PGA and LPGA Tours join forces with new mixed event
The PGA and LPGA Tours aim to produce “a memorable and entertaining experience for all golf fans” with a new mixed event starting in 2023.
Together with accounting firm Grant Thornton LLP, the Grant Thornton Invitational will feature 16 mixed two-player teams competing for a $4 million purse.
The three-day event will be held at Tiburon in December, which almost certainly spells the end for the Greg Norman-hosted QBE Shootout, which has been held at the Florida club since 1989.
It will be the first annual co-sanctioned event between the two tours since the JC Penney Classic in 1999, won that year by Dame Laura Davies and John Daly.
“As we look to capitalise on the growing interest in the game of golf, the addition of a mixed event to the calendar has been a priority,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan explained. “[This] event will make our sport more appealing and welcoming to all.”
LPGA counterpart Mollie Marcoux Samaan added: “By joining forces with the PGA Tour to host a mixed event where the top male and female golfers in the world compete alongside each other, we’re going to deliver a memorable and entertaining experience for all golf fans, showcasing our players’ incredible skills in a new context to a new audience.”
Nelly Korda and Lexi Thompson were among the LPGA stars who played in the QBE Shootout, but it was never designated as a mixed tour event.
The younger Korda tweeted to announce that she will play with Tony Finau.
“The Grant Thornton Invitational really is about being inclusive and showing people that golf can be accessible for everyone, no matter what way you play,” Korda said.
“This is going to be the perfect opportunity for me to do something important in helping to grow the game and inspire the next generation.”
Finau added: “PGA Tour athletes playing alongside the best athletes from the LPGA is going to be incredible for our fans. They’ve been wanting something like this for a long time. Our fans deserve it, I think is very special.”
Korda’s sister Jessica will partner Rickie Fowler, while other pairs will be announced later in the year.
Tiburon will continue to host the LPGA’s CME Group Tour Championship in November which was won by Lydia Ko in 2022.
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Matt Chivers
Now on the wrong side of 25, Matt has been playing golf since the age of 13 and was largely inspired to take up the game by countless family members who played golf during his childhood.
Matt is a member at Royal Cinque Ports in Deal playing off a 5 handicap, just a pitching wedge away from his hometown of Dover where he went to school and grew up. He has previously been a member at Etchinghill and Walmer and Kingsdown in Kent.
Having studied history at the University of Liverpool, Matt went on to pass his NCTJ Exams in Manchester a year later to fulfil his lifelong ambition of becoming a journalist. He picked up work experience along the way at places such as the Racing Post, the Independent, Sportsbeat and the Lancashire Evening Post.
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