After a solid first day saw Duke atop the leaderboard in Raleigh, just 18 holes separated the Blue Devils from their first tournament victory of the season Tuesday.
During a windy third round, however, N.C. State blew the field away, shooting the only under-par round of the day, and Duke settled for second at the Wolfpack Intercollegiate for the second consecutive year.
Duke felt the pressure as the team entered the final day of the tournament—and the Blue Devils’ performance on the golf course reflected their tension. Shooting six-over for the day, Duke finished the third round with a score of 290. The team’s total score for the tournament was 848, good for four-under-par, but four strokes shy of winner N.C. State.
“My hat goes off to the guys at N.C. State and [head coach Richard] Sykes. Those guys played a really good round of golf today,” head coach Jamie Green said.
The Blue Devils sat in a comfortable position at the top of the leaderboard after the first two rounds of play on the par-71 Lonnie Poole Golf Course—the Wolfpack’s home track.
Ranked No. 20 in the nation, Duke led a competitive field including No. 18 N.C. State and No. 23 Wake Forest as well as ACC rival Maryland.
But after the final putts were holed Tuesday, the Blue Devils were unhappy as they walked off the course, and understandably so.
“Any time you get a lead in the final round and don’t walk away with the victory, it’s a disappointing thing,” Green said. “But at the same time, I don’t feel that our guys played that poorly. N.C. State just played better. When three guys finish in the top five and one of them is the leader, those points will add up pretty quickly in your favor.”
Scores from the third round of play were markedly higher due to tougher conditions on the course. As the temperature dropped and winds picked up over the second day, scoring on the typically attackable course slowed considerably.
“The wind picked up at the end of [the third round] and hole locations were much tougher today than they had been the previous two rounds,” Green said. “The stat sheets do not tell the whole story for today.”
Individually, Duke had two players finish in the top ten. Sophmore Brinson Paolini, who finished in a tie for third, and sophomore Adam Sumrall, who came in 10th place, kept the Blue Devils in victory contention throughout the three rounds of play.
“Paolini had his eyes on winning the event and sometimes when you’re right there with the leaders, you get [an all-too-close sense] of where you stand,” Green said. “There’s no doubt about it that he played well, but in the end he had a lot of opportunities... and just simply wasn’t able to convert.”
Up and coming freshman Yaroslav Merkulov started the tournament strong but fell off on the final day. After concluding the first and second rounds of play at three-under-par and in the top ten, Merkulov struggled over the final 18 holes, shooting a four-over. He ended the tournament tied for 13th, though an overnight illness may have played a role in the final result.
“He won’t make this excuse, but I’ll say he wasn’t feeling well today,” Green said. “He’s coming down with a cold and he seemed very fatigued by the end of the tournament.”
Duke’s players should be encouraged by a high finish at a competitive tournament, and they will look to carry momentum into the upcoming Rod Myers Invitational, held at the Duke University Golf Club October 10-11.
“None of our guys quit. They played hard till the very end and ultimately they came up short,” Green said. “We just need to keep getting better and play up to the level which I know we can play at.”
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