Tony Finau withdraws from Grant Thornton; Daniel Berger now will play with Nelly Korda

NAPLES — The No. 1 women’s player in the world has a new partner for the Grant Thornton Invitational.

Nelly Korda now will play with Jupiter’s Daniel Berger after Tony Finau withdrew from the mixed event at Tiburon Golf Club, citing knee issues.

“I am disappointed to have to withdraw from the Grant Thornton Invitational as I continue to recover from my knee injury,” Finau said in a statement. “Playing with Nelly in 2023 was one of the highlights of my year. I look forward to cheering her on this week and am thankful for her support and understanding as I work on getting fully healthy.”

More: LPGA Tour trying to ride wave of momentum in women’s sports. Is TV holding it back? | D’Angelo

Finau thanked Grant Thornton for diversifying the sport by bringing the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour players together before saying, “I look forward to returning to competition in the new year!”

Finau and Korda tied for fourth last year, three shots behind winners Jason Day and Lydia Ko.

Berger, the Dwyer High School alum, recently finished tied for second at the RSM Classic on St. Simons Island, Georgia, the final event of the fall season, allowing him to earn full exempt status on the 2025 PGA Tour. He entered the event outside the top 125 in the FedEx Cup. After shooting 15-under 267, he surged 27 spots to No. 100 in the FedEx Cup fall standings.

The 36-hole event starts Friday.

Tom D’Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Daniel Berger replaces Tony Finau as Nelly Korda partner at Grant Thornton