We are now less than a month away from Nationals in Myrtle beach after eleven regions competed in regional tournaments last weekend. The University of Wisconsin took home the team of the week with a two day score of 737 and the player of the week was Zach Murphy from Texas State University at San Marcos who ended up -2. Nine regions will be competing October 20-21 and making final efforts to qualify for Nationals, so it’s sure to be an exciting weekend.
Atlantic
Robert Morris University is looking mighty safe for a spot at Nationals. However, the Colonials still need to show up and play this weekend at Birdsfoot Golf Club in Freeport, PA. Finishing up 3rd or worse this weekend could hurt their position nationally, as long as the Lions and the Panthers post some low numbers. We’ll see if the pot is stirred next week.
Metro
Fairfield University is the favorite heading into the weekend as the Metro region will head to Lyman Orchards Golf Club for the second regional tournament. With another victory this week, Fairfield will secure a trip to Myrtle Beach for Nationals. However it will not be easy as there are five other schools competing this weekend looking to claim the top spot in the metro region!
Mountain
The Mountain region will be playing at the Pelican Lakes Golf and Country Club this weekend. Colorado State leads the region with eleven strokes over the University of Denver, who in turn leads University of Colorado Boulder by fifteen strokes. Other competing teams include the Colorado School of Mines, University of Northern Colorado and Metropolitan State College of Denver.
New England
The Friars are another team that have absolutely dominated their region. With 3 regional tournaments, Providence College is going to The Bay Pointe Club in Onset, MA with plenty of confidence. This team is another that is on the board for a potential bid to Nationals. They don’t have too long of a drive, but the Buccaneers are playing right in their backyard, which gives an obvious home field advantage with so many factors. Perhaps this might be another story of the underdogs coming out on top.
Northeast
Turning Stone Resort will host the Northeast region this week where Niagara comes into this weekend as a strong favorite after winning the first regional tournament by 47 shots. There is plenty of competition in this region, and as the last opportunity for teams to prove themselves, Niagara has their work cut out for them if they want to sweep the region and secure a spot in the National Invitational.
Northern New England
The Northern New England region will be competing in its third and final tournament this weekend at Candia Woods Golf Links in Candia, NH. After the first two tournaments, Ecole de technologie superieure, one of the only Canadian teams in the NCCGA, leads the region with Merrimack College. Other competing teams this weekend include Boston University’s A and B teams, Northeastern University, University of Vermont, University of New Hampshire, University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and Plymouth State University. We will see if any of these teams can secure a top three spot after this weekend.
Northwest
What a tricky region. In the 1st regional tournament, only the Wildcats and Vikings made an appearance. The result was only a 4 stroke difference, and that could have very easily gone either way because we’ve all heard ‘every stroke counts’ numerous times. The kicker is the Ducks are bringing a team this time to Heron Lakes Golf Course in Portland, OR. With the Ducks history of strength in this region, there will be some nervous players out there, although they didn’t show up at the 1st regional tournament. Is the strength not there anymore?
Ohio Valley
The Ohio Valley region will be playing the third and final tournament of the season this weekend at Heatherwoode Golf Club. With Ohio Valley being one of the largest regions in the NCCGA, there is plenty of opportunity for every team in the region to compete. Miami of Ohio won the first tournament after an impressive performance of scores in the 360’s both days then sat out the second tournament which allowed Cincinnati to edge out Ohio State by just 5 shots. 12 teams will be competing this weekend to battle it out and see who will come out on top of the Ohio Valley region. Every shot will count this weekend and expect to see some low scores from this region!
Pacific
The Pacific region will be competing at Monarch Bay Golf Club in San Leandro, CA this weekend. Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo is leading the region by a large margin of sixteen strokes. Stanford and the University of Nevada at Reno are placed second and third, respectively. The University of California’s A and B teams took the 4th and 5th places and Chico State’s A and B teams took 6th and 7th. Just like what would be expected from this region, the weather will be perfect for golf with sun showing both days in the low to mid 70’s.
