Impossible not to be charmed at Grant Thornton Invitational

NAPLES, Fla. – Joel Dahmen and Sahith Theegala are PGA TOUR winners.

In the first round of the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational on Friday, paired with world No. 1 Lilia Vu (Dahmen) and Rose Zhang (Theegala), already an LPGA Tour winner at age 20, they were also star-struck fans.

“I've never played with a No. 1 player in the world,” Theegala said after he and Zhang shot 14-under 58 in the (scramble format) first round, two off the lead. “Now I've played with two, the current No. 1 and the former No. 1 amateur golfer for so long and probably a future No. 1.

“It's really cool,” he continued. “Me and Joel were joking Lilia and Rose will be better than maybe we ever will be.”

Zhang smiled and shook her head. “I doubt that,” she said.

If there were doubts about the first mixed-team, PGA TOUR/LPGA event since 1999, they dissolved quickly amid the feel-good, mutual-admiration society that broke out at Tiburón Golf Club. There was no way not to be charmed.

Some teams, like Canadians Corey Conners and Brooke Henderson (59), were obvious, and merely the continuation of an existing relationship. Swedes Ludvig Åberg and Madelene Sagström (60) have shared the same coach.

“I used to have you as the background picture on my phone for a bit,” Sagström said to her partner. “The impact position, like, with an iron? I was like, 'I need this in my life.'”

Other duos, though, were a happy accident, an arranged marriage of sorts that yielded equal parts birdies and laughter.

“It's like we've known each other forever,” Megan Khang said of Denny McCarthy after they shot 57. “I introduced myself to your mom and your sister, I'm like, ‘You raised a great son. Like, he's so nice.’ It's been a lot of fun.”

McCarthy nodded in agreement. “I feel like we're already great friends,” he said.

Lucas Glover and Leona Maguire (15-under 57) also met this week. They birdied the first 10 holes Friday.

“Yeah, I knew pretty early on, just get her on the green as close as possible and I wouldn't have to putt much,” said Glover, who revived his career with back-to-back victories in August. “Yeah, when I saw our pairing, I checked everything out, and I'd watched some of the Solheim Cup recently anyway.”

Maguire marveled at a few Glover approach shots, and mentioned how fun it was to play alongside the PGA TOUR pros she’d seen on TV, including Åberg. “Nice to see that up close,” she said.

Tony Finau and Nelly Korda looked like they might make for a potent team, and they did not disappoint, shooting a highlight-filled, 16-under 56 to take the lead by one going into alternate-shot play Saturday.

“I got to see shots that normally I wouldn't let's see on the women's tour,” Korda said. “That squeezer 9 you hit on No. 17 was absolutely incredible. It's fun to see it firsthand, as well.”

Added Finau: “Nelly was just clutch. … Anytime I wasn't able to make a very makeable putt, she chose to go second and kind of be our closer. When Nelly is following me around the course, it makes the game feel pretty simple.”

Then again, Finau had a good idea what to expect when paired with one of the top players in the women’s game. He had teed it up with Lexi Thompson in the old QBE Shootout at Tiburón.

“I would say they hit it a lot straighter than the men, than we do on our TOUR,” he said of the top stars in the women’s game. “They're just so solid; I don't know how else to describe it.

“It's fun to watch them compete,” he added.

With the praise running in both directions, that was the theme of the day.

“Now that I think about it,” Theegala said, “this should have happened sooner.”