2023 Golfweek Awards: Best New Idea in Golf — Grant Thornton Invitational

For today’s players and newer golf fans, the mixed-team event was a first.

OK, so it’s not exactly a new idea. A mixed-team event was on the PGA Tour and LPGA schedules most years from 1960 to 1999.

But for today’s players and newer golf fans, the Grant Thornton Invitational was a first and refreshing year-end addition in 2023. And, given the upheaval that surrounds the game, a much-needed distraction.

Jason Day, the highest-ranked PGA Tour player in the field, teamed with Lydia Ko to win the inaugural event at Tiburon Golf Club. Ko, who’d endured a hugely disappointing 2023, found something in the lead-up to the event and looked better than she had all season.

2023 Grant Thornton Invitational
Lilia Vu and Joel Dahmen during the first round of the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club on December 08, 2023 in Naples, Florida. (Photo by Douglas DeFelice/Getty Images)

With the Grant Thornton held at the same venue as the longstanding QBE Shootout, another unofficial limited-field event, it was easy to compare notes between the two. The mixed event had double the fans and concession sales than QBE, and the hospitality areas sold out.

Many of the PGA Tour players said they hoped that a successful Grant Thornton would lead to more opportunities between the men and women.

“There’s no reason we can’t have more mixed-team events,” said Joel Dahmen, who paired with World No. 1 Lilia Vu.

“There are so many events on the PGA Tour, ratings aren’t always amazing in some of those fields. To bring in the women’s game would be awesome.

“I was completely outclassed today by Lexi (Thompson).”

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Prize money breakdown for the 16 teams at the 2023 Grant Thornton Invitational

The inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational featured a $4 million purse.

NAPLES, Fla. – The inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational featured a $4 million purse, the highest on the LPGA schedule in 2023 outside of the majors and the CME Group Tour Championship. Winners Lydia Ko and Jason Day earned $500,000 each. The money is unofficial.

Ko’s biggest check this season came at the BMW Ladies Championship, where a third-place finish earned her $147,030.

Cheyenne Knight and Tom Hoge finished last in the 16-team field and earned $120,000 each.

This marked the first mixed-team event between the LPGA and PGA Tour since the 1999 JCPenney Classic, won by Laura Davies and John Daly.

Here’s the full purse breakdown from Tiburon Golf Club:

Position Team Score Earnings
1 Lydia Ko / Jason Day -26 $1,000,000
2 Brooke Henderson / Corey Conners -25 $560,000
3 Madelene Sagstrom / Ludvig Aberg -24 $330,000
T-4 Megan Khang / Denny McCarthy -23 $232,500
T-4 Nelly Korda / Tony Finau -23 $232,500
T-6 Leona Maguire / Lucas Glover -22 $185,000
T-6 Lexi Thompson / Rickie Fowler -22 $185,000
8 Angel Yin / Nick Taylor -21 $170,000
T-9 Rose Zhang / Sahith Theegala -20 $151,666
T-9 Lilia Vu / Joel Dahmen -20 $151,666
T-9 Charley Hull / Justin Rose -20 $151,666
12 Celine Boutier / Harris English -19 $140,000
13 Mel Reid / Russell Henley -16 $135,000
T-14 Andrea Lee / Billy Horschel -14 $127,500
T-14 Allisen Corpuz / Cameron Champ -14 $127,500
16 Cheyenne Knight / Tom Hoge -13 $120,000

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Former world No. 1s Lydia Ko, Jason Day win inaugural 2023 Grant Thornton Invitational

The new silly season event in Florida was a hit for both the LPGA and PGA Tour.

NAPLES, Fla. – With partner Jason Day in the bunker, Lydia Ko stepped up with a 3-wood into the wind from 203 yards and struck the shot of the day on the par-5 17th, essentially locking up the victory at the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational.

“That is so nice,” marveled Day as the ball tracked through the air.

The two former No. 1s joined forces to top the mixed-team field, earning $1 million, or $500,000 each. The final round featured a new modified four-ball format in which both players teed off from their respective tees and then switched for the second shot, playing that ball for the remainder of the hole.

Ko and Day came into the penultimate hole at Tiburon Golf Club knotted with Canadians Brooke Henderson and Corey Conners – playing two groups ahead – at 25 under. While Ko didn’t manage to convert the eagle putt, the closing birdie put them one shot ahead going into the last. They parred the 18th to finish with a 6-under 66 and win by one with a 26-under 190 total.

“I don’t think I’ve seen so many female junior golfers out at an event,” said Day, “especially a PGA Tour event, as I did see them this week.

“This is something that I think we have to keep striving towards.”

The victory at Tiburon was a special kind of vindication for Ko, who failed to qualify for the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship in 2023 after winning the event the year prior.

“As soon as it came off the club face, I was like, I think it’s good, please be good, and it was heading right towards the pin,” said Ko. “I don’t think I could have hit that shot 100 times and it would turn out better.”

A self-described introvert, Ko admitted to being particularly nervous coming into this week having never met Day, who is 10 years older. Day said they’ll now leave Naples lifelong friends.

Major champion Karen Stupples, who follows the LPGA all season working for Golf Channel/NBC, commented after Saturday’s round of 6-under 66 in alternate shot that Ko’s game looked as good as she’d seen it all year.

Ko spent some time with Jin Young Ko’s instructor Siwoo Lee at a couple points this season and again, as Golf Channel analyst Morgan Pressel reported, last week at Lake Nona. Pressel said that Ko’s swing looked less manufactured at Tiburon and that she appeared to be thinking less mechanics.

Ko noted that she’d won her first event of the season on the Ladies European Tour in Saudi Arabia and the final one here at Tiburon. She’d like to cut out everything in between.

“I’m just trying to keep it really simple,” said Ko, “and the less manipulation I can do, the better, and I think I have a better understanding of my swing and my tendencies.”

At No. 19 in the world, Day was the highest-ranked PGA Tour player in the field at Tiburon while Ko ranked 11th. Ko has 19 LPGA titles, including two majors, while Day owns 13 PGA Tour victories, including one major.

Day called it a mostly stress-free victory, noting that he had full confidence that Ko would step up in the end. The Kiwi delivered.

“She actually has a very strong champion mentality,” said Day. “When you’re out there talking to her, and you’re sitting there and you’re thinking, oh, you got a bad bounce or this and that, it’s never like, you’re right, I got a bad bounce or it went up against the lip … she’s always looking forward.”

Earlier this season, Day broke a five-year victory drought at the AT&T Byron Nelson and then later welcomed his fifth child with wife Ellie. With the whole brood on hand in Naples, Day joked that he and Tony Finau were fighting for strokes gained kids on the PGA Tour.

“When you win, and you’ll experience this one day when you have children yourself and you’re still playing,” Day said, turning toward Ko, “there’s nothing quite like having children run up to you after you win a tournament just because of all the emotions start to come out just because you can see how much your children love you and want to be there for you.

“Every time I get to experience that, it fills me. I’m just very grateful for that.”

Newlywed Ko, who has long said she’d be retired by 30, smiled and told Day that maybe she’d someday get that experience at a club championship.

Henderson and Conners, boosted by a pair of eagles, finished with a 9-under 63 on Sunday. A stalled-out finish of three pars to close the round – including the par-5 17th – kept the pair out of the winner’s circle.

“I was able to play with a lot of freedom knowing I had Brooke to back me up,” said Conners, who holed out for eagle on the par-4 ninth. “Yeah, it was so much fun. Just so impressed with her game.”

Madelene Sagstrom and Ludvig Aberg put together the round of the day on Sunday – a 12-under 60 – to vault up the board into solo third at 24 under. The Swedish pair have the same swing coach, and Sagstrom’s fiance is on Aberg’s bag.

The familiar duo spiced things up even more inside the ropes with some side bets. Sagstrom said she ended the round down $20.

“Personally, I’ve struggled a little bit with foursomes,” said Sagstrom, “both in Solheim Cups and in general. I think it’s kind of hard when you really don’t want to screw up someone else. “I felt comfortable today.”

Sagstrom echoed the thoughts of many this week when she that said outside-the-box events are what’s needed to grow the game.

“Lexi did get a bigger cheer than Rickie did on the tee box yesterday, and I take pride in that,” said Sagstrom. “It’s just been a great week to show off our games – even compared to each other.”

World No. 1 Lilia Vu had her visor signed by partner Joel Dahmen and his caddie after their closing 63. The camaraderie shone through for many teams who met in person for the first time in Naples.

“Our team’s going to have more fun than everyone else,” Dahmen promised at the start of the week, “that’s the No. 1 thing.”

They’re already talking about next year.

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PGA Tour players hope Grant Thornton Invitational is the first step toward more mixed events

What took place at the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational was a new concept – and they want more of it.

NAPLES, Fla. – Rose Zhang wasn’t even born the last time the PGA Tour and LPGA held a mixed-team event. Ludvig Aberg was a mere 2 months old in December of 1999, when legends Laura Davies and John Daly won the final edition of the JCPenney Classic.

For generations of players, what took place this week at the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitation was a new concept – and they want more of it.

“We need to do this for the game of golf,” said Billy Horschel of bringing the two tours together. “We do a lot of stuff that looks out for the players, but we need to make sure we are taking care of the fans and thinking about the fans more.”

Speaking of fans, there were more at Tiburon Golf Club than at previous QBE Shootouts and CME Group Tour Championships. Cheyenne Knight teed off early with partner Tom Hoge and was surprised by the number of fans on the first tee. Ticket sales and concession sales doubled this week compared to last year’s QBE and hospitality sold out, according to tournament officials.

Knight hopes some of these local fans come back next year for the CME, where the winner will receive a $4 million first-place check, the largest in all of women’s sports.

Joel Dahmen marveled at the number of kids he saw this week, particularly little girls, far more than an average week on the PGA Tour, he said. He called watching Lexi Thompson’s ace on Saturday one of the highlights of his year, and said he’d like to see the Grant Thornton field expand from 16 teams in 2024.

“There’s no reason we can’t have more mixed-team events,” said Dahmen after Saturday foursomes. “There are so many events on the PGA Tour, ratings aren’t always amazing in some of those fields. To bring in the women’s game would be awesome.

“I was completely outclassed today by Lexi.”

2023 Grant Thornton Invitational
Lexi Thompson of the United States and Rickie Fowler of the United States look on from the first green during the second round of the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club on December 09, 2023 in Naples, Florida. (Photo by Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)

Early week buzz at the Grant Thornton was overshadowed by U.S. Golf Association and R&A rollback news and Jon Rahm to LIV Golf drama, controversies that dominated the golf chatter on social media and beyond. The action at Tiburon, however, provided a much-needed escape from that which divides golf fans.

The Grant Thornton was a celebration of what unites – camaraderie, competition and inspiration. Thursday’s junior clinic with Amy Bockerstette, Jessica Korda, Leona Maguire and Dahmen epitomizes what golf can do for good. Bockerstette’s “I Got This Foundation” is one of the charities that benefits from money raised this week.

Walking onto the first tee Friday, Sahith Theegala turned to Dahmen’s caddie and noted how “cool” it was to play in the same group as Lilia Vu, the first world No. 1 he’d ever played alongside, and to partner with Zhang, a dominant amateur he predicted would be a future No. 1 on the LPGA.

“Me and Joel were joking that Lilia and Rose will be better than maybe we ever will be,” said Theegala, who won his first PGA Tour title at this year’s Fortinet Championship.

PGA Tour players admired the games of LPGA players all week, and it felt genuine. Former No. 1 Jason Day asked Lydia Ko about her wedge game, noting that he’d be trying to emulate his Kiwi partner during the offseason.

Major champion Justin Rose described his playing partner, Charley Hull, as an old-school player, detailing the way she shapes her iron shots. He called Hull “fearless” and described her short game as “unbelievable.”

Such praise goes a long way in building respect for female players who fight weekly for the attention of not just the sports world, but of those already within the golf landscape.

2023 Grant Thornton Invitational
Justin Rose of England and Charley Hull of England talk on the second green during the first round of the Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club on December 08, 2023 in Naples, Florida. (Photo by Douglas DeFelice/Getty Images)

Rose, who founded and backed the Rose Ladies Series during the COVID-19 pandemic to give British players a place to compete, gets it more than most.

“You need fan awareness to have the pay equality,” said Rose. “Because obviously at the end of the day, it’s a commercial business. You need the eyes watching it to kind of make the TV dollars on the back end.

“So I think obviously fans being able to pick their favorite players, to be a bit more aware around the skill level around the women’s game, identify with the players and their stories – they’re more likely to watch going forward. I think this is absolutely one of those key events to help do that.”

Nick Taylor took note how the fans in Naples reacted with surprise to the women often hitting it closer than their male counterparts. There was no Shotlink available this week, but hopefully next year as the unique formats – particularly the modified fourball, where players hit drives and then switch balls – can provide some interesting data points.

Making Olympic golf a mixed event has long been talked about and came up once again in Naples, as did a larger mixed team event like the Presidents Cup.

“Looking at my grand ball, someone’s got to step up,” said Horshel.

“A team competition, Ryder Cup-style between the U.S. and Europe, or whether it be the U.S. and the world, men and women … I think that would be another home run for everyone involved. I think that’s coming down the line.

“If it’s not being talked about then I don’t know, maybe we need to change the people in the positions and get some more innovative thinkers in there.”

The game needs it.

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What can male amateurs learn from watching the LPGA? PGA Tour players weigh in at Grant Thornton Invitational

“Other than everything? Their poise is incredible,” said Nick Taylor.

NAPLES, Fla. – There are new fans out at Tiburon Golf Club for this week’s Grant Thornton Invitational. In fact, tournament officials say ticket sales and concession sales at the same venue as the QBE Shootout have more than doubled since the format changed this year to a mixed-team event.

Hospitality for the 16-team event and Saturday’s concert on the Tiburon driving range sold out.

That was always the hope, of course, that putting the PGA Tour and LPGA together would draw more interest.

For many PGA Tour players, this marks the first time they’ve teed it up in competition with an elite LPGA player, and it’s been an eye-opening experience.

Those who follow the women’s game closely have long said that male amateur players can learn more from watching the LPGA than the PGA Tour because it’s a more relatable game.

Golfweek asked several PGA Tour players in the field what they think male amateur players can learn from the women and aside from “everything,” here’s what they said:

Former No. 1s Lydia Ko and Jason Day take control at Grant Thornton Invitational

“It’s fun, but I still want to win and I’m sure Lydia wants to win, too.”

NAPLES, Fla. – Lydia Ko and Jason Day – two former world No. 1s on their respective tours – took the lead at the Grant Thornton Invitational with a day’s best 6-under 66 in the alternate shot format. Even more impressive given that the pair met for the first time earlier this week.

“It’s fun, but I still want to win and I’m sure Lydia wants to win, too,” said Day. “We could definitely use a win like this or even a good finish to propel us into next season … I was saying to Lydia there’s certain things we’re both working on in our swings that we want to try and work under pressure.”

Ko and Day hold a two-shot lead over overnight leaders Tony Finau/Nelly Korda (70) and Leona Maguire/Lucas Glover (69).

While this week’s event is unofficial, the purse of $4 million is the highest on the LPGA outside of the majors and the CME Group Tour Championship. The winners will receive $1 million ($500,000 each).

Rickie Fowler and Lexi Thompson vaulted up the board into a four-way tie for fourth after a 4-under 68. Thompson’s ace on the par-3 16th from 158 yards was her 11th career hole-in-one. (She has five in official LPGA tournaments.)

“Ended up taking my 7-iron, which is my like 62 to 65 club,” said Thompson, “and backed up two club lengths from the tee marker and just tried to hit like a 3/4 hole.”

Thompson said she kept the ball and will add it to a collection she keeps in a box at home from other aces and a pair of albatrosses.

“Never left the flag,” said Fowler of the shot of the day.

The 16-team event will change formats once again for Sunday’s final round as modified alternate shot goes into play. Both players will tee off and then play each other’s ball for the remainder of the hole.

“I have no worries,” said Ko of the new format. “Jason’s pretty much hit 90-something percent of the fairways. I’ve gotten to hit his ball today and he’s gotten to hit mine. In ways, this was like a pre-warm-up for what tomorrow’s going to be.

“I was joking before I knew what it was going to be like, ‘Oh, man, Jason’s got to hit from places he’s never hit from, like maybe a little further back.’ We’re actually going to do that.”

Grant Thornton: Madelene Sagstrom has long been smitten with Ludvig Aberg’s swing

The Swedes are having a great time in Florida.

NAPLES, Fla. – There was a time when Madelene Sagstrom had a picture of Ludvig Aberg’s swing as the wallpaper background on her phone. She coveted Aberg’s impact position.

“I was like, I need this in my life,” said Sagstrom with a laugh.

This week Sagstrom, 31, gets to see plenty of that impact position as the Swedish duo teams up for the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational.

They’ve known each other for nearly a decade, with both sharing the same swing coach in Hans Larsson, who oversaw their instruction at Sweden’s prestigious sport school, Riksidrottsgymnasium.

There are 16 teams at the Grant Thornton, the first team event between the PGA Tour and LPGA since John Daly and Laura Davies won the final JCPenney Classic in 1999. Teams played a scramble format on the first day at Tiburon Golf Club and alternate shot in the second. The final round will feature a modified fourball format

Grant Thornton: Sunday tee times

While the event is unofficial, the purse of $4 million is among the highest all season on the LPGA outside the majors. The winning team will receive $1 million or $500,000 each. Sagstrom and Aberg enter the final round eight strokes back of Lydia Ko and Jason Day.

Aberg, 24, turned professional in June and won the Omega European Masters in September and the RSM Classic on the PGA Tour in November. At the 2024 Masters, he will make his first major championship appearance.

Before Aberg made his debut at the Ryder Cup in Rome, he first flew to Spain to watch Sagstrom and two other Swedes he went to school with, Linn Grant and Maja Stark, compete in the Solheim Cup.

It was Ludvig’s first time attending a Solheim Cup or Ryder Cup.

“The way that Madelene hits the ball is different from other women I’ve played with,” said Ludvig. “It’s the compression, the height, the distance. It’s a combination of everything.”

Sagstrom’s fiancé Jack Clarke, has caddied for Aberg since he turned professional. While many of the teams in the field at the Grant Thornton met for the first time this week, few have the kind of shared history that this team enjoys.

Sagstrom, who won the 2020 Gainbridge LPGA event at Boca Rio, said she has plenty of swing videos on her phone of Aberg, but it’s his short game that she finds particularly inspiring.

“For me, obviously, he can hit shots that I can’t hit,” said Sagstrom. “But, in general, his short game is just unbelievable. He’s really good around the greens and that part I feel like I’m really lacking in my own game.”

“I’m a good driver of the ball, so you’re driving is impressive, but it’s not that impressive,” Sagstrom added with a laugh. “Whatever you’re lacking yourself, is kind of what impresses you the most.”

2023 Grant Thornton Invitational Sunday tee times, how to watch

Everything you need to know for Sunday’s final round in Florida.

With 18 holes to play at the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, Lydia Ko and Jason Day hold a two-shot lead over Nelly Korda/Tony Finau and Leona Maguire/Lucas Glover.

Ko/Day shot an impressive 6-under 66 in Saturday’s alternate shot format.

A new format will enter the fray on Sunday, a “modified fourball” session that will see both players hit a tee shot, then switch balls for their second shots. The players will then play the second ball until they complete the hole, and the lowest of the two scores will count for the team.

Check out the tee times, as well as TV and streaming info, below for the final round of the 2023 Grant Thornton Invitational. All times Eastern.

Grant Thornton: Meet all 16 teams

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Sunday tee times

Tee time Teams
8:50 a.m. Corpuz/Champ and Knight/Hoge
9:05 a.m. Lee/Horschel and Reid/Henley
9:20 a.m. Vu/Dahmen and Zhang/Theegala
9:35 a.m.
Sagstrom/Aberg and Boutier/English
9:50 a.m. Hull/Rose and Khang/McCarthy
10:05 a.m. Yin/Taylor and Henderson/Conners
10:20 a.m.
Thompson/Fowler and Maguire/Glover
10:35 a.m. Korda/Finau and Ko/Day

How to watch

Sunday, Dec. 10

Golf Channel: 1-2 p.m. (Watch FREE on Fubo)
NBC: 2-4 p.m. (Watch FREE on Fubo)
Peacock (streaming): 1-4 p.m.

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Watch: Lexi Thompson makes an ace at the 2023 Grant Thornton Invitational

What a shot.

We have our first ace of the Grant Thornton Invitational.

Lexi Thompson stepped to the tee of the par-3 16th hole at Tiburon Golf Club fresh off making a birdie putt on the previous hole. It was her and partner Rickie Fowler’s fourth birdie in five holes.

Thompson wanted more.

She hit her tee shot, a 6-iron from 155 yards, and the ball one hopped before falling into the cup.

Thompson turned around to celebrate with Fowler before high fiving other members of the group. The shot moved the duo to 16 under, and at the time, one shot back of the lead.

What a shot.

Photos: Tony Finau, Nelly Korda wear matching chrome Air Jordan 1s at Grant Thornton Invitational

These are sweet.

Tony Finau and Nelly Korda played great together Friday during the opening round of the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, posting a 16-under 56 in the scramble format, good enough for the 18-hole outright lead.

On Saturday, Team FiNelly coordinated their outfit a bit for the foursomes (alternate shot) second round. Finau and Korda, both Nike athletes, wore matching chrome Nike Air Jordan 1 Low G NRGs.

Through seven holes of the second round, Finau and Korda were still in the lead at 17 under, one shot better than Sahith Theegala and Rose Zhang.

Check out some photos of the team’s awesome kicks.