Duke’s Leona Maguire seeks to recapture Long Cove magic from 2 years ago

For the third consecutive year, the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate will feature the world’s top-ranked women’s amateur this weekend.

Duke’s Leona Maguire, though, certainly would prefer something closer to the performance she turned in when she wasn’t sitting at No. 1.

Two years ago, the Ireland native broke the Rucker record with a second-round 65 on the way to a playoff victory that helped boost her to No. 1 not long after she left Long Cove Club. Last year, Maguire’s tie for 17th was her second-lowest finish of the season.

Alabama’s Cheyenne Knight is the defending champion, joining four other golfers among the world’s top 15 for the tournament’s sixth edition. The Crimson Tide also are the defending team champions, heading a lineup that features 10 of the top 25 squads in Golfweek’s college rankings.

“Golf fans should take advantage of seeing some rising stars,” said Bob Patton, Long Cove’s head professional. “These women’s collegiate players are definitely worth watching.”

Maguire is coming off a shared title at the Northrop Grumman Regional in California, the fifth victory of her collegiate career. She’s also an Olympian, having represented Ireland at the Rio Games alongside Hilton Head Island’s Stephanie Meadow.

Maguire was low amateur in Rio, tying for 21st overall, and captured the same honors at the Women’s British Open with another top-25 finish.

Knight, who made last year’s Rucker her first collegiate victory, returns to Long Cove at No. 14 in the world rankings. Also in the field are No. 6 Bailey Tardy (Georgia), No. 7 Katelyn Dambaugh (South Carolina) and a pair of Arizona State entrants — No. 5 Olivia Mehaffey and No. 11 Linnea Strom.

Duke’s Virginia Elena Carta typically teams with Maguire to give the Blue Devils a strong 1-2 punch at the top, but the reigning NCAA individual champion and U.S. Women’s Amateur runner-up had to miss the trip after having her tonsils removed.

Alabama is the highest-ranked team at Long Cove this weekend, with former Clemson standout Lauren Stephenson joining Knight to lift the Tide to No. 3. Four other teams are in the current Golfweek top 10 — No. 4 Arizona State, No. 8 Furman, No. 9 Georgia and No. 10 Wake Forest.

Spectators are welcome at Long Cove for all three days of competition.

This story was originally published March 2, 2017 at 5:45 PM with the headline "Duke’s Leona Maguire seeks to recapture Long Cove magic from 2 years ago."