The 2026 Landfall Tradition will bring 18 NCAA Division I women’s golf teams to Wilmington, North Carolina, this weekend, with top-ranked Wake Forest leading a competitive field that includes Auburn, South Carolina, Duke and defending champion North Carolina.
Hosted by UNC Wilmington, the 24th annual tournament begins Friday, October 23, at the Country Club of Landfall’s Pete Dye Course and continues through Sunday, October 25.
Seven programs ranked inside the national top 25 will compete in the 54-hole event, providing an important test for teams preparing to complete their fall schedules.
The host Seahawks enter the tournament looking to challenge some of the country’s strongest college golf programs after opening their 2026–27 season with a victory at the Golfweek Fall Challenge.
Seven Top-25 Teams Headline 2026 Landfall Tradition
The 2026 field features several leading programs in women’s collegiate golf.
According to the Clippd national rankings cited by UNC Wilmington, Wake Forest enters as the No. 1 team in the country, followed by No. 3 Auburn and No. 5 South Carolina.
Duke, ranked 10th, is another leading contender, while Florida State (No. 20), Alabama (No. 21) and Kentucky (No. 25) complete the group of nationally ranked teams.
The remaining field includes Clemson, East Carolina, Indiana, Kent State, Michigan State, NC State, North Carolina, SMU, South Florida, UCF and host UNC Wilmington.
The tournament brings together programs from multiple conferences and offers an opportunity to measure early-season form against national competition.
All 18 participating schools have previously competed in the Landfall Tradition.
North Carolina Returns to Defend Its Team Championship
North Carolina will attempt to defend the team title it captured in October 2025.
The Tar Heels finished last year’s tournament at seven under par with a 54-hole total of 857, defeating runner-up UCF by five strokes.
Megan Streicher finished second individually at six under, while Marie Prats-Rigual tied for third at five under.
Those performances helped North Carolina secure its first Landfall Tradition team championship.
The Tar Heels now have an opportunity to join the event’s list of consecutive winners.
New Mexico, Wake Forest, Duke and South Carolina have previously won back-to-back editions, although South Carolina’s consecutive titles came in 2019 and 2021 because the 2020 tournament was canceled.
Duke remains the event’s most successful program, having won five team championships in 2009, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2023.
UNCW Women’s Golf Looks to Build on Early-Season Victory
UNC Wilmington enters its home tournament after an encouraging start to the 2026–27 campaign.
The Seahawks won the Golfweek Fall Challenge in September, finishing with a three-round total of 854 to edge Campbell by three strokes.
Alexis Faieta and Valencia Chang led the team’s individual performances, sharing second place at two under par with matching totals of 211.
The victory provided momentum for a program looking to test itself against nationally ranked competition.
UNCW enters the Landfall Tradition ranked No. 69 nationally, making it the second-highest-ranked Coastal Athletic Association program behind Charleston.
The Seahawks also hold a unique position in the tournament’s history.
They are the only school to have competed in every edition of the Landfall Tradition since the event began in 2002.
This year’s tournament represents another opportunity to build on that longstanding relationship with one of college golf’s established fall events.
UNCW Announces Five-Player Landfall Tradition Lineup
The Seahawks will field five players in the main team competition.
Their lineup includes Alexis Faieta, Ella Levy, Kanchana Duangsam-Rudd, Valencia Chang and Dagmar Soerensen.
Soerensen is scheduled to begin the opening round at 9:15 a.m. Friday from the first tee, followed by Chang at 9:24 a.m., Duangsam-Rudd at 9:33 a.m., Levy at 9:42 a.m. and Faieta at 9:51 a.m.
UNCW will also have two golfers competing individually.
Minouche Rooijmans is scheduled to tee off from the first hole at 10 a.m., while Eden Lohrbach begins from the 10th hole at the same time.
The individual entries provide additional competitive opportunities for the Seahawks while the five-player lineup contests the team championship.
Pete Dye Course Provides Setting for Three-Day Tournament
The Landfall Tradition will be contested on the Country Club of Landfall’s Pete Dye Course in Wilmington.
UNCW’s official preview lists the tournament layout at 6,223 yards and a par of 72.
Situated near the Intracoastal Waterway and Wrightsville Beach, the course features rolling terrain and greens that were renovated ahead of last year’s tournament.
Its design offers a distinctive setting for a championship involving some of the nation’s strongest women’s golf teams.
Conditions and course management could influence scoring over the three rounds, particularly if coastal winds become a factor.
The event follows a traditional collegiate stroke-play format, with team and individual titles awarded after 54 holes.
Landfall Tradition 2026 Schedule and Spectator Information
The first round begins Friday, October 23, with tee times starting at 8:30 a.m.
Saturday’s second round will also begin at 8:30 a.m., while Sunday’s final round is scheduled for an 8:45 a.m. shotgun start.
An awards ceremony will follow the completion of the tournament.
Spectators can attend all three rounds free of charge, with complimentary parking available.
UNCW has advised fans to use the Eastwood Road entrance to the Landfall community.
Live scoring will be provided through Scoreboard by Clippd, allowing followers to track individual and team standings throughout the weekend.
The tournament also supports the UNC Wilmington women’s golf program through fundraising activities, including its annual College/Am event.
What to Expect at the 2026 Landfall Tradition
The 24th Landfall Tradition features several compelling storylines heading into Friday’s opening round.
Wake Forest arrives as the nation’s top-ranked team, while Auburn and South Carolina provide strong competition near the top of the rankings.
Defending champion North Carolina will attempt to win another team title, and Duke has an opportunity to extend its record of five Landfall Tradition championships.
For UNC Wilmington, the tournament is both a home event and a chance to build on an early-season victory against a challenging national field.
With seven top-25 teams, an experienced defending champion and three rounds scheduled at the Pete Dye Course, the 2026 Landfall Tradition promises an important weekend of NCAA women’s golf competition.