Brentley’s Bracketology: Predicting 2023 NCAA men’s golf regional fields

Another week, another round of bracketology.

As the final men’s conference tournaments finish up, here is a prediction of which teams will make regionals, what seeds they’ll receive and where they’ll be sent.

The official regional fields will be revealed Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET on Golf Channel. Each of the six regionals will be contested on May 15-17. There 81 total teams that qualify for postseason, and the top five teams (and top individual not on an advancing team) from each regional will advance to the 30-team NCAA Championship on May 26-31 at Grayhawk.

As for the magic number – the Golfstat ranking of the final at-large berth – I’m projecting it at No. 67 with that team being Middle Tennessee State. That factors in two teams inside the number that are under .500 and therefore don’t satisfy the .500 rule – Notre Dame and USC. Golfstat’s ranking also hasn’t been update since April 23, so I have UCLA and South Carolina, both also under .500, finishing outside the number.

That’s all subject to change, of course, because two conference favorites – Long Beach State in the Big West and Kent State in the MAC – have to win or the magic number with shrink more.

I have Southern Miss, Wright State and Wisconsin among the first teams out right now.

Here’s a projection of how this year’s six regionals will look when the fields are finalized:

(Note: Automatic qualifiers are listed with their conference in parentheses; *-projected conference champion)

Auburn Regional

Auburn University Club, Auburn, Alabama (Auburn)

• 1. Vanderbilt
• 2. Tennessee
• 3. Auburn
• 4. Georgia Southern
• 5. Ohio State
• 6. TCU
• 7. Liberty (ASUN)
• 8. Cal
• 9. New Mexico
• 10. Furman
• 11. Kent State (MAC*)
• 12. Augusta (Southland)
• 13. Lehigh (Patriot)

East Lansing Regional

Eagle Eye GC, East Lansing, Michigan (Michigan State)

• 1. Illinois (Big Ten)
• 2. Georgia Tech (ACC)
• 3. Texas
• 4. Oregon
• 5. San Diego State (Mountain West)
• 6. Arkansas
• 7. Purdue
• 8. Houston (American)
• 9. UNCG
• 10. Michigan State
• 11. Oregon State
• 12. Charlotte (C-USA)
• 13. Princeton (Ivy)
• 14. IPFW (Horizon)

Salem Regional

The Cliffs at Keowee Falls, Salem, South Carolina (Clemson)

• 1. North Carolina
• 2. Stanford (Pac-12)
• 3. Texas A&M
• 4. Colorado State
• 5. Kansas State
• 6. Georgia
• 7. Cincinnati
• 8. Chattanooga
• 9. Clemson
• 10. Long Beach State (Big West*)
• 11. Indiana
• 12. Davidson (Atlantic-10)
• 13. Howard (Northeast*)
• 14. Siena (MAAC)

Las Vegas Regional

Bear’s Best, Las Vegas (UNLV)

• 1. Arizona State
• 2. Florida (SEC)
• 3. Virginia
• 4. Oklahoma State
• 5. Northwestern
• 6. East Tennessee State (SoCon)
• 7. Washington
• 8. Missouri
• 9. N.C. State
• 10. Kansas
• 11. Sam Houston State
• 12. Illinois State (Missouri Valley)
• 13. Kansas City (Summit*)

Norman Regional

Jimmie Austin OU GC, Norman, Oklahoma (Oklahoma)

• 1. Texas Tech
• 2. Oklahoma (Big 12)
• 3. Alabama
• 4. Ole Miss
• 5. Wake Forest
• 6. Duke
• 7. North Florida
• 8. San Francisco
• 9. Little Rock (Ohio Valley)
• 10. Marquette (Big East)
• 11. Middle Tennessee State
• 12. Louisiana (Sun Belt)
• 13. Longwood (Big South)
• 14. Arkansas-Pine Bluff (SWAC)

Morgan Hill Regional

The Institute GC, Morgan Hill, California (San Jose State)

• 1. Pepperdine
• 2. Florida State
• 3. Mississippi State
• 4. Arizona
• 5. Louisville
• 6. Baylor
• 7. BYU (West Coast)
• 8. LSU
• 9. San Diego
• 10. Colorado
• 11. UNCW (Colonial)
• 12. Grand Canyon (WAC*)
• 13. Northern Colorado (Big Sky)