Streicher's runnerup finish powers North Carolina to five-shot victory in the Landfall Tradition

 

   In what was likely her final performance as a Tar Heel, Megan Streicher, a senior from South Africa and No. 52 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), finished in second place in the individual standings to lead North Carolina to the team crown in the Landfall Tradition, which wrapped up Sunday at the Country Club of Landfall in Wilmington, N.C.

   The Landfall has become one of the major events on the Division I women’s golf calendar at the end of the fall portion of the wraparound season.

   It’s the first time I’ve noticed the Scoreboard powered by clippd rankings appear and North Carolina, at No. 24, beat several teams ahead of it in the rankings and did so in impressive fashion, the Tar Heels’ 7-under 857 total five shorts clear of No. 20 Central Florida.

   Adding to the intrigue in the case of Streicher was her performance earlier this month in an LPGA Q-Series Second Stage tournament. Streicher finished in a tie for eighth place with a 9-under 279 total at the Plantation Golf & Country Club in Venice, Fla.

   That earned Streicher a spot in the Q-Series Final Stage, which tees off Dec. 4 at Magnolia Grove Golf Course in Mobile, Ala.

   Streicher would be forced to give up her amateur status just to compete in the Q-Series Final Stage. There was a time when you could qualify for the LPGA Tour, but defer the start of your pro career until after the conclusion of the spring season.

   I’ve said this a few times in this blog, but it bears repeating. You’re trying to recruit women with the talent to make it to the LPGA Tour. If she makes it a little ahead of schedule, you congratulate her, tell her you’ll be her biggest fan and move on.

   North Carolina, one of several Atlantic Coast Conference powers in the field, opened the Landfall by matching par with a 288 over the 6,106-yard, par-72 Country Club of Landfall layout, seized control of the tournament with a 4-under 284 in Saturday’s second round and then held on with a solid 3-under 285 in Sunday’s final round.

   North Carolina failed to advance to last spring’s NCAA Championship at the La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. as a three seed in the Norman Regional.

   Streicher was her typically solid self, opening with a 2-under 70, contributing a 4-under 68 to the Tar Heels’ solid second-round showing and matching par in the final round with a 72 for a 6-under 210 total. Her runnerup finish matched her career best at North Carolina.

   Such is the level of talent at the Division I level that Streicher was seven shots behind the individual winner, Kent State’s Veronika Kedronova, a junior from the Czech Republic who rewrote the Golden Flashes’ record book with a spectacular 13-under 203 total.

   It was the second win of the fall for Kedronova as she captured the individual title in the inaugural Canadian Collegiate, which was shortened to 36 holes by weather, before she headed to Singapore to represent Czechia in the World Amateur Team Championship.

   After opening with a 3-under 69, Kedronova left the rest of the field choking on her dust with a sizzling 7-under 65 in Saturday’s second round before closing with another 3-under 69.

   UCF, a Big 12 representative, was right on the heels of the Tar Heels throughout the weekend in Wilmington, as the Knights opened with a 1-over 289, added a 2-under 286 in Saturday’s second round and closed with a 1-under 287 that left them five shots behind North Carolina with a 2-under 862 total.

   North Carolina and UCF were the only two teams to finish under par over the challenging Country Club of Landfall layout.

   UCF failed to advance to last spring’s NCAA Championship at La Costa as a six seed in the Charlottesville Regional.

   The Knights had two of the three players tied for third place in the individual standings at 5-under 211 in Pimpisa “Sandwich” Sisutham, their veteran senior from Thailand, and Mila Jurine, a sophomore from France.

    Backing up Streicher for North Carolina was the third member of that trio tied for third at 5-under, a shot behind Streicher, in Marie Prats-Rigual, a sophomore from France.

   After opening with a 2-over 74, Sisutham posted a 4-under 68 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 3-under 69. Jurine matched par in the opening round with a 72, added a 2-under 70 in Saturday’s second round and matched Sisutham’s final round of 3-under 69.

   Prats-Rigual opened with a 1-under 71, matched par in Saturday’s second round with a 72 and was the low Tar Heel in the final round with a sparkling 4-under 68.

   Another ACC power, Wake Forest, No. 4 in the Scoreboard rankings, closed with a solid 4-under 284 to finish five shots behind UCF in third place with a 3-over 867 total.

   The Demon Deacons had opened with a 2-over 290 before adding a 5-over 293 in Saturday’s second round.

   Wake Forest took a full head of steam into last spring’s NCAA Championship after capturing the team title in the Lubbock Regional, but the Demon Deacons failed to earn a spot in the match-play bracket at La Costa.

   Wake Forest was led by graduate student Morgan Ketchum, who came home to Winston-Salem for her final year of eligibility after being a standout at Virginia Tech. Ketchum finished in a tie for sixth place in the individual standings at 4-under 212 in the Landfall with Houston’s Moa Moa Svedenskiold, a senior from Sweden, and Indiana’s Madison Dabagia, a senior from Fort Wayne, Ind.

   Ketchum, one of the many players who honed their skills on the Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour, opened with a 2-under 70 and added a 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 3-under 68.

   SMU, in its second season in the ACC and No. 29 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished three shots behind Wake Forest in fourth place with a 6-over 870 total. The Mustangs grabbed the lead following a solid opening round of 1-under 287 and added a 1-over 289 in Saturday’s second round before falling back a little with a 6-over 294 in the final round.

   SMU failed to advance to the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring as a six seed in the Columbus Regional.

   The Mustangs were led by Emily Odwin, a senior from Barbados who finished alone in ninth place in the individual standings with a 3-under 213 total. After matching par in the opening round with a 72, Odwin added a 2-under 70 in Saturday’s second round and finished up with a 1-under 71.

   Like North Carolina’s Streicher, Odwin faces a decision on whether to relinquish her amateur status and tee it up in the Final Stage of LPGA Q-Series in Alabama in December after she finished in a tie for 29^th place in the Second Stage qualifier with a 4-under total at Plantation in Venice, Fla. earlier this month.

   Reigning Southeastern Conference champion South Carolina, No. 16 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished two shots behind SMU in fifth place in the Landfall with an 8-over 872 total. After opening with a solid 1-over 289, the Gamecocks struggled in Saturday’s second round with an 11-over 299 before bouncing back with a 4-under 284 in the final round.

   South Carolina rolled into the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring on the strength of a team win in the Charlottesville Regional, a veteran group of Gamecocks coming up two frustrating shots short of a spot in the match-play bracket.

   ACC power Duke, No. 14 in the Scoreboard rankings, finished a shot behind South Carolina in sixth place in the 18-team field with a 9-over 873 total. The Blue Devils opened with a 7-over 295 and matched par in the second round with a 288 before closing with a 2-over 290.

   Duke was unable to advance to the NCAA Championship at La Costa last spring as a five seed at the Norman Regional.

   Duke was led at Landfall by Katie Li, the talented junior from Basking Ridge, N.J. who finished alone in 12^th place in the individual standings with a 1-under 215 total. Li matched par in the opening round with a 72 and added a 1-over 73 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a solid 2-under 70.

   The lowest score recorded by a Dookie at the Landfall, however, belonged to freshman Avery McCrery, the freshman from Wilmington, Del. who starred at the Tower Hill School before completing her scholastic career at the IGL Academy, an on-line arm of the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA).

   McCrery, competing as an individual, earned her first collegiate top-10 finish as she ended up in a tie for 10^th place with Maryland’s Jurapa Janthamunee, a senior from Thailand, each carding a 2-under 214 total.

   McCrery matched par in the opening and final rounds with 72s around a 2-under 70 in Saturday’s second round. Needless to say, McCrery will be competing for a spot in Duke’s starting lineup when the wraparound 2025-2026 college season resumes in January.

   Backing up Streicher and Prats-Rigual for North Carolina was Helen Yeung, a sophomore from Clarksville, Md. who finished among the group tied for 25^th place in the individual standings with a 3-over 219 total. Yeung was the picture of consistency for the Tar Heels, rattling off three straight 1-over 73s.

   Reagan Southerland, a junior from Atlanta, Ga., finished in the group tied for 35^th place with a 6-over 222 for the Tar Heels. Southerland contributed a solid 1-under 71 to North Carolina’s second-round surge after opening with a 4-over 76 before closing with a 3-over 75.

   Rounding out the North Carolina lineup was Grace Ridenour, a freshman from Cary, N.C. who ended up in the group tied for 48^th place with an 8-over 224 total. Ridenour finished strong, matching par in the final round with a 72. She had opened with a 2-over 74 before adding a 78 in Saturday’s second round.

   Ridenour was joined in the group tied at 8-over by teammate Ing Iadpluem, a junior from Thailand who was competing as an individual. Iadpluem opened with a solid 2-under 70, struggled in Saturday’s second round with an 80 and closed with a 2-over 74.

   Houston’s Svedenskiold closed with a sparkling 4-under 68 to join the group tied for sixth place at 4-under. She had opened with a 2-under 70 before adding a 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round.

   Indiana’s Dabagia rounded out the trio tied at 4-under that included Svedenskiold and Wake Forest’s Ketchum as Dabagia sandwiched a 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round with a pair of 3-under 69s.

   Maryland’s Janthamunee joined Duke’s McCrery in the tie for 10^th place at 2-under as Janthamunee opened with a 3-under 69 and struggled a little with a 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round before finishing up with a solid 1-under 71. It was third straight top-10 finish of the fall season for Janthamunee.