The men's golf team had its hopes for a NCAA Regional berth dashed this weekend at the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship, coming in eighth out of nine squads. Duke shot a four-over-par 868 over three rounds at The Old North State Golf Club in New London, NC.
Last weekend, the Blue Devils took fourth at the BellSouth Yellow Pages Intercollegiate Tournament, finishing ahead of ACC foes N.C. State, Virginia and eventual conference champion Clemson. Duke put up consistent rounds of 288, 290 and 290 in New London, but went from fifth to seventh to eighth over the course of the weekend as its golfers were unable to find consistency in their putting.
"Everyone else elevated their games," coach Rod Myers said. "It makes you realize how strong golf is in our conference. Right at the time you think you're competitive. someone comes in and blows you away."
The Blue Devils were battling Wake Forest and UVa for a spot in the Regionals but came in behind those two schools at ACCs, virtually eliminating any chance of being selected for postseason play. Instead of being disappointed by his team's play in the conference tournament, Myers said, he wished it had come together earlier in the year before poor performances during the fall season dug it into a deep hole.
But Duke returns four of the five golfers who competed at ACCs. Junior Kyle Elfers took 10th with a five-under-par 211, six strokes out of first. Sophomore Mike Christensen tied for 15th, three strokes behind his teammate.
"Mike and Kyle have really come to the forefront," Myers said. "They've become the scoring leaders I knew they could. I thought they would be all along, but it's taken them a little longer to feel comfortable."
Freshman Paul Tucker tied for 35th, senior Chris Schmid tied for 37th and junior Marc Chatelain was 43rd. Clemson's Charles Warren won his second-straight conference title with an 11-under-par 205.
Duke entered play on Sunday in seventh place after the first two rounds with a two-over-par 578. The Blue Devils shot a 290 on Saturday.
Elfers and Christensen were tied with six other golfers for fifth through two days. Both were four under par-only four strokes off the lead-with a 140 and one stroke ahead of Georgia Tech's Matt Kuchar, the reigning US Amateur champion and the low amateur at the Masters last week. Elfers shot a 68 in the second round, which tied him with Warren for the second-best score of the day.
Duke shot a 288 on Friday, putting it in fifth place after a first round that was delayed more than an hour by rain.
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