Who would have thought that the men's golf team would shoot its lowest 54-hole score of the year and not even crack a tournament's top 10? Certainly not Duke.
This weekend the Blue Devils traveled to Hilton Head, S.C., for the Golf World Invitational, where they finished in a tie for 11th, with a total of 856, 8-under par.
Duke finished 19 strokes back of tournament winner Georgia at the par-72 Arthur Hills Golf Club at Palmetto Dunes Plantation. This was the Blue Devils' last tournament of the fall.
The 18-team field, which included six of the top 10 teams in the nation, was one of the strongest that the Blue Devils have faced this year.
"This was a real select field," coach Rod Myers said. "It was like playing in the NCAA Championships all over again. We were playing against the best golfers in the country."
Sophomore Matt Krauss continued his consistent play and capped off a great fall season, leading the Blue Devils with a sixth-place finish. Krauss shot rounds of 69, 69 and 68 for a three-day score of 206, 10-under par.
"Matt had an outstanding tournament," said Myers. "He showed everyone that he can play and compete with the best."
The reason for the extremely low scores this weekend was not only the strength of the teams, but the absence of the usually strong Atlantic winds, which have caused havoc for golfers in the past.
Senior Mike Christensen fired two consecutive rounds of 68 to stand in a tie for fifth heading into the final round. But the senior was unable to continue his stellar play and shot a 78 to finish the tournament in a tie for 30th at 2-under par.
"This tournament was a real test for us," said Myers. "We responded well playing solid golf all three days, but it wasn't enough to compete with the top-ranked teams. We still have some things we need to improve on."
Junior Kevin Streelman played consistently over the three-day tournament, scoring a little better each day. Streelman shot rounds of 73, 72 and 70 for a 215 total and a 37th-place finish.
Freshman Leif Olson and junior Paul Tucker did not play as well as they would have liked to this weekend, but both golfers played an important role in the Blue Devils success over the fall season.
"This was a very positive fall for us," said Myers. "We established ourselves as contenders and have put ourselves in a good position to make another run at the NCAAs. If we put all the pieces together we can play with the best. We proved that when we won the Duke Classic."
Duke begins the spring season in Puerto Rico Feb. 27, at the Puerto Rico Shoot-Out.
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