The Grant Thornton Invitational is back this week, live on Sky Sports, with the stars of the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour joining forces for a unique mixed-team event. Here’s a look at the format, field, schedule and all you need to know…
What is it?
The 54-hole competition is a mixed-team event that sees 16 LPGA Tour and 16 PGA Tour professionals compete together in a unique co-sanctioned tournament.
The three-day tournament offers three different formats of team play and allows the 32-player field to compete for equal prize money and visibility.
Nelly Korda features for the second successive year, partnering Tony Finau in the three-day tournament
It’s the second successive year that the tournament has featured on the schedule, having been launched in 2023 as the first co-sanctioned event between the LPGA Tour and PGA Tour since the JCPenney Classic in 1999.
Which formats are used?
Friday’s action is played under as a scramble, where each player hits a tee shot and then the team selects which ball to be used for the next shot. Both players hit their next shots from that spot and the process continues until the ball is holed.
Tom Kim plays alongside Jeeno Thitikul
The second round uses foursomes, with each team’s players alternating hitting shots with the same ball until the ball is holed. One player will tee off on the odd-numbered holes and the other tees off on the even-numbered holes.
Sunday’s final round is then played under a modified fourball, where both players tee off and switch balls for their second shots. They then play that same ball until it is holed, with the lowest score between the pair then counting as the team score for that hole.
Where is it played?
The tournament takes place at Tiburón Golf Club, which hosts the LPGA Tour’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship and the QBE Shootout – a team event that ran on the PGA Tour until being removed at the end of 2022.
Who is playing in it?
Five of the world’s top 10 in the women’s game feature, with world No 1 Nelly Korda – the LPGA Tour Player of the Year after seven worldwide wins in 2024 – partnering Tony Finau and two-time major champion Lilia Vu alongside Luke List.
AIG Women’s Open champion Lydia Ko is back to defend the title with former men’s world No 1 Jason Day, with Solheim Cup star Celine Boutier also in action and partnering compatriot Matthieu Pavon.
Lexi Thompson is paired with Rickie Fowler and Lauren Coughlin plays alongside Cameron Young, while Sahith Theegala is the highest-ranked player from the men’s game and will partner Allisen Corpuz.
Lexi Thompson has said she will stop playing full-time on the LPGA Tour at the end of this year
What is up for grabs?
Although the event is co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and the LPGA Tour, it does not count as an official tournament and the money won is unofficial in the season-long standings.
Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) and Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings points are not awarded, although there is a $4m (£3.1m) prize purse and the winners will equally split $1m (£784,000)
Live PGA Tour Golf
Friday 13th December 6:00pm
Who has won it before?
Day and Ko are defending champions after last year’s one-shot victory over Conners and Henderson, with Swedish pair Ludvig Åberg and Madelene Sagstrom finishing two strokes back in third place.
Theegala and Tom Hoge won the last edition of the QBE Shootout before it was scrapped, with Kuchar and Harris English three-time champions of the event in its old format.
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Highlights from the final round of the 2022 QBE Shootout at the Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida.
How can I watch live on Sky Sports?
There will be three hours of live coverage from each of the three rounds, with coverage starting at 6pm on Friday and 7pm on Saturday before switching back to 6pm for the final day.
The tournament is one of two live on Sky Sports Golf this week, with the DP World Tour’s Alfred Dunhill Championship live from 10am on Thursday and Friday before starting at 9.30am over the weekend.
Who will win the Grant Thornton Invitational? Watch throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage from the opening round starts on Friday from 6pm on Sky Sports Golf. Stream the PGA Tour and more with NOW.
