After struggling last weekend at the Hootie at Bull’s Bay Intercollegiate, the Blue Devils set program records en route to their best performance of the season in preparation for postseason play.
No. 22 Duke finished strong at the Princeton Invitational at Springdale Golf Club in Princeton, N.J., shooting 15-under-par 269 on Sunday—the best 18-hole score in program history. All five Blue Devils golfers finished under par Sunday with a score of 70 or below. Duke recorded a 274 Saturday for a two-day total of 25-under-par 543—also a program record.
Freshman Alex Smalley won the event with an eight-under-par 36-hole total, with junior Max Greyserman and sophomore Jake Shuman finishing right behind him in a tie for second.
Smalley started off strong for the Blue Devils, posting a first-round score of 68. The freshman followed that performance with a five-under-par 66—the lowest round of his career—to clinch the tournament victory. The weekend marked Smalley’s first career individual title.
But the Wake Forest, N.C., native was not the top Duke player at the end of the first round. Shuman carded a six-under-par 65 to help pace the Blue Devils Saturday. The sophomore could not keep up that torrid pace Sunday though, playing the second round in one-under-par. Greyserman was tied with Smalley at the end of the first round, also carding a three-under-par 68. He followed that up with an even better performance—a four-under-par 67—but was unable to keep up with Smalley despite birdieing three of the final six holes.
Sophomore Adam Wood and junior Matt Oshrine rounded out Duke’s scoring lineup. Wood shot a two-under-par 69 Sunday to rebound after a two-over-par 73 in the first round, finishing tied for ninth at even par in his fourth top-10 finish of the season.
Oshrine struggled in the opening round, carding a seven-over-par 78 Saturday and struggling to find any sort of rhythm. But the Loyola transfer found his shot in the second round, turning in a four-under-par 67 to bounce back and finish tied for 20th place.
Although he was competing as an individual, junior Alexander Matlari followed his teammates’ success. The junior rode a first-round 69 to finish tied for 16th for the tournament.
The Blue Devils will look to keep up the momentum April 22, when they return to action for the ACC championships in New London, N.C.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.