Kiwi golfer Lydia Ko has finished 2023 on a high, wining the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational alongside Australia Jason Day.
The event, hosted in Naples, Florida, was the first joint promotion between the PGA Tour (men) and LPGA Tour (women), since John Daly and Laura Davies won the 1999 JC Penney Classic in 1999.
Ko and Day started the day with a two-stroke lead over Americans Nellie Korda and Tony Finau after two rounds of the 54-hole, mixed format event. Canadians Brooke Henderson and Corey Conners put in a late charge to try to dislodge the pair from the top, but Ko and Day outplayed the duo.
Their final round of six-under 66 saw them finish 24-under overall for the tournament at the Tiburon Golf Club, with Henderson and Conners at 25-under. The Swedish duo of Madelene Sagstrom and Ludvig Aberg came in third with 26-under.
The win is unofficial for both Day and Ko, but it’s the first since she won the Saudi Ladies International on the Ladies European Tour in February. Compared to 2022 when she won three LPGA events, including the CME Group Tour Championship, and regained World No. 1, Ko didn’t didn’t even qualify to defend her title at the LPGA’s season-ender in 2023.
even qualify to defend her title at the LPGA’s season-ender in 2023.
