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Duke's 2019 NCAA Championship Golf Team Thrives in the Pros
7/26/2023 8:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
By Jack Spalding, Duke Athletics Communications Intern
DURHAM -- Four years ago, Duke's women's golf team topped off a historic season by securing the highest achievement in all of college athletics, an NCAA Championship. In a tightly contested match, the Blue Devils were able to defeat the Wake Forest Demon Deacons by a score of 3-2 in late May of 2019, capturing the team's school-wide record seventh NCAA Championship and Duke University's 17th as an athletics program.
Fast forward to the present day and members of the team have continued to thrive at the professional level with multiple tournament wins and achievements among the members of the team. The squad was highlighted by now-professionals: Miranda Wang, Gina Kim, Ana Belac, Jaravee Boonchant, and Virginia Elena Carta. As the Blue Devils prepare for the upcoming 2023-24 campaign, let's take a look at what made the 2019 women's golf team so successful and how they've each become role models as professionals in their sport.
Today, four out of the five members of the 2019 championship squad have won a professional tournament in just four years, combining for six total professional victories. Together, the five members of the team have accumulated over $954,054.34 in earnings since turning pro, speaking to their talent and abilities as professionals. Combining for a staggering 128 rounds in the 60s and 23 top-10 finishes between the LPGA, Ladies European Tour, Epson Tour and Women's All Pro Tour since they've left Duke, success has been no stranger to each member of the team.
Belac, a three-time All-American at Duke, celebrated her first win at the Symetra Tour's Carolina Golf Classic back in 2020, finishing 7-under-par for her breakthrough victory, mere months after she elected to go pro following the cancelation of her spring season because of the coronavirus pandemic. She was also awarded Epson Tour Player of the Year honors for her success during her rookie season.
Though she hasn't yet won a professional tournament, Italian-born Carta has found consistent success as a member of the Ladies European Tour. Following graduation from Duke, Carta made the decision to head to England and obtain a Master's degree in Environmental Policy at Cambridge University and then the pandemic hit to put a hold on her professional golf career. During her time in England, Carta competed with the all-male Cambridge Blues Golf Team. Originating from Milan, Italy, Carta was the only senior member of the Blue Devil's 2019 championship team. She currently owns five top-10 finishes on the Ladies European Tour in her short career.
Wang, a native of Beijing, was another key member of the team who's found major success at the professional level. Following a March 2022 victory at the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana Open for her first professional win, she took home her second victory of the season with a win at the Beaumont Emergency Hospital Bab Zaharias Open in August of 2022 on the Women's All Pro Tour (WAPT). She won her third professional tour this past March at the IOA Championship, finishing 12-under-par and marking her first Epson Tour victory. After a very successful 2022 season, Wang was named the WAPT Player of the Year and continues to thrive on the professional level.
The success of the team at the professional level continues with Boonchant, who not only won her first Epson Tour event during the fall of 2022, but also set the Epson Tour record, finishing the Epson Tour Championship at 23-under-par. A recent 2021 graduate from Duke, Boonchant, like the others on her team, has a bright future ahead of her in the pros.
Another former Duke star who competed in the same tournament was Kim whose had similar success in the pros, winning her first Epson Tour tournament an 11-under-par finish and a victory at the Inova Mission Inn Resort and Club Championship in May of 2022. When asked about the championship run, Kim spoke highly of the diversity of the team and how each player contributed differently towards the team's success.
"When we won the 2019 NCAA Championship, our lineup was probably the most diverse I've seen it be," Kim said. "With people from multiple countries and different backgrounds, teamwork was incredibly important, and I think that event was the epitome of everyone's strengths showing up at the right time."
Kim, a local native of Durham, has been an LPGA mainstay since her first pro win and has proved she can compete at the highest level with the best.
While looking back at their 2019 championship run, it's easy to see what made this team so incredible throughout their historic year.
Commitment, perseverance, and communication were three common themes for the Blue Devils during their 2019 season. The opening two tournaments saw Duke stumble out of the gate, placing fifth in their first and sixth in their second tournaments as a team. Adversity was at an all-time high for the Blue Devils, but they showed commitment to one another and determination to get better in response to their tough start.
Their hard work paid off with two dominant back-to-back first-place victories in October at the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational and the Landfall Tradition.
In the first of those two victories, the Blue Devils won in triumphant fashion, never letting up over the three days. Belac was the star of the show with a third-place finish followed by Carta and Boonchant, who finished in the top 10 as well. The second saw Duke come back from fourth place to first in a single day to capture the victory. Led by Carta and Kim's matching scores of 216 to tie for medalist honors, the Blue Devils were able to complete the comeback as a team.
What made those wins so special is there wasn't necessarily one individual player who consistently made a difference for the team. Each athlete collectively stepped up when they had to in order to help the team win. This proved to be a recipe for success as the season progressed for the Blue Devils.
The head coach of the team, Dan Brooks, who will coach his 40th season at Duke this upcoming 2023-24 season, commented on the individuality aspect of the sport and how each player had to come into their own for the team to be successful.
"It's sometimes hard to describe the collective character of a golf team," Brooks said. "It's a group of individuals who must be allowed to be themselves if you hope to win. As a golf coach, you find out who they are way more than you tell them who to be."
Though championship teams often possess a high level of talent mixed with a tremendous amount of hard work and perseverance, toughness both mentally and physically also plays a significant role in a team's success. The challenges that this Blue Devils team faced throughout that historic run, Brooks says, instilled a level of patience in the team that ultimately led to the team's championship win.
"Because of the long nature of our championship, the steepness of the hills at The Blessings, and the lightning delays, golf was very difficult at that particular championship," Brooks commented. "In golf, toughness shows up as patience. I was absolutely amazed at how patient our players were. That's why we won."
The Blue Devils' road to a championship in 2019 was truly a memorable one. Resilience in the face of adversity and the unselfish team-oriented philosophy shown by each of the players highlighted by Coach Brooks are two factors that make this team stand out among others in Duke history. With the character and teamwork, they showed during that run, it should come as no surprise that each member of that team has found similar success in the pros.
#GoDuke
DURHAM -- Four years ago, Duke's women's golf team topped off a historic season by securing the highest achievement in all of college athletics, an NCAA Championship. In a tightly contested match, the Blue Devils were able to defeat the Wake Forest Demon Deacons by a score of 3-2 in late May of 2019, capturing the team's school-wide record seventh NCAA Championship and Duke University's 17th as an athletics program.
Fast forward to the present day and members of the team have continued to thrive at the professional level with multiple tournament wins and achievements among the members of the team. The squad was highlighted by now-professionals: Miranda Wang, Gina Kim, Ana Belac, Jaravee Boonchant, and Virginia Elena Carta. As the Blue Devils prepare for the upcoming 2023-24 campaign, let's take a look at what made the 2019 women's golf team so successful and how they've each become role models as professionals in their sport.
Today, four out of the five members of the 2019 championship squad have won a professional tournament in just four years, combining for six total professional victories. Together, the five members of the team have accumulated over $954,054.34 in earnings since turning pro, speaking to their talent and abilities as professionals. Combining for a staggering 128 rounds in the 60s and 23 top-10 finishes between the LPGA, Ladies European Tour, Epson Tour and Women's All Pro Tour since they've left Duke, success has been no stranger to each member of the team.
Belac, a three-time All-American at Duke, celebrated her first win at the Symetra Tour's Carolina Golf Classic back in 2020, finishing 7-under-par for her breakthrough victory, mere months after she elected to go pro following the cancelation of her spring season because of the coronavirus pandemic. She was also awarded Epson Tour Player of the Year honors for her success during her rookie season.
Though she hasn't yet won a professional tournament, Italian-born Carta has found consistent success as a member of the Ladies European Tour. Following graduation from Duke, Carta made the decision to head to England and obtain a Master's degree in Environmental Policy at Cambridge University and then the pandemic hit to put a hold on her professional golf career. During her time in England, Carta competed with the all-male Cambridge Blues Golf Team. Originating from Milan, Italy, Carta was the only senior member of the Blue Devil's 2019 championship team. She currently owns five top-10 finishes on the Ladies European Tour in her short career.
Wang, a native of Beijing, was another key member of the team who's found major success at the professional level. Following a March 2022 victory at the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana Open for her first professional win, she took home her second victory of the season with a win at the Beaumont Emergency Hospital Bab Zaharias Open in August of 2022 on the Women's All Pro Tour (WAPT). She won her third professional tour this past March at the IOA Championship, finishing 12-under-par and marking her first Epson Tour victory. After a very successful 2022 season, Wang was named the WAPT Player of the Year and continues to thrive on the professional level.
The success of the team at the professional level continues with Boonchant, who not only won her first Epson Tour event during the fall of 2022, but also set the Epson Tour record, finishing the Epson Tour Championship at 23-under-par. A recent 2021 graduate from Duke, Boonchant, like the others on her team, has a bright future ahead of her in the pros.
Another former Duke star who competed in the same tournament was Kim whose had similar success in the pros, winning her first Epson Tour tournament an 11-under-par finish and a victory at the Inova Mission Inn Resort and Club Championship in May of 2022. When asked about the championship run, Kim spoke highly of the diversity of the team and how each player contributed differently towards the team's success.
"When we won the 2019 NCAA Championship, our lineup was probably the most diverse I've seen it be," Kim said. "With people from multiple countries and different backgrounds, teamwork was incredibly important, and I think that event was the epitome of everyone's strengths showing up at the right time."
Kim, a local native of Durham, has been an LPGA mainstay since her first pro win and has proved she can compete at the highest level with the best.
While looking back at their 2019 championship run, it's easy to see what made this team so incredible throughout their historic year.
Commitment, perseverance, and communication were three common themes for the Blue Devils during their 2019 season. The opening two tournaments saw Duke stumble out of the gate, placing fifth in their first and sixth in their second tournaments as a team. Adversity was at an all-time high for the Blue Devils, but they showed commitment to one another and determination to get better in response to their tough start.
Their hard work paid off with two dominant back-to-back first-place victories in October at the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational and the Landfall Tradition.
In the first of those two victories, the Blue Devils won in triumphant fashion, never letting up over the three days. Belac was the star of the show with a third-place finish followed by Carta and Boonchant, who finished in the top 10 as well. The second saw Duke come back from fourth place to first in a single day to capture the victory. Led by Carta and Kim's matching scores of 216 to tie for medalist honors, the Blue Devils were able to complete the comeback as a team.
What made those wins so special is there wasn't necessarily one individual player who consistently made a difference for the team. Each athlete collectively stepped up when they had to in order to help the team win. This proved to be a recipe for success as the season progressed for the Blue Devils.
The head coach of the team, Dan Brooks, who will coach his 40th season at Duke this upcoming 2023-24 season, commented on the individuality aspect of the sport and how each player had to come into their own for the team to be successful.
"It's sometimes hard to describe the collective character of a golf team," Brooks said. "It's a group of individuals who must be allowed to be themselves if you hope to win. As a golf coach, you find out who they are way more than you tell them who to be."
Though championship teams often possess a high level of talent mixed with a tremendous amount of hard work and perseverance, toughness both mentally and physically also plays a significant role in a team's success. The challenges that this Blue Devils team faced throughout that historic run, Brooks says, instilled a level of patience in the team that ultimately led to the team's championship win.
"Because of the long nature of our championship, the steepness of the hills at The Blessings, and the lightning delays, golf was very difficult at that particular championship," Brooks commented. "In golf, toughness shows up as patience. I was absolutely amazed at how patient our players were. That's why we won."
The Blue Devils' road to a championship in 2019 was truly a memorable one. Resilience in the face of adversity and the unselfish team-oriented philosophy shown by each of the players highlighted by Coach Brooks are two factors that make this team stand out among others in Duke history. With the character and teamwork, they showed during that run, it should come as no surprise that each member of that team has found similar success in the pros.
#GoDuke
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