-26 L Ko (NZ) & J Day (Aus); -25 B Henderson & C Conners (Can); -24 M Sagstrom & L Aberg (Swe); -23 N Korda & T Finau (US), M Khang & D McCarthy (US) |
Selected others: -22 L Maguire (Ire) & L Glover (US), L Thompson & R Fowler (US); -20 C Hull & J Rose (Eng); -16 M Reid (Eng) & R Henley (US) |
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New Zealand’s Lydia Ko birdied the 17th hole and had a tap-in par on the last as she and Australian Jason Day won the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational.
Ko and Day posted their second straight round of 66 on Sunday to finish at 26 under for the three-day mixed PGA and LPGA teams event.
They held on for victory after entering the final round with a two-stroke lead.
Canadian pair Brooke Henderson and Corey Conners finished a shot further back at Tiburon Golf Club in Florida.
Swedish partners Madelene Sagstrom and Ludvig Aberg were third at 24 under after firing a final-round 60, with 10 birdies and a late eagle, but Ko and Day stayed clear by combining for a six-under-par finish.
“It felt like the most stress-free win because I just knew [Ko] was going to step up in the end, which was fantastic,” said Day.
“It was a fun week. I think having the two tours join this week was a fun way to finish the year out.”
Staged over three rounds for a shared £3.5m ($4m) purse, the event featured 16 mixed pairs.
Sunday’s round was a modified fourball in which both team-mates teed off, then switched balls for their second shots and played that ball the rest of the hole.
“I learned a lot, whether it was short-sided chips or just how to commit and hit bombs down there,” added Ko.
“I think this has just been a great start for the two tours coming together and having a mixed event, and I really hope this is something that continues for a long time.”
The English pairing of Justin Rose and Charley Hull finished joint ninth on 20 under.
The last mixed team event held by the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour was the 1999 JC Penney Classic.