LPGA & Events
The CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburón
The LPGA's season finale, and Naples' place on the professional golf map.
Updated · November 3, 2026
The finale
The CME Group Tour Championship is the LPGA Tour's season-ending event, held annually in November at Tiburón Golf Club in Naples. The field is limited to the season's top performers, and the winner's share is the largest single payday in women's professional golf.
The tournament has been at Tiburón since 2013, giving Naples an anchor event on the professional golf calendar and cementing Southwest Florida's position in the sport.
The course
Tiburón's Gold Course was designed by Greg Norman and opened in 1998. It measures 7,382 yards from the back tees at par 72; the LPGA setup is shorter but no less demanding.
Norman built the course around existing Florida wetlands rather than through them, and the result reads more naturally than most Naples-area development golf. Coquina sand waste areas replace traditional bunkers in places — a Norman signature — and the greens are subtle enough that reading them is a genuine skill.
The adjacent Black Course, also Norman-designed, hosts overflow play and is a strong second option.
The Grant Thornton Invitational
Tiburón also hosts the Grant Thornton Invitational each December — a mixed-team event that pairs a PGA Tour player with an LPGA Tour player across three rounds of team formats. It replaced the QBE Shootout, Greg Norman's two-player event, which Tiburón hosted from 2001 to 2022, and it is one of the more entertaining events of the off-season.
Between the CME Group Tour Championship in November and the Grant Thornton Invitational in December, Tiburón hosts back-to-back professional events in the heart of Naples' winter season.
Attending
When: CME Group Tour Championship — November. Grant Thornton Invitational — December.
Tickets: Available through the respective tournament sites. Both events are considerably more accessible than the men's Florida Swing majors — smaller crowds, easier viewing, and better access to players.
Where to stay: The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort Naples is adjacent to Tiburón and is the on-site option. Downtown Naples and the Vanderbilt Beach corridor are within 15 minutes.
Getting there: Southwest Florida International (RSW) in Fort Myers is 35 minutes. Naples Municipal (APF) handles private aviation. Miami is two hours across Alligator Alley.
Why it's worth attending: LPGA events offer the best spectator value in professional golf. You can walk with groups, see shots from close range, and access players in a way that PGA Tour events no longer permit. Tiburón's layout supports this well.
Playing Tiburón
Tiburón Golf Club is semi-private with resort access. Guests of the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort Naples receive preferred tee times on both the Gold and Black Courses. Limited public access exists outside resort stays but availability is inconsistent, particularly during Naples' peak winter season.
Best time to play: November through April. Naples summers are hot and humid with reliable afternoon storms — morning golf only.
Both courses close during tournament weeks and setup.
Naples as a golf destination
Naples has more golf holes per capita than any city in the United States. The market skews toward private clubs — Grey Oaks, Quail West, Mediterra, Old Collier — most of which are genuinely members-only.
Tiburón is the primary public-access path into serious Naples golf. Lely Resort (three courses) and Kensington Golf Club offer additional options. The overall market is expensive, winter-heavy, and oriented toward an older, wealthier clientele than Orlando or Tampa.
For visitors, the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort plus Tiburón is the most reliable combination.
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