While the women's golf team hit the greens in Stanford, CA, the men's team teed off closer to home at the Duke Golf Classic held at the par 72 Duke Golf Club in Durham.
After the first day of competition, Duke is in second place with a two-round score of 582. UNC is leading the field with 576.
The tournament, which started yesterday and will conclude today, features 15 teams from around the nation. Competition for the Blue Devils includes No. 11 Kansas State, No. 12 UNC and No. 24 Illinois.
"There are about seven really strong teams in this field," Duke head coach Rod Myers said. "We'd certainly like to finish on top."
The Blue Devil effort was led by sophomore Ryan Blaum, who shot a 72-71-143, to put him in a tie for fifth place. UNC's Dustin Bray leads the field with a 71-65-136.
Along with Blaum, Myers also noted that sophomore Nathan Smith (75-70-145) and senior Mike Castleforte (70-78-148) had "wonderful rounds."
Although Myers said the team did not play as well as it had played during practice rounds, he was still pleased with the standings. In team competition, Duke is followed by Illinois (583), Kansas State (584) and Michigan State (585) to round out the top five.
"Overall it was a pretty good day." Myers said. "We're still in position to win. The teams we felt were the strongest are all near the top."
Today's final round begins with tee times ranging from 8 a.m. to 10:06 a.m.
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