PGA Tour and LPGA come together for mixed-team tournament in Florida
PGA TOUR AND LPGA TOUR
GRANT THORNTON INVITATIONAL
Site: Naples, Florida.
Course: Tiburon GC. PGA Tour yardage: 7,382. LPGA Tour yardage: 6,595. Par: 72.
Prize money: $4 million. Winners' share: $720,000.
Television: Friday, 1-4 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 2-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-5 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 1-2 p.m. (Golf Channel), 2-4 p.m. (NBC).
Previous winners: John Daly and Laura Davies (1999).
Last week: Scottie Scheffler won the Hero World Challenge.
Notes: This takes over for what formerly was known as the Shark Shootout, making it the first mixed team event with the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour since the 1999 JC Penney Classic. ... The event is unofficial and will not count toward either tour. ... Lexi Thompson previously played the event with a PGA Tour partner. She is playing this year with Rickie Fowler. Her previous partner, Tony Finau, is playing with Nelly Korda. ... Ludvig Aberg is playing with fellow Swede Madelene Sagstrom. The 16 teams include 11 PGA Tour players who are among the top 50 in the world. Jason Day is the highest-ranked at No. 19. He will be playing with Lydia Ko. The LPGA has five of the top 10 from the women's world ranking, and 10 of the top 20. ... The LPGA had its season-ending Tour Championship at Tiburon two weeks ago. ... Canadian Open champion Nick Taylor is playing with Women's PGA champion Ruoning Yin, while Justin Rose and Georgia Hall make up an all-England team.
Next tournament: The Sentry (PGA Tour) on Jan. 4-7 and Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions (LPGA Tour) on Jan. 18-21.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/ and https://www.lpga.com/
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PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
WORLD CHAMPIONS CUP
Site: Bradenton, Florida.
Course: The Concession GC. Yardage: 3,393. Par: 36.
Prize money: $1.35 million. Winner's share: $200,000 per player.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 1-5 p.m. (ESPN); Sunday, 1-5 p.m. (ABC).
Defending champions: New event.
Last tournament: Steven Alker won the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.
Charles Schwab Cup champion: Steve Stricker.
Notes: This is a new tournament of nine-hole team matches among teams from the United States, European countries and the rest of the world. ... The playing captains for each team are Jim Furyk (U.S.), Darren Clarke (Europe) and Ernie Els (International). All three were captains in the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup. Furyk has withdrawn from playing with a back injury and is replaced by vice captain Billy Andrade. ... The matches feature better ball in the morning and a version of alternate shot in the afternoon, featuring two players from each of the three teams. The final day is 12 singles. ... Steve Stricker is playing for the first time in two months. He won the Charles Schwab Cup Championship without playing in the postseason. ... Bernhard Langer and Colin Montgomerie are part of Europe. Each have been winning Ryder Cup captains. ... The International team has a combined nine major championship, led by Els with four. ... The last time seniors had such a competition was the UBS Warburg Cup at Sea Island.
Next tournament: Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai on Jan. 18-20.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions/
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EUROPEAN TOUR
Last week: Joaquin Niemann won the Australian Open and Dean Burmester won the South African Open.
Race to Dubai leader: Min Woo Lee.
Next tournament: Dubai Invitational on Jan. 11-14.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/
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OTHER TOURS
Sunshine Tour: Alfred Dunhill Championship, Leopard Creek CC, Malelane, South Africa. Defending champion: Ockie Strydom. Online: https://sunshinetour.com/
Legends Tour: MCB Tour Championship-Mauritius, Constance Belle Mare Plage, Poste de Flacq, Mauritius. Defending champion: Thomas Bjorn. Online: https://www.legendstour.com/ ___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
