Dan DeLuca
Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News
Tiburón Golf Club in Naples will host the third annual Grant Thornton Invitational this week, a mixed-team event that’s part of the Challenge Season.
The 16 mixed teams, evenly comprised of PGA and LPGA players, will compete for an equal $4 million purse. The three-day tournament will consist of three distinct playing formats: scramble, foursome and modified four-ball.
This year’s field has a combined 137 LPGA and PGA career victories with nine of those wins coming in 2025. There are 10 major champions in the field, including Sweden’s Maja Stark, this year’s U.S. Women’s Open Champion. A total of seven different countries will be represented in Naples.
The three-day event starts Friday, Dec. 12 and runs through Sunday, Dec. 14. Monday and Tuesday are reserved for practice days and the tournament’s Pro-Am is Wednesday and Thursday. The practice rounds and Pro-Am are closed to the public.
The tournament will be televised by Golf Channel and NBC. If you plan to head out to Tiburón, here’s a guide to what you’ll need to know and what to expect once you arrive for the Grant Thornton Invitational.
Grant Thornton Invitational teams
Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings (WWGR); Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) as of Dec. 1, 2025
Patty Tavatanakit (WWGR: 56) and Jake Knapp (OWGR: 99)
As the defending Grant Thornton champions, this pair holds a total of three career wins on their respective tours. The 26-year-old Tavatanakit, a native of Thailand, has two wins on the LPGA Tour and was the 2021 Rookie of the Year on the LPGA Tour. Knapp, 31, has one career PGA TOUR title.
Lydia Ko (WWGR: 6) and Jason Day (OWGR: 49)
As the inaugural champions of the Grant Thornton in 2023, these former World No. 1 players have the most individual career titles in the field. Ko, 28, an LPGA Hall of Fame member from New Zealand, has 23 victories and won a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Day, 37, from Australia, has won 13 times, including the 2015 PGA Championship.
Lilia Vu (WWGR: 43) and Tony Finau (OWGR: 84)
Vu, 28, is a five-time winner on the LPGA Tour, with four victories in 2023, including two major championships. Finau, 36, has six career victories. This is a new team and Finau’s return to the tournament since 2023, when he finished T4 with Nelly Korda.
Nelly Korda (WWGR: 2) and Denny McCarthy (OWGR: 63)
Korda, 26, has accumulated 15 career victories, including two major titles. She was named the 2024 Rolex Player of the Year following a seven-win season. This is her third consecutive appearance in the tournament, with her best result being a T4 in 2023, when she was paired with Tony Finau. McCarthy, 32, is making his second appearance since 2023, when he finished T4 with Megan Khang.
Jessica Korda (WWGR: NA) and Bud Cauley (OWGR: 69)
Both are newcomers to the competition. Korda, 32, has won six times on the LPGA Tour. Cauley, 35, who has suffered multiple injuries since 2018, had a strong resurgence in 2025, qualifying him for the PGA TOUR playoffs and rising to No. 66 in the world.
Brooke Henderson (WWGR: 25) and Corey Conners (OWGR: 30)
This will be the third consecutive year this Canadian team has been paired together, finishing second in 2023 and T4 last year. Henderson, 28, has won 14 times on the LPGA Tour, including a special victory this year at the CPKC Women’s Canadian Open. Conners, 33, has two career victories on the PGA TOUR, both at the Valero Texas Open. He was T8 at the Masters Tournament and T10 at The Open Championship this year.
Andrea Lee (WWGR: 21) and Billy Horschel (OWGR: 45)
This will be the second time these two are paired together. In 2023, they finished T14. Combined, they have nine victories on their respective tours. Lee, 27, has one victory, and Horschel, 38, has eight PGA TOUR wins, including a FedEx Cup trophy.
Charley Hull (WWGR: 5) and Daniel Berger (OWGR: 58)
England’s Hull will be returning for her second appearance in the tournament since finishing T9 with fellow countryman Justin Rose in 2023. Berger is also making his second start, finishing 13th with Nelly Korda last year. Hull, 29, has won three times during her career, including a win in September at the Kroger Queen City Championship. Berger, 32, is a four-time winner on the PGA TOUR.
Lottie Woad (WWGR: 11) and Luke Clanton (OWGR: 165)
This team is making its Grant Thornton debut. As the youngest pairing in the field, Woad, 21, and Clanton, 21, were college teammates at Florida State. Woad, from England, won the 2022 Girls Amateur Championship, 2024 Augusta National Women’s Amateur and reached No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking in June 2024. Earlier this year, she won her first professional start on the LPGA Tour at the Women’s Scottish Open. Clanton, 21, rose to No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking in August 2024.
Lexi Thompson (WWGR: 73) and Wyndham Clark (OWGR: 38)
This major championship-winning duo will be paired for the first time. Thompson, 30, has played the last two years with Rickie Fowler, while Clark, 31, is joining the tournament for the first time. Thompson has 11 career victories. Clark has won three times on the PGA TOUR, all in 2023, including the U.S. Open.
Jennifer Kupcho (WWGR: 32) and Chris Gotterup (OWGR: 28)
Kupcho returns for the second year, finishing third last year with Akshay Bhatia. Gotterup is a rookie in the field. Kupcho, 28, won the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in 2019 and has since recorded four career LPGA Tour victories, including this year’s ShopRite LPGA Classic. Gotterup, 26, was the college player of the year in 2022 and has two PGA TOUR wins, including the Scottish Open in July.
Rose Zhang (WWGR: 59) and Michael Kim (OWGR: 36)
Zhang, 22, returns for her second start in the tournament. She finished T9 with Sahith Theegala in 2023. Zhang has won twice on the LPGA Tour. Her first win in 2023 made her the first player to win in her professional debut on the LPGA Tour since 1951. Kim, 32, holds one PGA TOUR victory from 2018. In 2013, while at the University of California, Berkeley, he was named the college national player of the year. This is his first appearance in the tournament.
Lauren Coughlin (WWGR: 20) and Andrew Novak (OWGR: 31)
Coughlin is making her second consecutive start in the tournament. She finished T7 with Cam Young last year. This is the first start for Novak. Coughlin, 33, has two LPGA Tour wins, both in 2024. Novak, 30, captured his first PGA TOUR victory this year in New Orleans at a team event with partner Ben Griffin.
Maja Stark (WWGR: 15) and Neal Shipley (OWGR: 96)
Stark is making her second consecutive appearance in the competition. The Swedish star was T9 last year with J.T. Poston. Shipley is another tournament rookie in the field. Stark, 25, has two career victories, including this year’s U.S. Women’s Open. Shipley, 24, has won twice on the Korn Ferry Tour this season, earning his PGA TOUR card for the 2026 season.
Angel Yin (WWGR: 13) and Tom Hoge (OWGR: 94)
This is a new team competing in the Grant Thornton Invitational. Yin, 27, has won twice on the LPGA Tour, including the Honda LPGA Thailand earlier this season. Hoge, 36, won the 2022 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am for his lone PGA TOUR victory so far.
Megan Khang (WWGR: 37) and Keith Mitchell (OWGR: 123)
Khang is returning to the Grant Thornton for the third time with a different partner. She was T9 with Matt Kuchar last year and T4 with Denny McCarthy in 2023. Mitchell is making his tournament debut. Khang, 28, has one career victory, and Mitchell, 33, has one PGA TOUR win.
Format of playRound/DayFormatRound 1/FridayScrambleRound 2/SaturdayAlternate ShotRound 3/SundayModified Four-Ball
Men’s yardage: 7,382 yards
Women’s yardage: 6,595 yards
Grant Thornton Tee Times
All tandems tee off from the first hole.
9 a.m.: Angel Yin – Tom Hoge; Maja Stark – Neal Shipley
9:15 a.m.: Megan Khang – Keith Mitchell, Lauren Coughlin – Andrew Novak
9:30 a.m.: Rose Zhang – Michael Kim, Jessica Korda – Bud Cauley
9:45 a.m.: Andrea Lee – Billy Horschel, Jennifer Kupcho – Chris Gotterup
10 a.m.: Lottie Woad – Luke Clanton, Charley Hull – Daniel Berger
10:15 a.m.: Nelly Korda – Denny McCarthy, Brooke Henderson – Corey Conners
10:30 a.m.: Lilia Vu – Tony Finau, Lexi Thompson – Wyndham Clark
10:45 a.m.: Lydia Ko – Jason Day, Patty Tavatanakit – Jake Knapp
How much are tickets?
Tickets are $55 for daily grounds and $130 for weekly grounds. For more information on VIP and specialty tickets, including to the Michelob Ultra Brew House and The 1834 Club, visit grantthorntoninvitational.com.
The Grant Thornton Invitational will provide complimentary admission each tournament day to all veterans, active, reserve, and retired military personnel and up to two dependents. To receive a complimentary ticket, a valid proof of service must be shown at the tournament’s main entrance. The offer is valid at the gate only.
For more information, visit grantthorntoninvitational.com.
Where do I park?
Tiburón is located on the same property as The Ritz-Carlton Naples. General parking is located in Lot C (Friday and Saturday) at 3000 Orange Blossom Drive between Airport Pulling Road and Livingston Road and in Lot D (Sunday only) at 13275 Livingston Road. The parking fee is $10 per vehicle. Shuttles will be provided to and from the golf course.
All tournament-provided parking lots are handicap accessible.
What can I do when I’m not watching golf?
The Grant Thornton Invitational Fan Zone will feature tournament merchandise, LPGA Lesson Zones with complimentary golf instruction, a 6-hole putting course and an autograph alley area.
Lee Health sponsors Health & Wellness Day on Saturday, Dec. 13 featuring a pair of free events: Burn Boot Camp, which takes place at 8 a.m. behind the 18th green, and Fairway Yoga starting at 9 a.m. on the 18th fairway.
The sixth annual concert has become a highlight of tournament weekend.
This year’s event features Darius Rucker, Russell Dickerson, O.A.R., and Rock Republic with special guest Casey Bishop. The outdoor concert is from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 13 at the Tiburón Golf Club driving range. General admission tickets are $150 with other packages from $195 and up.
Visit livefest.com for more information.
