewers

Sir Nick Faldo

"It is quite special for me because it is Royal Troon. My dad drove me up to Troon when I was 16 and that was the start of the inspiration, or the visualisation. I stood on the back of the range and I loved it.

"I watched Jack, Arnold, Gary, Lee Trevino, Johnny Miller and Tom Weiskopf. It was really inspirational because I brought all those golf swings in my mind back to Welwyn Garden City and that's how I learned to play, I mimicked those great players.

"To me, the most special thing is the sound of The Open. It sounds weird but when you get there and go play, that golf course sounds completely different because you have metal fences around and the ground and the skylarks sing and that sort of thing. There is just something about it.

An emotional Faldo celebrates his third Open triumph in 1992

"If you are on a links on a nice, sunny, breezy day there is nothing like it and there is something special about being able to play and master a links course. There is something about it and its whole history, going way back so if you put all those things together I'm still leaning that I'm really glad I've got a couple of Claret Jugs there on the shelf."

Sky Sports head of golf Jason Wessely added: "Sir Nick Faldo is one of golf's greats and I know our viewers will enjoy hearing the thoughts and opinions from someone who has been there and done it in The Open.

"He'll be able to take our viewers inside the ropes and explain what the players are going through, from the first round on Thursday through to coming down the stretch on Sunday afternoon.

Sir Nick Faldo was a prolific winner in his career. Here's his impressive haul from 1989

"We're really looking forward to telling The Open story from Royal Troon next month, and with Sir Nick Faldo joining the team, we'll be even better placed to give the Championship the coverage it deserves."

Sir Nick first lifted the famous Claret Jug at Muirfield a day after his 30th birthday in 1987, and he then repeated the feat with a dominant triumph at St Andrews three years later. His third Open title, once more at Muirfield, came in 1992 and, in addition to his three victories, he has a further 10 top-10 finishes in the tournament.

Sir Nick Faldo salutes the crowd on the Swilcan Bridge at St Andrews last year

He became the youngest player to feature in the Ryder Cup when he made his debut in 1977, and he holds a number of records in the competition including most appearances (11), most matches played (46), most points won (25) and most matches won (23).

The channel launches on 11 July, when Sky Sports 1 becomes 'Sky Sports The Open'.  Sky's live coverage of The 145th Open at Royal Troon will begin on 14 July ahead of the opening tee shot at 6.35am which will be shown live for the first time on television in the UK and Ireland.

Sir Nick Faldo also won three Masters titles, including his memorable triumph over long-time rival Greg Norman in 1996

Sky's coverage of The Open will be a highlight of another unmissable summer of sport on Sky Sports which includes live England Test cricket against Pakistan, every Formula 1 Grand Prix including Silverstone, and England's rugby union tour of Australia. Then in August there will be 126 live Premier League games with more top picks and Friday night matches for the first time.

This year Sky Sports is the only place to watch all four majors and the Ryder Cup. The full schedule is available to those that subscribe to Sky Sports and to non-subscribers through NOW TV, the UK's leading streaming service available on 60 devices, which offers access to all seven sport channels for £6.99 a day or through a week pass at £10.99.