Steve Palmer's free predictions and golf betting tips for the Grant Thornton Invitational

Bet365 are offering new customers £50 in free bets when they bet £10 on Steve Palmer's golf tips.

You can grab your free bets here. We’ve included instructions on how to grab your offer later on in this article.

When to bet on the Grant Thornton Invitational

By 2.15pm on Friday

Where can I watch the Grant Thornton Invitational?

Live on Sky Sports Main Event and Golf from 6pm on Friday

Steve Palmer's Grant Thornton Invitational predictions

Tom Kim and Jeeno Thitikul
5pts 11-2 bet365 enhanced win only

Recommended Offer

4/5

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Bet £10 Get £50 in Free Bets

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

• Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG)

CLAIM OFFER

Tap for more details. 18+ T&Cs apply

• New offers on a regular basis
• Competitive prices on horse racing

Bet £10 & Get £50 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply. Registration required. #ad

Bet £10 on golf with bet365 and get up to £50 in FREE BETS

Steve Palmer's Grant Thornton Invitational preview

The inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational was a huge success last year, providing high-class mixed pairs golf for the first time, with Jason Day and Lydia Ko taking the spoils. The defending champions must be respected at Tiburon GC this week, but Day finished tied last in the Hero World Challenge on Sunday.

Tony Finau and Nelly Korda have been respected by market-makers but Finau could be a weak link. He has not competed since a humdrum performance in the Presidents Cup – he won only two points and was thrashed by Corey Conners in the singles. Finau had knee surgery on October 15, while mentally he may not be right, either, with a court date looming next year. He has been accused of owing $16m to a Utah businessman.

Corey Conners and Brooke Henderson, who finished second as a duo last year, may be set for runner-up honours again, as both are in decent nick, while Akshay Bhatia, fourth in the World Challenge on Sunday, could be dangerous alongside Jennifer Kupcho.

Sahith Theegala and Allisen Corpuz are old friends who may team up to good effect, but one pairing stand out as by far the most likely winners.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Tom Kim and Jeeno Thitikul 11-2

The fresh and exciting combination of Tom Kim and Jeeno Thitikul can take the Grant Thornton Invitational by storm. These two cheerful characters, never far away from laughter, should be full of positive vibes and can work extremely well in tandem.

Kim, who lived in Thailand as a teenager, is a similar age to his Thai sidekick. The South Korean is 22, while Thitikul is 21. They were both prodigies who were brilliant at a young age and have both relished team golf in the past.

Kim has quickly established himself as a Presidents Cup legend. In 2022, he teamed up with Kyoung-Hoon Lee to beat Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns in a foursomes match, then with Si Woo Kim to defeat Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele in the fourballs. Kim joined Si Woo again to win a fourballs match in the Presidents Cup in September.

Thitikul also likes pairs golf. She won the Dow Championship pairs event – the LPGA Tour's equivalent of the Zurich Classic – with Yin Ruoning at the end of June. Thitikul also won the 2023 Asia Pacific Cup with Javaree Boonchant as her partner.

Both Kim and Thitikul are bringing their A-game to Florida this week. Kim has finished second in two of his last three events, closing with rounds of 65, 62, 68 in the World Challenge, defeated only by Scheffler.

Thitikul has LPGA form figures from her last seven events of 4-2-7-5-8-2-1, with the victory coming in the CME Group Tour Championship at this week's venue. She held her nerve to win the biggest cheque in women's golf, banking $4m. She can enhance her status as Queen of Tiburon this week.

This potent Kim-Thitikul combo may become a partnership which goes on to dominate the GTI for years to come. Each-way terms of a fifth the odds, the first four places are available, but preference is for a win-only wager. They are the standout team, most likely winners, and generously priced, but it is feasible that four teams edge them, so a heavy each-way investment is difficult to justify.

Recommended Offer

4/5

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

Bet £10 Get £50 in Free Bets

NEW CUSTOMER OFFER

• Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG)

CLAIM OFFER

Tap for more details. 18+ T&Cs apply

• New offers on a regular basis
• Competitive prices on horse racing

Bet £10 & Get £50 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply. Registration required. #ad

Bet £10 on golf with bet365 and get up to £50 in FREE BETS

Read more from Steve Palmer ...

'He has been playing superbly in recent weeks' – Steve Palmer has five selections for the Alfred Dunhill Championship 

Course guide for the Grant Thornton Invitational

• Course Gold Course, Tiburon Golf Club, Naples, Florida
• Prize money $4m ($720,000 each to the winning team)
• Length Men's tees 7,382 yards Women's tees 6,595 yards
• Par 72 – four par-fives; ten par-fours; four par-threes
• Field 16 teams of two (no cut)
• Highest-ranked men's players in field (world ranking in brackets) Sahith Theegala (13), Tom Kim (21), Tony Finau (26), Akshay Bhatia (29), Matthieu Pavon (30)
• Highest-ranked women's players in field (world ranking in brackets) Nelly Korda (1), Lydia Ko (3), Lilia Vu (4), Jeeno Thitikul (5), Celine Boutier (6)
• Course records - 54 holes (Grant Thornton format) 190 Jason Day & Lydia Ko (2023); 18 holes 56 Tony Finau & Nelly Korda (2023 scramble)
• Course winners taking part Jason Day and Lydia Ko
• When to bet By 2.15pm on Friday
• When to watch Live on Sky Sports Main Event and Golf from 6pm on Friday
• Time difference Naples is five hours behind the UK and Ireland
• Last week – Hero World Challenge 1 S Scheffler (5-2), 2 T Kim (20-1), 3 J Thomas (10-1), 4 A Bhatia (25-1), 5 K Bradley (35-1)
• Course type Parkland
• Course overview The Grant Thornton Invitational has replaced the QBE Shootout. The Shootout moved to Tiburon in 2001 and remained there until 2022. Tiburon hosted the inaugural Grant Thornton mixed pairs event last year. There is no rough at Tiburon and the fairways are generous, but plenty of water is waiting to punish the seriously errant. The course hosts the CME Group Tour Championship on the LPGA Tour. The GTI format is different to that used for the QBE, with foursomes for round two instead of greensomes
• Format Friday Scramble (both players hit, best ball chosen after every shot) Saturday Foursomes (alternate shot) Sunday Modified fourball (both players tee off, then switch balls for their second shots and play that ball until holed, only best score counts)
• Story of last year Jason Day and Lydia Ko won the inaugural GTI, defeating Canadian duo Corey Conners and Brooke Henderson by a shot
• Weather forecast Sunny and pleasant, with light to moderate breezes, peaking on Friday
• Type of player suited to the challenge Aggressive golf and hot putters have traditionally been the keys to success in this event, but a pure foursomes format replaced the old Saturday greensomes last year, meaning there is no margin for error in round two. All-round quality is required, especially with breeze in the forecast, and weak links will be exposed over the final two days
• Key attribute Touch

Steve Palmer's Grant Thornton Invitational key stat

There were no Americans in the top three teams on the leaderboard last year

Click for free bets and betting offers from the Racing Post

Commercial notice: This article contains affiliate links. Offers are handpicked and come from operators our experts have first-hand experience of. Opening an account via one of these links will earn revenue for the Racing Post, which will be used to continue producing our award-winning coverage of horseracing and sports betting.

For those looking for even more extensive golf coverage don't miss Palmer's extra pointers every Wednesday in the Racing Post newspaper.

As well as his tips and insight you will also get expert spotlight comments for all players in our extensive PGA Tour and DP Tour price comparison grids which include course and recent form, plus Palmer's unique attribute icons to help identify the type of players likely to be suited to conditions each week.