The NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Committee announced today that the championship finals field size will increase to allow for 27 qualifying teams, up from 24. The change will be in effect for the 2023 championships, with the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championships taking place May 19-24 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
The move to 27 teams for the women’s championship is being made to provide an equitable championship access ratio across both Division I men’s and women’s golf, with 10% of both men’s and women’s teams now advancing from regionals to the finals site. Currently 30 teams advance to the finals in Division I men’s golf.
“There is extreme importance in providing as many participation opportunities as possible for our student-athletes,” said Bradford Hurlbut, director of athletics at Fairleigh Dickinson and chair of the Division I Women’s Golf Committee. “With an additional three teams qualifying for the finals site, up to an additional 18 deserving women’s golf student-athletes will have an opportunity to compete in the national championship finals, which is an important step for the sport of women’s golf and the championship.”
With the new championship format, the committee has developed a plan to implement a strength-of-field metric into the selection process to ensure maximum balance and fairness at six regional sites. As a result, four teams will advance to the finals from three regional sites and five teams will advance from the remaining three regional sites.
Source: NCCA
