Overview

In their 51st season, the 18th-ranked Blue Devils have entered with a refreshed roster that is loaded with potential. Three new faces joined the team, as three college veterans turned their tassels since Duke began its last postseason run. 

After a slow start to the team’s fall campaign, the Blue Devils showed promise at the Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel Invitational and again at the Landfall Tradition, which could signal success to come. Yet, Duke still faced its share of struggles, as each tournament was only decided in the final round. Replacing rocky ups and downs with a steady incline will be a goal for the Blue Devils entering spring play if they intend to make serious strides in ACC and NCAA Championships. 

“Our fall was good, I thought it was very productive. We had some highs and lows, but I’d say we finished pretty strong,” head coach Dan Brooks said.

Although the new squad is young, it still has its fair share of experience. Neither senior Rylie Heflin nor junior Andie Smith are strangers to college competition. Each has spent years under the tutelage of Brooks, who himself has spent over four decades with the program and witnessed all seven of its NCAA National Championships — the most by any program in Duke history.

The team’s test this spring is one of patience and consistency. The Blue Devils have demonstrated the former through fall play, but a 22nd ACC title would require regular growth and routine high-level performances. 

“That’s what you always want to be: getting better, not worse,” Brooks said. 

Improving on last season’s 14th-place NCAA Championship finish will prove challenging in its own respect. Still, Duke’s spring campaign has only just begun. – Ryan Kilgallen

After an impressive rookie season, expect sophomore Katie Li to shine this spring. The Basking Ridge, N.J., native — a 2024 All-ACC designee — closed out her first year as a Blue Devil with one victory and three top-20 individual finishes. On her way to claiming first place at the 2024 Florida State Match Up, Li shattered records. She became the first freshman to notch a tournament win since 2018 and the 16th rookie to win in program history. 

In the fall, Li recorded a 72.33 stroke average with two top-5 finishes. Although Smith stole the show by earning a career-first crown of her own, Li was Duke’s secret weapon and the team’s top scorer in two of four fall tournaments. Her second season makes for a first chance at correcting rookie mistakes; lucky for Li, two of the four spring tournaments will be played on courses Duke saw last spring. – Kilgallen

Most-anticipated matchup: Darius Rucker Intercollegiate, March 3-5

The Darius Rucker Intercollegiate will serve as great exposure for the Blue Devils relatively early on in the season. Duke will be amongst the great ACC rival No. 14 Wake Forest, along with other powerhouse teams including No. 5 Texas, No. 4 South Carolina, No. 20 Auburn, No. 2 Arkansas, No. 7 Arizona State, No. 9 Northwestern, No. 10 Mississippi State, No. 16 LSU and No. 15 Vanderbilt. 

This highly competitive schedule will no doubt be great experience for the Blue Devils — particularly for the three freshmen — to have under their belts, as well as provide them with areas they should continue to hone in on before ACC and NCAA match play begin. – Currie

Best-case scenario

With the addition of strong teams to the ACC, most notably No. 1 Stanford, it will be a hard but also attainable task for Duke to be highly ranked. Since the Blue Devils have welcomed three freshmen to the team, it will be seminal for them to perform consistently well throughout the season, which has been displayed in moments by newcomers Espinal and Carla De Troia. 

“As always is the case, you just try to be a little better today than you were yesterday. You just do that process,” Brooks said. “If they stick to … the plan of getting a little better today than [they] were yesterday, we’ll be a good, solid team.”

If Li has an outstanding season this spring, as projected, and junior Andie Smith carries her momentum from the Ruth’s Chris Tar Heel Invitational, other opponents should watch out for this squad. Moreover, Duke’s success will also depend on veteran Heflin, who is closing out her final year with the Blue Devils. If she can shy away from recording big numbers and develop a more consistent style of play, she will also serve as a tremendous asset for the team. 

Consistency will be the hallmark of the style of play the Blue Devils will need to adopt if they want to make strong headway in the season, particularly in a conference that has now seen the addition of other top-ranked teams.   Currie

Worst-case scenario

So far, the Blue Devils have proven they are good, but other teams have gotten better. The ACC remains loaded with talent that could easily shut Duke out of an extended postseason run. Eight ACC programs received votes in the Nov. 15, 2024 coaches poll, with five ranking above the Blue Devils. The addition of Cal, Stanford, and SMU to the ACC only further clouds Duke’s path to a championship — the Cardinal currently sits at No. 1.

The field’s strength isn’t the only challenge. Half of the Blue Devils’ team has returned for the 2024-25 season, and the other half is still learning to swim when it comes to college golf. If Duke cannot stay afloat and deliver consistent play across difficult courses and conditions, the team’s youth will drag it down. – Kilgallen

Prediction 

Currie: 2nd in the ACC, 12th at NCAA Championship

Kilgallen: 3rd in the ACC, 16th at NCAA Championship