Tag: Lance Ringler

Ringler: With 36 holes complete, what have we learned from 2023 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship

The Big 12 Conference is in trouble.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — One thing about playing this championship in The Grand Canyon State is it tends to feel like Groundhog Day. You know what to expect daily with everything. The only thing that tends to change is the leaderboard.

We’re now two rounds into the third year of three years at Grayhawk Golf Club for the NCAA Championship. What have we learned?

• The Raptor Course at Grayhawk continues to provide a stern test. An abundance of low scores is not something we see much of. Only one team in the previous two finals has managed to finish 72 holes in the red, that being Arizona State (3 under) in 2021. With only Illinois under-par to this point, the trend remains.

• Since the NCAA format went to match play to decide a champion, Florida has played in 11 of the 14 championships. However, the Gators have yet to play in match play. At the midway point, Florida is in good shape sitting in second place just three shots behind Illinois.

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• Illinois arrived in Scottsdale this week ranked No. 2 in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings and No. 3 in the Golfstat rankings. The Illini had lost to just eight teams all year – twice to Florida, Stanford, Auburn, Arizona, Pepperdine, Arizona State and Georgia. Through 36 holes they are losing to no one.

• Illinois posted the second-best round in the past 10 rounds at Grayhawk with a 7-under 273. The only team to go lower was Pepperdine with a 271 in the final round two years ago.

Golfweek/Sagarin rankings: Men’s team | Men’s individual
NCAA Leaderboard: Team | Individual | Photos

• Maybe the most storied program in college golf without an NCAA title is Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets have finished runner-up four times, with head coach Bruce Heppler, one of the best without a title, having three of those second-place trophies. Since Heppler started at Tech in 1995-96 season, he has led the Yellow Jackets to the championship in 20 of 25 years. Georgia Tech has made four appearances in match play, going 1-4. With senior Ross Steelman holding a three-shot lead in the individual standings, this could be the year Heppler wins that title that has evaded him.

• The Big 12 Conference, which at times has arguably been the best golf conference in any given year the past few years, may be in danger of not having a team make the 54-hole cut. Currently Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech and Baylor are all outside the number to make the cut. Since the beginning of match play, we have always had at least one Big 12 team find a spot in bracket play, and since 2016, a Big 12 team has been in the match play final every year. That streak is in danger.

• Oklahoma has the longest streak of advancing to match play. The Sooners have been a regular for the last six years, going 5-5 during that stretch. There is work to be done if the Sooners hope to extend the streak to seven.

• Very quietly, Virginia has worked its way into having a lot to play for over the next two rounds. Bowen Sargent’s squad, led by freshman of the year candidate Ben James, is sitting in T-7. The Cavaliers have never advanced to match play.

• That pesky .500 Rule created a lot of noise this year. Georgia and Arkansas were two of those teams that barely stayed eligible. After 36 holes, both are in the middle of the pack and have a shot to make the 54-hole cut.

• Pepperdine has made match play in each of the last two years and is in position to do so again this week. And they are doing it with three new guys in the lineup – Sam Choi, Luke Gifford and Roberto Nieves. Only William Mouw and Derek Hitchner return from the squad last year that made it to the Final FORE.

Ringler: Stanford nearly perfect as Grayhawk chapter closes

Those memories are so much more if you just look a little deeper.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — As Wake Forest won its first NCAA Championship Wednesday, the Grayhawk Golf Club chapter of women’s golf closes.

The chapter consisted of four years but only three championships due to the Covid year in 2020.

There was much we already knew about this week-long finale to the season, because we have seen it since 2015 when the women’s championship first went to match play to find a champion.

The championship is long. The teams that play in the final match will have a tee time eight times during the event. Continuing to teach how important endurance is. How important getting quality rest is.

But did we learn anything new?

We learned that Stanford was nearly perfect at Grayhawk.

The Cardinal won the fictional stroke-play national championship in each of the three years here in Scottsdale compiling a head-to-head stroke-play record of 75-0. And let’s remind everyone that individually, Stanford players won the individual title in each of the three championships at Grayhawk. Rachel Heck won the title in 2021, followed by Rose Zhang claiming the last two in 2022 and 2023.

Total domination for three years but with just one team title. We should be talking about dynasty. Instead, with just one title it may just be a side note in future tournament talk.

Walker’s squad was the lone team to play in match play all three years. However, match play put the wrinkle in what was almost perfection in this chapter. The Cardinal went 4-2 winning the title just one time in 2022.

Head coach Anne Walker talked about how difficult Grayhawk can play.

“The course is so penalizing that errant shots immediately added up to big numbers, poor speed on the greens resulted in doubles and undisciplined strategy was costly,” she said. “The course exposed player’s weaknesses and we were pretty fortunate to have five steady players through all three years that helped us be in position to advance to match play.”

It was demanding and Stanford was the best each year in handling those demands, except for those two match play losses – Arizona in 2021 and USC this year.

“I think we performed well (at Grayhawk) over the three years because we had great depth in our lineup,” said Walker.

Walker added: “Grayhawk has been a fantastic host venue. The golf course is demanding and has tested the nerves and patience of the world’s best. It rewards the best golf shots and that has produced three terrific championships.”

Ole Miss won its first national title in 2021 at Grayhawk, with Stanford winning the 2022 event and Wake Forest this year.

“The student-athletes have thoroughly enjoyed being in Scottsdale, getting to know the local community and Grayhawk staff,” said Walker. “We will forever have wonderful memories of our time in Arizona for the championships.”

Those memories are so much more if you just look a little deeper.

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Ringler: Here’s what I want to see from the men’s 2022 NCAA Championship

Rather than what has happened and what we might see, let’s talk about what we want to see this week at Grayhawk.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Here we go again. For 16 teams it’s a return trip to Grayhawk Golf Club for the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship.

For me, it’s a return trip as well and championship No. 22.

Typically, in this NCAA championship preview I would discuss what may have happened up to this point in the season and what we might expect over the six days here in the desert.

Let’s do something different.

Rather than what has happened and what we might see, let’s talk about what would be must-see golf or what I want to see.

Before I dive into my inner thoughts, let’s be sure to understand that when talking about the NCAA finals that we understand that the championship truly is two tournaments. Seventy-two holes of stroke play to decide who gets the opportunity to play in the other tournament: match play.

What do we know about stroke play?

We know that prior to last year no team ranked worse than third had won the right to be the No. 1 seed. Think about that. How good is stroke play in identifying the best? The first 11 years of this format the winner of stroke play was never ranked worse than third. And eight of those 11 years it was the No. 1 team claiming the No. 1 seed.

Last year 10th-ranked Arizona State snapped that streak by being the best after four rounds and earning the No. 1 seed.

Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings: Men’s team | Men’s individual

Now, the other tournament which begins on Tuesday with the top eight teams after 72 holes going head-to-head in match play. The No. 1 seed has won just once. That was Oklahoma State in 2018. On two other occasions the top team in college golf has won – Texas (2012) and Alabama (2014) – but not as the No. 1 seed.

Now that we all understand how this usually works, with the very best of the best winning stroke play and then might as well flip a coin to finish the week, here is what I want to see.

First, in stroke play. How about someone other than No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 2 Vanderbilt or No. 3 Oklahoma State finishing at the top on Monday afternoon?

You know what would create some buzz? Arizona winning the top seed. After the Wildcats won the NCAA Bryan Regional, another stroke-play win here in Scottsdale for the Tucson team would be must-see golf.

Individually, how about a playoff? Involving any players. Determining an NCAA Championship title in a playoff is always worth watching.

Now, we end with the real fun: Match play. Here are ten matchups I would like to watch, preferably in the finals, but along the way to the finals would be just fine, as well.

10

North Florida vs. Florida … Just something about this one with the winner advancing would catch my eye.

9

Kansas vs. East Tennessee State … Maybe this would not be what many would want, but this is my list. Good storyline here with two really good golf coaches who have done really good jobs at their school.

8

Arkansas vs. Oklahoma … In my opinion these are two of the most intense college golf coaches and this match-up would have that vibe from the moment they got in the van that morning.

7

Georgia Tech vs. Georgia … Clean, old fashion hate is what describes this rivalry. Not that the golf teams really hate each other, but this one would be fun to watch.

6

Florida vs. Florida State … Not quite the status of Sooners vs. Cowboys, but this would be good.

5

Vanderbilt vs. Florida … Rematch of the recent SEC Championship that saw the Commodores beat the Gators to win the title.

4

Oklahoma State vs. Georgia Southern … Of course. Everyone loved the Saint Peters story in basketball. And what would be better than mid-major Georgia Southern going for match play win vs. the most historic program in college golf?

3

Arizona State vs. Arizona … The two Arizona schools, head-to-head at Grayhawk. Please!

2

Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State … If this were to happen you could instantly sell tickets and Golf Channel ratings in Oklahoma would be a record high for the network.

1

Oklahoma vs. Auburn … Does this one need any explanation? After Auburn blitzed the host Sooners in the second round of regional play a friendly tweet got things going. The Sooners responded with a dominating final round to win the regional and followed that up with back-at-ya tweet.

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Ringler: New six-regional format in women’s college golf comes with tournament ops benefits but also forces ‘great’ play

The old adage “just play better” more than applies to the new six-regional format in the women’s college golf postseason.

There is a saying in the world of competitive golf that when the going gets tough, the solution is simple: Just play better.

With the addition of two more regionals for the postseason in NCAA Division I women’s golf the saying might as well be: Just play great. That might be what it takes now to advance to the national championship each spring.

This past week the NCAA announced it would add two more regionals this coming spring. Instead of a four-regional format with 18 teams playing for six spots, we will now see 12 teams at each of six locations playing for four tickets to the national finals.

“I think it’s great,” Washington head women’s coach Mary Lou Mulflur said. “You still have to play well and beat good teams. It just makes more sense from a logistical standpoint.”

Mulflur also added that two more regionals should translate to less travel for many teams.

There is no question a six-regional format will make tournament operations more manageable. Smaller fields with fewer players on the course are ideal for so many reasons. The old format featured 18-team fields, which is about the limit when it comes to running an event with just one wave. Any sort of lengthy delay can put the event in jeopardy of not finishing or being reduced from 54 holes.

“The pace of play at NCAA regionals has been a big issue for years with having 18 teams at each site,” Arizona head women’s coach Laura Ianello said. “This will allow for a normal tournament experience compared to the past few years where you would have an hour wait at the turn.”

This move also allows an opportunity for more schools to host a regional, as long as the NCAA can continue to get enough bids. One worry, however, is that the same schools and venues will emerge as hosts. Will we see many new venues?

With just four teams getting to advance from each site for a total of 24 teams at the NCAA Championship, is it now harder to advance?

“It will make it even more difficult and competitive as a team to make it to the national championship,” Kansas head women’s coach Lindsay Kuhle said. “You have to bring your best game over three days to qualify.”

Doing the math, the percentages are the same – 33.3% of the field will advance. However, it certainly will feel different. With fewer qualifying spots, it will feel different, likely resulting in even more pressure to perform well.

“You’ll see the top-ranked teams feel more pressure now,” Kuhle said.

For those teams with a better seed, it will be harder to recover from a bad day. And when you have a host school in the field, that alone will hurt the chances of advancing for the visiting teams. The men have had a six-regional format for the past 11 years after a switch from three regionals. Their six regionals have five qualifying spots with field sizes of 13 or 14.

On the men’s side:

  • Teams that have hosted a regional are 38/49 (77.6%) in advancing to the NCAA finals.
  • Teams that have hosting a regional and been seeded within the top five are 32/36 (88.9%%) in advancing to the NCAA finals.
  • Teams that have hosted a regional and been seeded outside the top five are 7/14 (50.0%) in advancing to the NCAA finals.

Looking at the men’s regional play, history suggests that with a decent host school playing in the event, the number to advance will likely be one lower.

“The host schools now even have more of an advantage because of the experience they have on their home course,” added Kuhle.

A certain positive with the addition is what it does for individuals. There will be six individuals at each site, and the top two players not on an advancing team will earn a spot in the national finals. This means the number of individuals participating in the postseason increases from 24 to 36.

“Increasing the number of individuals is a smart idea too. We should give more attention to the individual achievements in college golf and this will help,” Old Dominion head women’s coach Mallory Hetzel said. “There are quality players competing on teams ranked well outside the bubble. It will be good for those individuals, their school and the game as a whole to be able to include them in the NCAA tournament.”

“Congratulations to those committee members for taking such a positive step,” Campbell head women’s coach John Crooks said. “The new six-site format will give the NCAA tournament committee at each site the maximum flexibility to conduct the best possible championship.”

Crooks was quick to mention something else that the majority of women’s coaches believe will also improve the women’s game.

“Now if the committee will adopt the .500 rule,” he said, “we would have the best 12 teams at each of the six sites.”

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College golf talk: Lance Ringler joins Any Given Tuesday podcast

In honor of the spring college golf season getting underway, Lance Ringler joined the Any Given Tuesday podcast to discuss big performances.

The spring college golf season opened last month, and for some teams, that means the first team competition since COVID shut down college golf in March 2020.

In honor of the spring looking more normal after a fall season during which only a percentage of teams and conferences competed, Lance Ringler joined Charleston Southern head men’s coach Jason Payne and High Point head men’s coach Brady Gregor on their “Any Given Tuesday” podcast to discuss big winners and notable performances. Coastal Carolina head men’s coach Jim Garren also appeared on the episode to discuss his team’s first win of the season at the inaugural Any Given Tuesday Collegiate.

Give it a listen below.

Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings: Men’s team | Men’s individual | Women’s team | Women’s individual

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