It’s that time of year again! Everyone’s talking about which team will win that $1 million prize at the Grant Thornton Invitational before the holidays hit. Our 32 pros have nudged off the first two rounds with Patty Tavatanakit and Jake Knapp topping the leaderboard. In the first round, the team carded 14 under par, improving it to 6 under par without any sign of slowing down. Just behind them are some serious contenders.

Jeeno Thitikul, the CME Group Tour Champion, and PGA Tour pro Tom Kim shot an 8-under 64 in an alternate shot to climb to 18-under for the tournament. And don’t forget about Kupcho and Bhatia; they’re lurking at 15 under. The defending champs, Ko and Day, are a bit further back at 13-under. In the final round on Sunday, Tavatanakit and Knapp will tee off together at 10:25 a.m. ET, alongside Jeeno Thitikul and Tom Kim.

The second round, on December 14, kicked off with partly cloudy skies and a nice mix of sun and clouds, making it easier for the leading golfers to shoot some impressive scores. But as the day progressed, those sunny skies turned gray, and rain started pouring down around mid-afternoon at Tiburon Golf Club. Lydia Ko commented that the weather reminded her of the British Open, which is a good sign since she won at St. Andrews earlier this year.

“We had everything from sun to like calmer conditions, wind, and the rain, which is unusual for Florida, especially this time of the year,” said Korda. “I’ve been in Florida for 11 years and haven’t seen anything like this in December. But it’s testing us and testing us on the day that it’s most difficult just because of the format anyways.”

Fast forward to today, and Naples is looking at partially cloudy skies with a pleasant temperature of 26 degrees Celsius—an 8-degree jump from yesterday. This might make it comfortable compared to yesterday for Lexi Thompson and Rickie Fowler, who will be teeing off at 8:00 a.m. alongside Gabi Ruffels and Nick Dunlap. However, the blustery east-northeasterly winds, with speeds of 13-18 mph and gusts ranging from 23-28 mph, could make things a bit tricky. Plus, there’s a 60% chance of rain in the PGA Tour weather forecast. It’s definitely shaping up to be a challenging day on the course!

Former winner Lydia Ko and Jason Day are set to tee off at 10:10 a.m., joined by Jennifer Kupcho and Akshay Bhatia. The weather looks promising, with a partly sunny sky on the horizon, and the wind blowing at 24 km/h might just give the former champions a little extra boost as they aim to solidify their legacies. Meanwhile, all eyes will be on Lexi Thompson, who’s playing her last event before retiring. She and Rickie Fowler are currently tied for 14th, sitting at 8 under par after a 73 in the second round. It’s an exciting day ahead!

What makes the 2.0 Grant Thornton Invitational more challenging and special this year?

The second edition of this unique event is shaping up to be even more interesting and challenging than before. The Tiburon Golf Club, known for its windy weather, made it tough for players last year, and it looks like this time will be no different. What really makes this tournament special is that Lexi Thompson, who is probably everyone’s favorite, will be retiring today after playing her final round.

But Thompson, being the fun-loving lady she is, made sure to have some fun before she said goodbye to her competitive career. On 13th December, the LPGA pro celebrated her golfing partner Rickie Fowler’s 36th birthday on the greens. Thompson, who knows Fowler’s tastes, brought a cute little orange cake for him. And it was quite a scene when the brutal winds blew the candles away, making the scene more hilarious and memorable one.

Now, speaking of challenges, there’s definitely more than just the competition among the top 16 teams. The atmosphere got even more tense when Tony Finau announced his withdrawal just 48 hours before the tournament began. This news upset Nelly Korda, who is known for her fierce competitive spirit. Finau had to step back because of a knee injury, and now Daniel Berger, who is also Korda’s tennis partner, will be teeing off with her in the third round at 9:25 a.m., alongside Allisen Corpuz and Sahith Theegala. With all this excitement in the air, who do you think will win hearts by making birdies through the cloudy sky?