New season, same story.
Just as they did last year, the third-ranked Blue Devils finished in the top five in their first three fall tournaments—including a win at the Tar Heel Invitational—and will compete at the Landfall Tradition at the Pete Dye Course at the Country Club of Landfall in Wilmington, N.C., to cap off their fall season.
Duke will compete against a field that features nine other top-25 squads and 18 total teams during the three-day, 54-hole event that begins Friday. And although the Blue Devils will feature three freshmen in their five-person lineup, the strategy and expectations are almost identical to what they were at the same time last year.
"The Pete Dye Course at Landfall is one of the best courses we play," head coach Dan Brooks said. "I'm excited to get our new team on to that golf course and see what they can accomplish. We've had good weather and everyone is healthy. Everything seems to be in order. Now we just need to get down there and play hard."
Reigning National Player of the Year Celine Boutier will anchor Duke's lineup and make her third start of the year after tying for third in her first two tournaments. The junior has established herself as one of the most consistent golfers in the nation and contends almost every time she tees it up.
Boutier was expected to be be a dominant force for the Blue Devils this year, but freshman Leona Maguire has been just as impressive. The Cavan, Ireland, native placed tied for fifth in her season opener, second in the next event and tied with Boutier for third at the Tar Heel Invitational two weeks ago.
With Boutier and Maguire healthy and looking like two of the premier players in the nation, Duke likes its chances at every tournament it goes to. But this weekend, the Blue Devils will have to navigate one of famous golf course designer Pete Dye's most notable courses to stay in contention.
The par-72 layout presents many visually intimidating shots for players because of its elevation changes and hazards, and at the event last year, Duke finished second with a score of 11-over-par and only three teams broke 900, or a three-day score of 36-over-par.
Dye is most famous for his island green on the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass, which annually hosts The Players Championship on the PGA Tour. The risk and reward involved in playing any of his courses usually makes for a difficult mental test for players and a lot of excitement for fans.
"The risk-reward is always what you like about a golf course," Brooks said. "If you take on a certain amount of risk, you want to be rewarded and penalized appropriately. [Dye] is the master of that."
Rounding out the Blue Devil lineup this week will be Leona Maguire's twin Lisa, fellow freshman Gurbani Singh and sophomore Sandy Choi, who won the Cougar Classic in Duke's first fall tournament.
Choi's win and role in helping the Blue Devils secure their sixth national title last spring solidified her spot in the lineup going forward, but Singh and Lisa Maguire showed that they were also ready to be part of one of the best five-player lineups in the nation two weeks ago. In the final round of the Tar Heel Invitational, both Singh and Maguire fired final-round 72s to pace Duke and help the Blue Devils secure their first title of the season.
Duke may have lost three players from last season's squad, but the freshmen have ensured that Brooks' squad has not missed a beat so far this fall.
"It's personnel at this point since you don't have the time in just the fall semester for the team to really develop into something new and different," Brooks said. "The fall is going to tell you what kind of talent you have. We've got some very talented individuals on this team."
In addition to taking the normal five-person lineup, Brooks will also take junior Yi Xiao to the event so she can compete as an individual.
After the event, the Blue Devils will enter their winter offseason and keep fine-tuning their games in preparation for a demanding spring schedule. Duke will play four more regular-season tournaments in 2015 before the ACC Championship, NCAA Regionals and NCAA Championship, which will be using a new match-play format that will cause the event to take place throughout six days.
"Now it's a question of can we develop ourselves into a team that's even better than what we are now," Brooks said. "People will be playing in the spring. There's no question about it—it always happens that way. We've got to be better in the spring, and now the work to become a better team is what matters."
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.