NCAA regionals are 54 holes of high-pressure golf – sometimes ending with bigger upsets and more surprises than the national championship itself. It’s no guarantee that the top teams get to the national championship in this format. Plenty of can’t-miss teams have been on the outside looking in.
The nation's top teams and individuals are divided among six regional sites this week, with play starting Monday, May 13 and ending Wednesday, May 15. Only five teams will advance from each site to set up the 30-team national championship field.
Check AmateurGolf.com daily for a wrap-up of the current day and a breakdown of what to watch for as the week unfolds.
NCAA Central Regional (University of Texas GC, Austin, Texas)
Team leaders: Texas (16-under 552)
Individual leader: Pierceson Coody, Texas; Steven Chervony, Texas; Cole Hammer, Texas; Joe Highsmith, Pepperdine; Josh McCarthy, Pepperdine (4-under 138)
Scoreboard
The hook: It’s a good sign when you have three players tied for the lead. That’s Texas’ story after two days home, but Pepperdine’s story is nearly as good. The Waves claim the other two of the five men who are locked at 4 under.
A 10-under 274 from Texas on Tuesday was the best second round out of any team, and by 10 shots. The Longhorns now have a 16-shot lead on Pepperdine and Clemson, both tied for second, so the story in Austin is about who is taking the remaining four NCAA Championship spots.
If the cut fell today: Texas, Pepperdine, Clemson, TCU, Arkansas would advance.
Tomorrow, watch for… the two bubble teams to make their move. Same story, different day for Arkansas: If you’re hosting the national championship, there’s some amount of pressure to get there. As for USC in sixth place, a second-round 4-over 288 was a little better than the Trojans’ opener, but still won’t get it done. USC has won three times this season and is the No. 2 seed in Austin. The Trojans' streak of 11 straight trips to the NCAA finals ended in last year when USC failed to advance out of regionals, so a trip back this year would help get USC back on the right trajectory.
NCAA East Regional (TPC of Myrtle Beach, S.C.)
Team leaders: Ohio State (11-under 565)
Individual leader: Edwin Yi, Oregon; Michael Feagles, Illinois (8-under 136)
Scoreboard
The hook: It’s tough to have a good day without a good start. That wasn’t a problem for Ohio State on Tuesday. The Buckeyes went 5 under as a team on the opening three holes and it carried them to the second-round lead in Myrtle Beach.
Ohio State leads the field in par-3 and par-5 scoring, and in total birdies made (41). Those stats have made all the difference as the Buckeyes try to qualify for nationals after missing out on regionals a year ago.
Ohio State head coach Jay Mosely says:
If the cut fell today: Ohio State, Wake Forest, Illinois, UNLV and California would advance.
Tomorrow, watch for… Florida State to rebound. The Seminoles dropped five spots on the leaderboard on Tuesday with a 4-over 292. The opening hole, the par-4 10th, was an immediate punch in the gut for the Seminoles. They went 7 over as a team there.
“We got hit in the face right out of the gate,” head coach Trey Jones said. “Simple par 4, downhill, downwind with the lake in front of the green and the air was actually pushing the ball down. We had a couple balls that the players thought were hit pretty well that just did not turn out so well for them. Outside of that, we played an OK round of golf.”
Information from Florida State Athletics used in this report
NCAA Midwest Regional (University of Louisville GC, Simpsonville, Ky.)
Team leaders: Auburn (15-under 553)
Individual leader: Tripp Kinney, Iowa State (8-under 134)
Scoreboard
The hook: Auburn is working on a big statement in Louisville. On Tuesday, the Tigers increased their lead on No. 1 seed Oklahoma State – also the defending national champions and the top-ranked team in the country – with a 7-under 277. It was the best score of the day by five shots.
Auburn head coach Nick Clinard says: "The guys played well today. The first three guys out made a ton of birdies coming down the stretch. I'm really proud of Jacob Solomon. Trace Crowe hung in there and really only had one bad swing all day. We persevered, made some birdies down the stretch and opened up a nice cushion."
If the cut fell today: Auburn, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Iowa State and Louisville would advance.
Tomorrow, watch for… Louisville to hold its position. The host team slipped two spots down the leaderboard on Tuesday with a 7-over 291. Said head coach Mark Crabtree, “We put ourselves in a position on our home course, but we're going to have to play better golf tomorrow."
Information from Auburn Athletics used in this report
NCAA Southeast Regional (University of Georgia GC, Athens, Ga.)
Team leaders: Georgia (4-under 564)
Individual leader: Spencer Ralston, Georgia; Davis Thompson, Georgia (4-under 138)
Scoreboard
The hook: After the University of Georgia Golf Course was saturated with recent rain, scores in Athens remain the highest across all six regionals. Georgia also continues to take advantage of its hosting duties. The Bulldogs have a slim lead on Duke despite the fact that Duke outscored them by four shots on Tuesday. Duke’s 8-under 276 was the best score of the day.
Georgia, Duke and Vanderbilt, the top three teams on the leaderboard, are all within six shots of each other. It drops off after that, with 12 shots separating Vanderbilt from Duke. Wednesday should certainly include a battle for the final spots out of this regional (see below).
Duke head coach Jamie Green says: “Really to have all five guys right there in a position to count for us two days in a row, that’s what you want at Regionals. You don’t want to have to scratch and claw. Today they played in a way that showed their confidence and showed their belief in themselves and each other.”
If the cut fell today: Georgia, Duke, Vanderbilt and Liberty would advance, with Tennessee, SMU, Memphis and Nevada entering a playoff for the final spot.
Tomorrow, watch for… what’s going on at the No. 5 position. Drama is brewing with four teams tied at 17 over for that final position.
Information from Duke Athletics used in this report
NCAA Southwest Regional (Stanford University GC, Stanford, Calif.)
Team leaders: Stanford (15-under 545)
Individual leader: Isaiah Salinda, Stanford (7-under 133)
Scoreboard
The hook: Arizona State earns story-of-the-day status at Stanford. The Sun Devils charged with an 8-under 272 in the second round, moving five spots up leaderboard. The No. 3-ranked team in the nation has a lot better chance of advancing, at the very least, and at the most, could potentially challenge Stanford for the title on Wednesday. Stranger things have happened in men’s college golf than a team coming back from a 10-shot deficit.
Stanford, the leader, and Ole Miss, in the No. 5 spot, were really the only teams to finish the day in the position in which they started the day. There was considerably jockeying for position at Stanford, and North Carolina-Greensboro stands out as the team that made the biggest move the
wrong way. UNCG was inside the cut on Tuesday morning, but moved five spots down the leaderboard to seventh by day’s end. The team is now four shots outside that top-5 cutline, which is by no means an insurmountable deficit.
If the cut fell today: Stanford, Arizona State, North Carolina, Georgia Southern and Ole Miss would be in.
Tomorrow, watch for… Georgia Southern, the No. 10 seed, and UNCG, the No. 11 seed. One or both could find a spot for themselves in the NCAA finals.
NCAA West Regional (Palouse Ridge GC, Pullman, Wash.)
Team leaders: Texas A&M (23-under 537)
Individual leader: Blaine Hale, Oklahoma (10-under 130)
The hook: Texas A&M continues to lead the pack in Pullman, where the scores are lower than at any other regional. The Aggies had a few more bogeys on their collective cards on Tuesday, but three players still went under par. As head coach J.T. Higgins pointed out, senior leader Chandler Phillips was not one of those players, which means that Texas A&M can go even lower than the 12-under round it produced on Wednesday.
Higgins says: "Chandler [Phillips] shot even par today, and for our team to shoot 12-under on the day and have him not carry his load is a great sign for our team. We feel like we have five guys that can contribute and go low and today they picked up that slack. When we have everything clicking, this team can compete with anyone in the country and I'm really proud of that.
If the cut fell today: Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Georgia Tech, BYU and Colorado State would advance.
Tomorrow, watch for… South Carolina to take a stand. True, the Gamecocks are playing all the way across the country in Washington, but they came is as the No. 3 seed. The top teams on the leaderboard have set a fast pace at Palouse Ridge considering that at 8 under, South Carolina is four shots outside the cutline. Simply put, the Gamecocks need birdies on Wednesday. For that matter,
any team that wants to advance needs birdies.
Information from Texas A&M Athletics used in this report