Patty Tavatanakit and Jake Knapp birdied their first nine holes and added a late eagle on their way to claiming a one-stroke lead after day one of the Grant Thornton Invitational.
The mixed team event featuring PGA and LPGA Tour stars employs three different formats over three rounds. In Friday’s scramble format — in which both players each a shot and select which ball they’ll use for the following shot — Tavatanakit and Knapp put together a 14-under-par 58 at the Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida.
That was good enough to nudge them ahead of Jennifer Kupcho and Akshay Bhatia and Canadians Brooke Henderson and Corey Conners in a tie for second at 13 under.
The second round will be played in foursomes (alternate shot) and the third round will be a modified four-ball, where both players tee off and switch balls for their second shots before then playing that same ball until it is holed.
Maja Stark and JT Poston are three off the lead after an opening 61, joined in a tie for fourth by Sahith Theegala and Allisen Corpuz.
Three-time major winner Lydia Ko and former men’s No 1 Jason Day, who won last year’s event, opened with a 10-under 62 on Friday and are tied for sixth with Jeeno Thitikul and Tom Kim.
One further back are Lexi Thompson and Rickie Fowler, as well as women’s world No 1 Nelly Korda and Daniel Berger.
Tony Finau was slated to be Korda’s partner but withdrew while recovering from knee surgery, and Berger took his spot.
Tavatanakit said after her and Knapp secured a lead on day one: “I feel like we kept it pretty chill, we just talked about random things
“I feel like I haven’t played golf like this free in a while, so it is actually a really nice feeling. I feel very secure out there because I know I have a really good partner.”
What is the Grant Thornton Invitational?
The 54-hole competition is a mixed-team event that sees 16 LPGA Tour and 16 PGA Tour professionals compete together in a unique co-sanctioned tournament.
The three-day tournament offers three different formats of team play and allows the 32-player field to compete for equal prize money and visibility.
It is the second successive year the tournament has featured on the schedule, having been launched in 2023 as the first co-sanctioned event between the LPGA Tour and PGA Tour since the JCPenney Classic in 1999.
Watch the Grant Thornton Invitational throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage from the second round starts on Saturday Friday from 7pm on Sky Sports Golf. Stream the PGA Tour and more with NOW.
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