Women's Golf in the Pros Recap from 2023

DURHAM -- Duke women's golf alumnae had its most successful season of all time on the professional circuit in 2023. As a group on the LPGA, the Blue Devils earned $5,366,173 with five wins, 24 top-10 finishes, 38 top-20 placements and 145 rounds in the 60s. Listed below is a rundown of how the Blue Devils fared on the LPGA, Epson Tour and the Ladies European Tour.

Combined over the three tours, the Blue Devils earned a whopping $7,167,188 of earnings in 2023!

Straight domination this @LPGA season ??: A thread

So proud of our Blue Devil pros this season on tour! Keep it up, ladies! #GoDuke x #DukeFamily pic.twitter.com/7MVHMptURZ
— Duke Women's Golf (@DukeWGOLF) December 8, 2023

LPGA

Celine Boutier
Duke (2012-16)
ACC Rookie of the Year (2012-13)
National Player of the Year (2013-14)
All-America (2014-15)

Boutier's LPGA Bio

Celine Boutier put together one of the best seasons on the LPGA Tour this year, winning four of the 23 tournaments she competed in to tie for the lead in that category. She finished in the top 10 in another four tournaments (for a T-5th finish with eight total top 10 finishes) and in the top-20 in 14 of her 23 competitions. In doing this, she collected 34 rounds in the 60s on the year. She had an especially strong stretch from late July into August, finishing T-3 at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, before taking first in back-to-back weekends on Aug. 3 and Aug. 10. Boutier slowed down a bit in September and October, but still placed no worse than T-22 through those months. She got back to true form in winning the Maybank Championship in October. After missing the cut at The ANNIKA in November, Boutier bounced back with a T-16 finish at the CME Group Tour Championship for her final event of the year. Boutier finished the season No. 2 on the Race to CME Globe competition. She finished the season 11th in scoring average (70.22), 14th in greens in regulation (73.7%), third in sand saves (60.0%), T-17th in rounds under par (62.2%), T-18th in par-3 scoring (3.0) and T-5th in par-4 scoring (3.97). Boutier's total earnings on the year of $2,797,054 were fifth in the LPGA and brought her career earnings to $6,547,952.

Boutier wouldn't stop there, however, also competing in six events on the Ladies' European Tour. In those six events she shined, gathering two wins, two other top-10 finishes, and five total top-20 placements. Her wins came in back-to-back weekends, with the first at The Amundi Evian Championship in July and the second at the Women's Scottish Open in August. She was a model of consistency over the span of these two weekends, with seven of her eight rounds played in the 60s. What might look like career tournaments for some golfers was a slowdown for Boutier, who finished the year with finishes of 16th at the AIG Women's Open, 10th at the Lacoste Ladies Open de France, and seventh at the Andalucia Open de Espana. Despite only competing in six events on the LET this season, Boutier managed to come in as the runner-up in the Race to Costa Del Sol (Player of the Year) and topped the money list with earnings of $1,337,473.90 for the year, bringing her total season earnings up to a whopping $4,134,527.90. In addition to all of this, she finished the year 12th in greens in regulation (75.42) and first in stroke average (69.57).

Leona Maguire
Duke (2014-18)
National Freshman of the Year (2014-15)
National Player of the Year (2014-15, 2016-17)
All-America (2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18)

Maguire's LPGA Bio

Leona Maguire competed in 20 tournaments this year, coming up with nine top-20 finishes, six top-10 placings (T-12th) and a win at the Meijer LPGA Classic in June. She had a strong start to the latter half of the year with finishes of T-7th, 1st, and T-11th in the month of June. Maguire slowed down a bit thereafter, but still went on to put together two more top-20 finishes and finished 19th on the Race to CME Globe list. She put together a total of 27 rounds in the 60s and had notable finishes of 16th in driving accuracy (81.0%), T-13th in rounds under par (64.4%), and T-15th in par-4 scoring (4.0). Her yearly earnings of $1,195,726 put her 22nd on the year and brought her total career earnings up to $4,074,085.

Maguire kept up her strong play on the Ladies' European Tour, where she competed in an additional seven tournaments and gathered another three more top-20 finishes and five more rounds in the 60s. Her best finish on this tour would come in the individual portion of the Aramco Team Series London, where she placed fourth overall with a 54-hole score of 3-under, 216. She finished out the year strong, coming in 16th at the ISPS HANDA World Invitational (289, Even Par) and then 14th at the KPMG Women's Irish Open (280, -8), her final two events of the year. She earned an additional $163,271.12 on the LET, bringing her total season earnings up to $1,358,997.12

Yu Liu
Duke (2013-14)
ACC Rookie of the Year (2013-14)
Second Team All-America (2013-14)

Liu's LPGA Bio

Liu put together a strong season this year, competing in 26 tournaments and notching eight top-20 finishes, with five of those being in the top-10. Liu tied for second place at the LOTTE Championship in April, which was her best finish of the year. She had a very strong finish to the season, with two of her five top-10 finishes coming in the month of November, and a tied for third finish at the LPGA Shanghai in October. Liu had an impressive 26 rounds in the 60s on the year, averaging exactly one at each tournament. She finished the season 39th in the Race to CME Globe, and notably was T-11th in eagles with eight. She brought in $610,993 this year, which brought her career total to $2,730,050.

Gina Kim
Duke (2018-21)
All-America (2019, 2021)
ACC Individual Champion (2021)
All-ACC (2019, 2021)

Kim's LPGA Bio

Gina Kim had a solid rookie campaign on the LPGA tour this year, with 23 tournaments competed in and a top-five finish to show for it. Kim put that performance together during the Portland Classic in August, where she placed tied for third, after an opening round 64 (-8) and a four-round total of -20. She finished the year out with a solid sequence of four consecutive cuts made and three top 50 finishes in her final four tournaments. Kim finished the year with 15 rounds in the 60s. Her year-long earnings of $223,124 greatly increased her career professional earnings, bringing her up to $273,586 in that respect.

Lindy Duncan
Duke (2009-13)
First Team All America (2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13)
National Player of the Year (2011-12)
ACC Player of the Year (2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12)
ACC Rookie of the Year (2009-10)

Duncan's LPGA Bio

Lindy Duncan entered a total of 16 events this season across the LPGA circuit and had solid success. Despite a rough stretch in August and September, she bounced back to make the cut at her final three competitions of the year, placing in the top-40 in all of them. Duncan's most notable result this year came with her third-place finish at the Dana Open in July. Her scores of 65 in the second and final rounds propelled her to a four day total of 15-under and her lone top-20 finish on the year. Throughout her campaign, Duncan recorded 19 rounds in the 60s, averaging over one such round per tournament. Her season earnings stood at $233,875, contributing to her career total that now amounts to $1,480,165. In addition to her play on the LPGA, Duncan competed in four tournaments on the Epson Tour, all coming between March and June. She stood out in those competitions, with three top-10 finishes and a tied for second placing in the Inova Mission Inn Resort & Club Championship. Her second-round score of 67 (one of her five rounds in the 60s on this tour) pushed her to an 8-under 54-hole score and a top-two finish. Duncan earned an additional $25,770 on the Epson Tour, bringing her career earnings there up to $155,660.

Brittany Lang
Duke (2003-05)
2003-04 & 2004-05 All-America
2003-04 National Freshman of the Year
2016 U.S. Women's Open Champion

Lang's LPGA Bio

Brittany Lang, the seasoned veteran and mother, had a short year in her 18th season on the LPGA Tour. She only competed in four tournaments in 2023, all of which came between June and October. Despite missing the cut in her return to the tour at the ShopRite LPGA Classic in June, Lang would bounce back to make the cut in two of her final three competitions, with finishes of T-59th and T-67th. Her best result of the year came at the U.S. Women's Open, where she carded her best round of the season with a final round of 2-under, 70, en route to a T-59th finish. Her season earnings of $26,910 are a mere drop in the bucket for Lang, who has amassed a whopping $7,299,795 over her entire career.

Ana Belac
Duke (2016-20)
All-America (2018-19, 2019-20)
All-ACC (2018, 2019)

Ana Belac continues to show up all over the golfing world, having competed in tournaments on the LPGA Tour (11), Epson Tour (8), and Ladies' European Tour (3). Belac found her greatest successes on the Epson Tour, especially in the latter half of the year. After missing the cut at two of her first three events, she roared back to have four consecutive top-20 finishes between April and June, with a top-10 placement of T-7th at the Garden City Charity Classic in May. Her first round of 5-under, 67, and second round of 4-under, 68, propelled her to that finish and contributed to her eight total rounds in the 60s on the Epson Tour. She finished the year out strong as well, placing T-29th in the French Lick Resort Charity Classic on August 3. Belac impressed with both her short and long game on this tour, ranking third in sand saves (76.47%) and also 12th in driving distance (275.729). Belac found success a little harder to come by on the LPGA Tour, making the cut in three of her 11 competitions. However, when she made the cut she did the most with it, carding three rounds in the 60s (of her total four on the year) and finishing T-9th at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational in July, and coming in at T-39th at The Ascendant LPGA in October. She continued to show that her game is multifaceted, placing 10th in putting average (29.22). Despite not playing nearly as much on the LET, Belac stood out. Her biggest success came at the Aramco Team Series in Florida in May, where she placed fifth individually and helped guide her team to a ninth-place overall finish. Belac's season earnings sat at $44,852 on the LPGA Tour, $22,053 on the Epson Tour, and $28,293.03 on the LET, adding up to a total yearly earnings of $95,198.03.

Belac's LPGA Bio

Jaravee Boonchant
Duke (2018-21)
All America (2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21)
All-ACC (2018, 2019, 2021)
Juli Inkster Award Winner (2021)

Boonchant's LPGA Bio

Jaravee Boonchant made the most of her rookie campaign on the LPGA Tour, competing in 26 tournaments and making the cut in 14 of them. She had multiple extremely impressive outings for a rookie, with a T-9th finish at the JM Eagle LA Championship in April 27 along with a T-7th finish at the Dana Open in July. At the Dana Open, Boonchant started hot out of the gates, shooting a 7-under, 64, and kept the pressure on, carding three rounds in the 60s - part of her 20 such rounds on the year - en route to a four-day total of 12-under, 272. The rest of the summer months were not so kind to Boonchant, who missed the cut in nine of her 12 competitions in June, July, and August. However, she was undeterred, coming back to make the cut in each and every one of her five tournaments from September through November, highlighted by a T-23rd finish at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship in September. Boonchant's rookie year did not go unnoticed, as she finished ninth in the competition for the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year. Her season earnings of $233,639 will hopefully be just the start of a long and successful career for this talented rookie.

Epson Tour

Laetitia Beck
Duke (2010-14)
All America (2012-13, 2013-14)
ACC Rookie of the Year (2010-11)
All-ACC (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014)

Beck's Epson Tour Bio

Laetitia Beck has been a mainstay on the Epson Tour this season, competing in 22 total tournaments and placing in the Top-20 in 12 of those. Her second half of the season got off to a strong start with back-to-back T-14th finishes at the Champions Fore Change Invitational and then the FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship. This would not be her best series of back-to-back tournaments, however, as Beck placed tied for third at the Circling Raven Championship in August, before coming back two weeks later to card another top 10 finish with a tied for sixth placement at the Black Desert Resort Championship in September. Her four rounds in the 60s over the span of these two tournaments - highlighted by a 9-under, 63, at the final round of the latter - contributed to her 18 overall such rounds. Beck's consistency not only in competing in events but also in placing highly in them helped put her 20th on the Epson Tour money list with season earnings of $63,522 to go along with her career total of $183,585. Beck finished the year 19th in putting average (29.65), 11th in rounds under par (56.5%), 19th in birdies (212), and T-13th in rounds in the 60s (18).

Beck went on to compete in the LPGA Q-Series to try to earn her LPGA Tour card for 2024. She carded rounds of 69, 68, 69, 71, 68 and 67 to finish tied for 10th overall with an 18-under, 412. She earned LPA Tour status in Category 14.

Miranda Wang
Duke (2017-20)
Honorable Mention All-America (2018)
All-ACC (2018)

Wang's Epson Tour Bio

Another of Duke's talented rookies in the pros, Miranda Wang competed in 21 tournaments on the Epson Tour this year, with some incredibly high finishes. Despite missing the cut at her first two tournaments, Wang bounced back to win the IOA Championship, largely guided by her second round 7-under, 65, and ability to consistently shoot under par, carding a three-round total of 12-under, 204. Wang would go on to struggle in April and May, but bounced back in the second half of the year, only missing the cut once from June on. Her strongest month of the year was September, in which Wang had finishes of T-8th, 2nd, 12th, and T-54th. The former two performances were two of Wang's four total top-10 finishes to go along with her victory, and she also tallied nine total top-20 finishes. Wang's abilities were evident not just on the scorecard, but also in the stat sheet, where she finished the year 10th on driving accuracy (81.2%), 20th on greens in regulation (75.1%), 13th in top-10 finishes (4), 12th in birdies (229), and T-13th in rounds in the 60s (18). Her season earnings of $86,280 put her 15th on the money list as well.

Ladies European Tour

Virginia Elena Carta
Duke (2016-19)
NCAA Individual Champion (2016)
Honda Sports Award for Golf (2016)
WGCA Honorable Mention All-America (2019)
All-ACC (2019, 2018, 2017, 2016)
WGCA First Team All-America (2016)

Carta's LET Bio

Virginia Elena Carta was a force on the Ladies' European Tour this year, competing in 30 total tournaments and placing in the top 10 in five of them to go along with 11 finishes in the top 20. She started the year strong with a ninth-place finish at the Magical Kenya Ladies Open in February and finished it strong as well with an 18th-place finish at the Andalucia Open de Espana in November. Her greatest successes came with two fourth-place finishes, one individual at the Jabra Ladies Open in May and another with a team at the Aramco Team Series London in July. Over the course of the year, Carta had 14 rounds in the 60s and placed 15th on the tour with 242 birdies. Her season earnings of $102,645.03 add to her $282,984.31 total career earnings.

#GoDuke

Women's Golf in the Pros Recap from 2023

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