Upcoming Event: Women's Golf versus Landfall Tradition on October 24, 2025
Women's Golf
vs Landfall Tradition
Photo by: Tim Cowie
WGolf NCAA Championship History: Seventh Title was Blessing
5/28/2020 4:00:00 PM | Women's Golf
DURHAM, N.C.— The Duke women's golf program has won seven NCAA Championships since 1999 under the direction of head coach Dan Brooks. The seven NCAA titles over the last 21 years are the most by any program in NCAA history. Recently, Duke has been looking back at each NCAA Championship along with the four NCAA individual titles.
Duke won its seventh overall NCAA Championship and first in the match play format in 2019 at The Blessing Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark.
2019 National Champions
Fayetteville, Ark. (Blessings Golf Club)
Par 73, 6,397 Yards
Duke 2nd of 24 (890) - Stroke
Defeated WFU, 3-2 - Match
Defeated Arizona, 3-2 – Match
Defeated Stanford, 3-2 - Match
Jaravee Boonchant 76-71-74=221 (+2, T7)
Gina Kim 78-70-75=223 (+4, T10)
Anna Belac 76-69-79=224 (+5, T16)
Miranda Wang 75-72-78=225 (+6, T19)
Virginia Elena Carta 82-71-77=230 (+11, T43)
Team 305-281-304=890 (+14, 2)
Match Play
Quarterfinals
Duke def. Stanford, 3.0-2.0
V. Carta (DU) def. Z. Wang (SU), 24 holes
G. Kim (DU) def. A. Valenzuela (SU), 1UP
A. Belac (DU) def. M. Liu (SU), 1UP
A. Lee (SU) def. J. Boonchant (DU), 19 holes
A. Krauter (SU) def. M. Wang (DU), 2&1
Semifinals
Duke def. Stanford, 3.0-2.0
V. Carta (DU) def. S. Nordaas (UA), 2&1
H. Moore (UA) def. J. Boonchant (DU), 4&3
Y. Hou (UA) def. M. Wang (DU), 2&1
A. Belac (DU) def. Y. Chang (UA), 2&1
G. Kim (DU) def. B. Pagdanganan (UA), 1UP
Finals
Duke def. Wake Forest, 3.0-2.0
S. Liu (WF) def. V. Carta (DU), 20 holes
J. Boonchant (DU) def. J. Kupcho (WF), 19 holes
M. Wang (DU) def. L. Bagnoli (WF), 20 holes
E. Migliaccio (WF) def. G. Kim (DU), 1UP
A. Belac (DU) def. V. Knecht (WF), 5&3
After opening the NCAA Championship in fifth overall and only three shots off the lead through day one, the Blue Devils made their move in the second round, carding an impressive 11-under-par ledger to take the team lead through 36 holes. All five Duke golfers shot under par in the second round as the Blue Devils' score of 281 was the second-lowest in NCAA history dating back the last 13 years. Duke held a nine-stroke advantage with two stroke play rounds remaining at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark.
The Blue Devils would end up closing stroke play in second overall to earn the No. 2 seed heading into match play. Four Duke golfers concluded stroke play in the top 20, while Jaravee Boonchant (T7) and Gina Kim (T10) turned in top 10 placements.
In the quarterfinal round, Duke would go up against seventh-seeded Stanford and it would come down to a thrilling finish as darkness descended upon the course. Senior Virginia Elena Carta drained a six-foot birdie putt on her 24th hole to push the Blue Devils past the Cardinal and into the semifinals for the third time out of the last five years.
Duke registered a birdie on No. 18 by Kim and a par by Ana Belac to give the Blue Devils a 2-0 advantage in the match. A rookie playing in her first NCAAs, Kim was able to knock off the eighth-ranked amateur in the world in Albane Valenzuela, 1UP.
In the semifinals, Duke went up against the reigning NCAA Champions in Arizona and the fans were treated to another thrilling match. After falling behind 1-0, Carta won her match, 2&1, to even the score, 1-1, but the Wildcats would take a 2-1 lead before Belac closed her match on hole No. 17 with a 2&1 win to even the score, 2-2.
It all came down to Kim, who had won in thrilling fashion the day before. Going up against 14th-ranked Bianca Pagdanganan, Kim didn't take her first lead until hole 13, but the match was all square through 15. The Golfweek Third Team All-America stuck her approach on the par three 17th to two feet and drained the birdie to take a 1UP lead. Then on the 18th, Kim hit her drive into the fairway bunker, but stepped up and hit her approach to three feet and sank the birdie to send Duke into the NCAA Championship match.
It was an all ACC final as Duke and Wake Forest would battle it out in Arkansas.
The Demon Deacons came out on fire, taking the lead in four of the five matches on the front nine and Duke found itself down, 4-1, at one point on the back nine. The Blue Devils would not back down and made a huge rally.
Belac put Duke on the board first with a 5&3 win, after trailing by one through eight holes. She won holes 9-11 and 13-15 to close the match. Kim dropped her match to ACC Champion Emilia Migliaccio, 1UP, to even the ledger, 1-1.
Boonchant, a sophomore, was faced with a tough task against the No. 1 ranked amateur golfer in the world, Jennifer Kupcho. After falling down early, Boonchant returned the match to all square after No. 4. The match would be tied in 13 of the 19 holes and the Duke two-time All-America wouldn't take her first lead until the 157-yard, par three 17th.
A native of Bangkok, Thailand, Boonchant sank a 15-footer for birdie to take a 1UP lead on No. 17, but suffered a bogey on No. 18 to send the match to extra holes. The lead for Boonchant gave Kupcho her first deficit of 2019 match play. The duo went back to the 411-yard, par four first hole and Boonchant was able to two-putt for par to give Duke a 2-1 lead, after Kupcho made bogey.
For the second time over the last two days, Carta had her match go to extra holes. She led for eight of the first 10 holes, but Siyun Liu took her first lead after a birdie on No. 14. The match went back to all square after 16 and stayed that way until the 20th hole when Liu birdied to win in 20 holes.
With the match knotted at 2-2, it all came down to sophomore Miranda Wang, who was seeing action in her first NCAA Championship. A product of Beijing, China, Wang had dropped her first two matches against Arizona and Stanford, but put up a good fight in those previous contests.
Letizia Bagnoli of Wake Forest led for the first 14 holes by as many as 2UP, but Wang never quit. Wang birdied the par five 15th to tie the match and it would end up going to extra holes. Even though Wang didn't hit the green on her approach, she made a great up-and-down for par, while Bagnoli missed a birdie putt, to extend the match to the par five 15th. Wang blasted a perfect drive on the right of the fairway, while Bagnoli hit her drive behind the tree in the middle of the fairway.
Bagnoli decided to go for the green and hooked her approach into the river on the left side of the fairway leaving an opening for Wang. After seeing Bagnoli's shot, Wang calmly hit her approach onto the back right of the green in two. Bagnoli took some time to figure out where she could hit from and eventually dropped. She ended up hitting her next shot short of the green and then stuck a shot a few feet from the cup.
Wang would have a three shot cushion to win the National Championship for the Blue Devils. After her chip went just past the pin, Wang would two-putt for the win and give Duke its seventh championship, all under the direction of head coach Dan Brooks.
After opening her collegiate career with the 2016 NCAA Individual Championship, Carta closed her time at Duke with a NCAA team title. She became the fourth Blue Devil to win both a NCAA team and individual championship – Candy Hannemann, Virada Nirapathpongporn and Anna Grzebien.
Belac concluded the week with a 3-0 in match play, while all five Blue Devils won at least one match play contest. It gave Duke its seventh NCAA Championship and Dan Brooks' registered his 136th all-time victory. ng, but it is not a shock."
Duke won its seventh overall NCAA Championship and first in the match play format in 2019 at The Blessing Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark.
2019 National Champions
Fayetteville, Ark. (Blessings Golf Club)
Par 73, 6,397 Yards
Duke 2nd of 24 (890) - Stroke
Defeated WFU, 3-2 - Match
Defeated Arizona, 3-2 – Match
Defeated Stanford, 3-2 - Match
Jaravee Boonchant 76-71-74=221 (+2, T7)
Gina Kim 78-70-75=223 (+4, T10)
Anna Belac 76-69-79=224 (+5, T16)
Miranda Wang 75-72-78=225 (+6, T19)
Virginia Elena Carta 82-71-77=230 (+11, T43)
Team 305-281-304=890 (+14, 2)
Match Play
Quarterfinals
Duke def. Stanford, 3.0-2.0
V. Carta (DU) def. Z. Wang (SU), 24 holes
G. Kim (DU) def. A. Valenzuela (SU), 1UP
A. Belac (DU) def. M. Liu (SU), 1UP
A. Lee (SU) def. J. Boonchant (DU), 19 holes
A. Krauter (SU) def. M. Wang (DU), 2&1
That moment when you capture No. 7?? ??
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) May 23, 2019
?????????????? pic.twitter.com/o8izPjLcqe
Semifinals
Duke def. Stanford, 3.0-2.0
V. Carta (DU) def. S. Nordaas (UA), 2&1
H. Moore (UA) def. J. Boonchant (DU), 4&3
Y. Hou (UA) def. M. Wang (DU), 2&1
A. Belac (DU) def. Y. Chang (UA), 2&1
G. Kim (DU) def. B. Pagdanganan (UA), 1UP
Finals
Duke def. Wake Forest, 3.0-2.0
S. Liu (WF) def. V. Carta (DU), 20 holes
J. Boonchant (DU) def. J. Kupcho (WF), 19 holes
M. Wang (DU) def. L. Bagnoli (WF), 20 holes
E. Migliaccio (WF) def. G. Kim (DU), 1UP
A. Belac (DU) def. V. Knecht (WF), 5&3
After opening the NCAA Championship in fifth overall and only three shots off the lead through day one, the Blue Devils made their move in the second round, carding an impressive 11-under-par ledger to take the team lead through 36 holes. All five Duke golfers shot under par in the second round as the Blue Devils' score of 281 was the second-lowest in NCAA history dating back the last 13 years. Duke held a nine-stroke advantage with two stroke play rounds remaining at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark.
The Blue Devils would end up closing stroke play in second overall to earn the No. 2 seed heading into match play. Four Duke golfers concluded stroke play in the top 20, while Jaravee Boonchant (T7) and Gina Kim (T10) turned in top 10 placements.
In the quarterfinal round, Duke would go up against seventh-seeded Stanford and it would come down to a thrilling finish as darkness descended upon the course. Senior Virginia Elena Carta drained a six-foot birdie putt on her 24th hole to push the Blue Devils past the Cardinal and into the semifinals for the third time out of the last five years.
The senior coming in clutch when it mattered the most @virgipaper
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) May 22, 2019
???? #NCAAGolf l #GoDuke pic.twitter.com/wYqqaPePTA
Duke registered a birdie on No. 18 by Kim and a par by Ana Belac to give the Blue Devils a 2-0 advantage in the match. A rookie playing in her first NCAAs, Kim was able to knock off the eighth-ranked amateur in the world in Albane Valenzuela, 1UP.
In the semifinals, Duke went up against the reigning NCAA Champions in Arizona and the fans were treated to another thrilling match. After falling behind 1-0, Carta won her match, 2&1, to even the score, 1-1, but the Wildcats would take a 2-1 lead before Belac closed her match on hole No. 17 with a 2&1 win to even the score, 2-2.
It all came down to Kim, who had won in thrilling fashion the day before. Going up against 14th-ranked Bianca Pagdanganan, Kim didn't take her first lead until hole 13, but the match was all square through 15. The Golfweek Third Team All-America stuck her approach on the par three 17th to two feet and drained the birdie to take a 1UP lead. Then on the 18th, Kim hit her drive into the fairway bunker, but stepped up and hit her approach to three feet and sank the birdie to send Duke into the NCAA Championship match.
The. Winning. Putt!!!!!!!!!@gina_kim0504 improves to 2-0 in match play with wins over the No. 3 & No. 14 golfers nationally. #NCAAGolf l #GoDuke pic.twitter.com/X16r8kQWMA
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) May 22, 2019
It was an all ACC final as Duke and Wake Forest would battle it out in Arkansas.
The Demon Deacons came out on fire, taking the lead in four of the five matches on the front nine and Duke found itself down, 4-1, at one point on the back nine. The Blue Devils would not back down and made a huge rally.
Belac put Duke on the board first with a 5&3 win, after trailing by one through eight holes. She won holes 9-11 and 13-15 to close the match. Kim dropped her match to ACC Champion Emilia Migliaccio, 1UP, to even the ledger, 1-1.
Boonchant, a sophomore, was faced with a tough task against the No. 1 ranked amateur golfer in the world, Jennifer Kupcho. After falling down early, Boonchant returned the match to all square after No. 4. The match would be tied in 13 of the 19 holes and the Duke two-time All-America wouldn't take her first lead until the 157-yard, par three 17th.
A native of Bangkok, Thailand, Boonchant sank a 15-footer for birdie to take a 1UP lead on No. 17, but suffered a bogey on No. 18 to send the match to extra holes. The lead for Boonchant gave Kupcho her first deficit of 2019 match play. The duo went back to the 411-yard, par four first hole and Boonchant was able to two-putt for par to give Duke a 2-1 lead, after Kupcho made bogey.
#DUKE LEADS 2-1!!!@WannJRV takes down Kupcho in 19 holes #NCAAGolf l #GoDuke ?????????? pic.twitter.com/n8bnniddym
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) May 22, 2019
For the second time over the last two days, Carta had her match go to extra holes. She led for eight of the first 10 holes, but Siyun Liu took her first lead after a birdie on No. 14. The match went back to all square after 16 and stayed that way until the 20th hole when Liu birdied to win in 20 holes.
With the match knotted at 2-2, it all came down to sophomore Miranda Wang, who was seeing action in her first NCAA Championship. A product of Beijing, China, Wang had dropped her first two matches against Arizona and Stanford, but put up a good fight in those previous contests.
Don't think you had as good of day as @WannJRV
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) May 23, 2019
??Knock off No. 1 ranked amateur golfer in the world
??Win #NCAAGolf Championship
??Added some new hardware ??#GoDuke ?????????? pic.twitter.com/UdQDd8Wikm
Letizia Bagnoli of Wake Forest led for the first 14 holes by as many as 2UP, but Wang never quit. Wang birdied the par five 15th to tie the match and it would end up going to extra holes. Even though Wang didn't hit the green on her approach, she made a great up-and-down for par, while Bagnoli missed a birdie putt, to extend the match to the par five 15th. Wang blasted a perfect drive on the right of the fairway, while Bagnoli hit her drive behind the tree in the middle of the fairway.
Bagnoli decided to go for the green and hooked her approach into the river on the left side of the fairway leaving an opening for Wang. After seeing Bagnoli's shot, Wang calmly hit her approach onto the back right of the green in two. Bagnoli took some time to figure out where she could hit from and eventually dropped. She ended up hitting her next shot short of the green and then stuck a shot a few feet from the cup.
Wang would have a three shot cushion to win the National Championship for the Blue Devils. After her chip went just past the pin, Wang would two-putt for the win and give Duke its seventh championship, all under the direction of head coach Dan Brooks.
Clinch the National Championship for the ??????
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) May 23, 2019
Join @GolfChannel ??
Quite an afternoon for @miranda_wxy ?? pic.twitter.com/xk3VUxRkLX
After opening her collegiate career with the 2016 NCAA Individual Championship, Carta closed her time at Duke with a NCAA team title. She became the fourth Blue Devil to win both a NCAA team and individual championship – Candy Hannemann, Virada Nirapathpongporn and Anna Grzebien.
Belac concluded the week with a 3-0 in match play, while all five Blue Devils won at least one match play contest. It gave Duke its seventh NCAA Championship and Dan Brooks' registered his 136th all-time victory. ng, but it is not a shock."
Players Mentioned
PLAYER
/ Women's Golf
PLAYER
/ Women's Golf
PLAYER
/ Women's Golf
PLAYER
/ Women's Golf
PLAYER
/ Women's GolfKarcher-Ingram Golf Center Facility Tour
Friday, October 03
Anna Grzebien Hall of Fame Feature
Saturday, November 02
Duke Athletics: A Tour of Campus
Saturday, October 19
Welcome to Duke
Saturday, October 19
