Through the first round and a half of the NCAA Championships at the Inverness Golf Club in Toledo, Ohio, the Blue Devils are in eighth place with a score of 14-over par. Weather delayed play for nearly five hours on Wednesday, and darkness forced the players to leave the course with several holes remaining in their rounds.
On Tuesday, the first day of the tournament, the Blue Devils combined to shoot a 13-over par 297, trailing current leaders Oklahoma State by nine strokes. Senior Michael Quagliano led the way for Duke, shooting 73, two strokes over Inverness's par score of 71.
Following Wednesday's rain delay, the Blue Devils set a blistering pace and finished their day only 1-over par with the tougher front nine yet to play. Duke started on the back nine Wednesday.
Quagliano is 4-under par through the first ten holes of his second round, and his current total score of 2-under par is tied for the sixth-best individual score of the tournament. He trails current leader Alex Ching of San Diego by four shots.
The Duke senior opened his second round with four birdies in his first seven holes, then gutted out three pars as darkness set in. The key to the Duke senior's impressive run was his solid play off the tee and on the approach: He hit all ten greens in regulation and eight of ten fairways on his drives.
"I just wanted to give each putt a chance to go in," Quagliano said. "I am putting really well right now so I feel if I can get it on the green I have a chance to make birdie."
Senior Clark Klaasen is at 3-over par and Junior Adam Long has played at 4-over, good for 35th and 44th, respectively.
Ranked outside the top 25 beginning the tournament, the Blue Devils are playing well above others' expectations, and look to continue their good play through the end of the championships. In order to do that, they will need to survive a brutal day Thursday. Play will start for those who failed to finish their second rounds at 6:45 a.m, with the third round expected to tee off only hours later at 10 a.m.
"[Thursday] is going to be a bit of marathon day to play," head coach Jamie Green said. "The golf course should still be soft when we find it and that will be key."
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