Previewing the 2024 Grant Thornton — LPGA Final Qualifying
The IX: Golf Thursday with Marin Dremock, Dec. 12, 2024
The 2024 Grant Thornton Invitational is this week, and since last year, it’s now the tournament I look forward to most. Let’s dive in.
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Happy Golf Thursday, friends.
Last year, the LPGA and PGA tours combined their facets of finesse and force in a mixed team classic: the Grant Thornton Invitational. It was so great they thought they’d do it again.
16 teams compete in the tournament. They play 54 holes and there is no cut. The formats for each day are as follows: Friday is a scramble, Saturday is foursomes and Sunday is a modified four-ball, where players tee off and then play their teammate’s ball into the hole.
Tiburón Golf Club welcomes the second-ever iteration of the Grant Thornton. The course also played host to this year’s CME Group Tour Championship on the LPGA Tour. Of Tiburón’s two courses, the Black and the Gold, the Gold Course hosts both the Grant Thornton and the CME.
Lydia Ko and Jason Day were last year’s champions. They posted a final round 66 (-6) in the modified four-ball to edge the Canadian team of Corey Conners and Brooke Henderson by one stroke.
With many of the LPGA Tour players having just seen Tiburón in their season finale, they might end up carrying their teams. But the Naples, Fla. course is definitely not a stranger to the PGA Tour boys, as the QBE Shootout, the Grant Thornton’s predecessor, was held here.
Let’s take a look at some of the key teams competing this week.
The defending champs
Lydia Ko and Jason Day will be competing together again in this year’s Grant Thornton. They return to Tiburón with money on their minds, especially after the season Ko has had. It’s been a quiet year for Day. He’s got four top tens on the season but no wins. But he’s also played in 20 events and only missed 3 cuts.
Will Ko carry? Or will the team from Oceania play off each other’s strengths?
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Revenge for the runner-ups
The dynamic Canadian duo of Brooke Henderson and Corey Conners will take a shot at the Grant Thornton title again this year. After coming up short last year, the two tour veterans will surely be title contenders this go around.
Dec. 9, 2023; Naples, Fla.; Corey Conners and Brooke Henderson, the 2023 Grant Thornton Invitational runner-ups, celebrate after a solid hole. (Credit: Grant Thornton Invitational (@gtinvitational) on X)
GT Ambassadors and Lexi
Lexi Thompson and Rickie Fowler will look to make Fowler’s brand proud and find a top finish. In Thompson’s final year of full-time professional golf, the Florida native and her Californian teammate Fowler will hope to make a surge and finish higher up on the leaderboard. Last year, they finished tied for sixth, four shots behind the winners.
Nelly Korda, another Grant Thornton ambassador, was slated to compete with Tony Finau. But on Wednesday, Dec. 11, Finau announced he’d be withdrawing from the tournament, as he’s still battling a knee injury.
“Playing with Nelly in 2023 was one of the highlights of my year,” Finau said in an official statement. “I look forward to cheering her on this week and am thankful for her support and understanding as I work on getting fully healthy.”
Finau will be replaced by Daniel Berger.
Don’t sleep on the French
This year, Celine Boutier will team up with fellow compatriot Matthieu Pavon, and they are not to be overlooked. With 39 career top ten finishes, six career wins and a pair of runner-ups this season, Boutier has been a steady force on the LPGA Tour since her first season in 2017.
Recently, Pavon has been making a name for himself on the PGA Tour, especially with his win this season at the Farmers Insurance Open. His push in the U.S. Open at Pinehurst this year to finish in fifth place also established him as a force to be reckoned with.
Marin’s pick
I’m going with the kids (what am I saying, I’m 22) on this one: Jeeno Thitikul and Tom Kim.
These two have some serious firepower, and the game has gotten so much more electric because of them. Thitikul is 21 and Kim is 22. Thitikul has four career wins (already), 41 career top tens (already) and $9.8 million in earnings (already). And she’ll be coming into the tournament fresh off her victory at the CME Group Tour Championship.
Kim already has three career wins on the PGA Tour. His performance at this year’s President’s Cup was not statistically great, but he sure did draw attention for his antics. I think Jeeno will be able to reel in Kim’s emotions and draw out that raw talent. The youngsters will make a case for themselves.You can catch all 16 teams in the Grant Thornton Invitational from Dec. 13 – Sunday, Dec. 15 on NBC Golf Channel and Peacock.
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This week in women’s golf:
LPGA News
How to watch the 2024 Grant Thornton Invitational
Ashaunta Epps to receive inaugural Carrie Russell Champion for Change award
Two field changes announced for 2024 Grant Thornton Invitational
2025 LPGA Tour schedule features new venues, new stops in Mexico and Utah
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews announces Karrie Webb AO as honorary member
LET News
LET stars secure cards for 2025 at LPGA Q-Series
Strokes gained leaders for 2024
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Players honoured at end of season awards
Inside the LET | Polini Langi | Women & Golf
Stats of the season! 2024 Ladies European Tour
Epson Tour News
Japan’s Miyu Yamashita earns medalist honors at 2024 LPGA Final Qualifying
Players finishing in positions 1-25 and ties earn LPGA Tour status in Category 15
Play suspended due to rain during final round of LPGA Final Qualifying
Low scores highlight fourth round of 2024 LPGA Final Qualifying
Robyn Choi eyes LPGA card once again at Final Qualifying after earning medalist honors in 2023
Amateur/NCAA News
Junior golfers should be ready to ‘explore all options’ as forthcoming Division I roster limits will be felt throughout college golf (Wisconsin.golf)
Northwestern Women’s Golf signs Arianna LauHow does NIL work in NCAA college golf? (Golf Monthly)
Five at The IX: Quotes from the top five after a Tuesday finish at 2024 LPGA Final Qualifying
Rain suspended the final round of the 2024 LPGA Final Qualifying, but it concluded eventually on Tuesday, Dec. 10. Miyu Yamashita, a 23 year-old from Japan, claimed medalist honors, while others battled to round out the top 25 and secure LPGA Tour status. Here’s some quick quotes from the top five finishers after the final round wrapped up in Alabama.
Miyu Yamashita (1st)
Q. How excited are you to compete next year on the LPGA?
MIYU YAMASHITA: I’m excited I can play on the LPGA Tour next year, and then I’m excited to play with all other members, too.
So I’ll be preparing well and then play my best next year.
Chisato Iwai (2nd)
Q. How does it feel that you get to go to the LPGA with your sister?
CHISATO IWAI: Super, super happy. The most I wanted to go LPGA Tour with my sister, so come true.
So, so happy, and next year I will do my best.
Pauline Roussin-Bouchard (3rd)
Q. What are you most proud of of yourself this week? Obviously a long week this week. What are you most proud of?
PAULINE ROUSSIN-BOUCHARD: I think it’s not just this week. It’s just getting back into loving what I do and into just, yeah, being happy doing this job and waking up to the life that makes me happy.
I have I think a process that’s a little different to a lot of players, and the fact that I got that status back and how I played is like, wow, process might not be that wrong after all.
It’s really, really cool, mostly for myself, and then secondly the people around. So, yeah.
Manon De Roey (4th)
Q. What does it mean to be back out on the LPGA Tour next year?
MANON DE ROEY: Yeah, I’m super excited. I mean, it was a bit tough the first time I came out, but I feel like I’m more prepared now and have more of a plan in place.
Yeah, I’m looking forward to next year.
Gigi Stoll (T5)
Q. Talk about last year. Is there anything you learned that you’ll try to take over into this upcoming LPGA season?
GIGI STOLL: Yeah, being on the big stage is a little different. There are more people out there. There are grandstands on every 18th hole. There is a lot more going on.
I think it was just a good adjustment to see what it’s like to be out there. Even though I didn’t get a whole lot of the starts, I got a feel of what it’s like to be out there. I think that will prep me a lot this year, just being able to see those courses and kind of get familiar with the way it’s set up.
It should be good preparation for what’s to come.
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