NCAA golf spring preview: Breaking down Power 4 conferences, top mid-majors

While the latest conference realignment and disbanding of the Pac-12 caused little disruption to the regular season in college golf, it’s certainly made things more interesting from a conference-championship standpoint. Particularly on the women’s side, the scattering of some historically elite programs has created some loaded championships fields, most arguably tougher than an NCAA regional, and potentially some immediate rivalries.

Wake Forest and Duke have combined to win six of the last seven ACC women’s titles, but now No. 1 Stanford joins the mix and is instantly the clear favorite, not only to win conference but to repeat as NCAA champion.

Northwestern ended Illinois’ run of eight straight Big Ten men’s titles, but now UCLA is the favorite heading into the spring.

Add the USC women (Big Ten) and both Arizona State teams (Big 12) as conference newbies who are already the top-ranked team in their new conference.

Looking past the conferences, USC and South Carolina are arguably the closest pursuers of Stanford on the women’s side, though the Cardinal boast seven top-50 players in the country, four of them freshmen. As one top women’s coach said, “There’s Stanford, and then there’s everyone else.”

Auburn wasn’t quite as dominant on the men’s side, but it’s still arguably the favorite to defend its NCAA Championship. That debate is a lot closer, though. Ole Miss was a justified No. 1 after the fall while Arizona State, Oklahoma and Texas all have reasonable NCAA title hopes.

Individually, Arizona State’s Josele Ballester and North Carolina’s David Ford have sped ahead in the Haskins Award race while Florida State’s Luke Clanton and Auburn’s Jackson Koivun are each just two PGA Tour University Accelerated points away from PGA Tour cards, though luckily for their teams, they wouldn’t be able to cash in until after nationals.

Here’s everything you need to know about the teams and players in the Power 4 conferences, and about the top mid-majors, heading into the second half of the 2024-25 campaign:

ACC

MEN

Championship info: April 24-26, The Club at Olde Stone, Alvaton, Kentucky

Recent champions: North Carolina (2024), Georgia Tech (2023), Wake Forest (2022), Clemson (2021), Georgia Tech (2019), Georgia Tech (2018), Duke (2017), Clemson (2016), Georgia Tech (2015), Georgia Tech (2014)

Team rankings: North Carolina (6), Virginia (8), Georgia Tech (13), SMU (16), Notre Dame (22), Duke (24), Florida State (31), Louisville (33), Wake Forest (37), Stanford (42), North Carolina State (51), California (62), Clemson (65), Boston College (97), Virginia Tech (194)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – David Ford, North Carolina (2); Ben James, Virginia (8); Sebastian Moss, Louisville (9); Jacob Modleski, Notre Dame (18); Benjamin Reuter, Georgia Tech (30); Second – Enrique Dimayuga, SMU (34); Luke Clanton, Florida State (45); Zachary Kingsland, SMU (48); Bryan Lee, Virginia (49); William Sides, SMU (57)

What to watch: Arguably no program’s outlook has improved more from the start of last fall than North Carolina’s. The Tar Heels had gaps to fill and a banged-up star in senior David Ford. But Ford overcame hip and back issues to win twice and not finish worse than T-8 in four starts, and he’s established himself as a Haskins co-favorite with Arizona State’s Josele Ballester. There are still some concerns elsewhere – sophomore Hampton Roberts is the only other player on the roster with multiple top-25s (three) – but the fact that North Carolina was still able to contend in big events and win its own Williams Cup is promising. … Junior Ben James has been his normal self (one win among four top-11s) and Virginia was solid with a win and three thirds, but it needs more from seniors Deven Patel and Paul Chang, who tied for sixth at Jones Cup, once the schedule ramps up this spring to get back to NCAA match play for a third straight year. … Getting junior Benjamin Reuter back after a redshirt year was huge for Georgia Tech, which lost Christo Lamprecht to graduation, and the Yellow Jackets’ good was really good, evidenced by a surprising win at Olympia Fields. Still, three finishes of seventh or worse show that this squad is volatile. … SMU has kept its momentum from an unexpected run to nationals last spring, and though the Mustangs did not win in the fall, they do have a nice three-man foundation to lean on this spring in Enrique Dimayuga, Williams Sides and Zachary Kingsland, who combined for two wins and five top-8 finishes in the fall. … Sophomore Jacob Modleski continues to develop into one of the top players in the country, posting five top-11s in the fall, but despite two team wins in the fall, it’s clear the Irish need to step up behind him. … Florida State has been here before. Two falls ago, the Seminoles cobbled together different lineups with players missing time, yet they peaked when it mattered, finishing runner-up to Auburn at the NCAA Championship. Senior Luke Clanton missed the fall opener and never really got it going – in his college starts at least – not finishing better than fourth in four starts. But Clanton will be fine, and with senior Gray Albright recently capturing the Jones Cup in a playoff over teammate Jack Bigham, it appears others are rounding into form, too. When the Seminoles are at their best, no other ACC team has a better top three. … Senior Sebastian Moss has been a bright spot for Louisville with two wins and nothing worse than T-11, but the Cardinals don’t have another player ranked in the top 200 nationally. … Wake Forest continues to try and put the pieces together without a certified No. 1 for the first time in a while. The Deacs did win their home event in the fall, but they also beat just one team at Colonial, easily their toughest tournament. … We knew Stanford was super young, but it was still shocking to see stud freshman TK Chantananuwat not finish better than T-19 in the fall. Again under .500, the Cardinal are in line for another stressful spring.

Pick to win: Florida State.

WOMEN

Championship info: April 15-17, Sedgefield CC, Greensboro, North Carolina

Recent champions: Wake Forest (2024), Clemson (2023), Wake Forest (2022), Duke (2021), Wake Forest (2019), Duke (2018), Duke (2017), Virginia (2016), Virginia (2015), Duke (2014)

Team rankings: Stanford (1), Virginia (11), Florida State (12), North Carolina (13), Wake Forest (14), Duke (18), Cal (31), Clemson (35), SMU (43), N.C. State (45), Miami (49), Virginia Tech (55), Louisville (63), Boston College (66), Notre Dame (90)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – Carolina Chacarra, Wake Forest (4); Megha Ganne, Stanford (5); Mirabel Ting, Florida State (6); Lottie Woad, Florida State (10); Meja Ortengren, Stanford (11); Second – Megan Streicher, North Carolina (18); Paula Martin Sampedro, Stanford (22); Amanda Sambach, Virginia (32); Andie Smith, Duke (33); Leigh Chien, Stanford (39)

What to watch: Stanford’s dominance continued through another wave of key departures, as head coach Anne Walker’s best recruiting class ever delivered early and often. The four freshmen, led by Meja Ortengren, all ended the fall ranked in the top 50 nationally, joining juniors Megha Ganne and Kelly Xu and sophomore Paula Martin Sampedro. Ganne missed the first two events but returned to finish third and first, while Sampedro followed an ultra-consistent freshman campaign with her first college win, at the Molly. As a team, Stanford went undefeated, only tying USC at its home tournament, which was an emotional week as Walker was away from the team to be with her college coach at Cal, Nancy McDaniel, who died from cancer in October. … Virginia senior Amanda Sambach cooled off after starting the fall win-second, the same as her team. She needs to go out with a bang because even though the Cavaliers have some nice depth, they’ve not delivered much late in seasons. Before finishing third at ACCs last spring, Virginia had placed fourth in stroke play in five straight conference championships while winning only one match, in 2023 when it lost to Clemson in the final. … Florida State is probably better than its ranking. Junior Lottie Woad continues to dominate with a win and three other top-3 finishes in the fall while Mirabel Ting missed two events but won the two she played. The Seminoles are very green after that, though with a dynamic duo like they have, they might be most capable of upsetting Stanford in match play. … Despite graduating Kayla Smith, North Carolina continued to make strides under head coach Aimee Neff, recovering from an eighth at Folds of Honor to win Virginia’s event. Junior Megan Streicher is an Annika Award contender after four top-4s in the fall, and there are three top-115 players behind her. … Wake Forest’s rebuild gained some momentum with a fall-capping win at the Charles Schwab Challenge. Senior Carolina Chacarra is back to being a first-team talent (one win and three other top-4s) and the midseason addition of freshman Chloe Kovelesky will give the Deacs some much needed depth. Maybe it’s enough to push Wake back into the NCAA match-play picture. … There weren’t many surprises for Duke in the fall. The Blue Devils won the tournament they should, mostly beat who they should, and were led by junior Andie Smith and sophomore Katie Li (five combined top-11s). Expect more of the same in the spring, perhaps a little better if the freshmen continue to develop. … A runner-up finish at the Molly highlighted Cal’s fall, though it was an otherwise difficult semester, which included the passing of the Bears’ former coach, Nancy McDaniel, to cancer. There’s no question Cal will play inspired this spring behind standout sophomore Constance Fouillet, but it needs more down the lineup. … After making match play at last year’s NCAA Championship, Clemson took a step back in the fall with three finishes of seventh or worse. No Tigers are ranked better than No. 188 individually either. … A lack of depth showed for SMU last fall as the Mustangs had just five players log action. The low was a 17th-place finish at Stanford – and that was with top player Mackenzie Lee finishing T-21. … Freshman Marie Madsen was a bright spot for N.C. State with four finishes of T-9 or better. As a team, though, the Wolfpack notched just one top-5. … Miami got punished for its weaker schedule, though it did cap the fall with back-to-back wins, impressive considering how young the Hurricanes are (no seniors and just two juniors).

Pick to win: Stanford

Big Ten

MEN

Championship info: April 25-27, Baltimore CC, Timonium, Maryland

Recent champions: Northwestern (2024), Illinois (2023), Illinois (2022), Illinois (2021), Illinois (2019), Illinois (2018), Illinois (2017), Illinois (2016), Illinois (2015), Minnesota (2014)

Team rankings: UCLA (10), Illinois (12), Northwestern (27), Oregon (38), USC (43), Purdue (52), Ohio State (60), Indiana (61), Michigan (72), Iowa (73), Nebraska (79), Michigan State (82), Minnesota (84), Wisconsin (101), Washington (113), Maryland (132), Rutgers (133), Penn State (148)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – Jackson Buchanan, Illinois (13); Pablo Ereno, UCLA (14); Ashton McCulloch, Michigan State (19); Omar Morales, UCLA (21); Cameron Adam, Northwestern (33); Second – Daniel Svard, Northwestern (38); Hunter Thomson, Michigan (43); Max Herendeen, Illinois (44); Jack Vojtko, Ohio State (51); Noah Kent, Iowa (69)

What to watch: Prior to head coach Armen Kirakossian’s arrival last season, UCLA hadn’t made regionals since 2019 while twice finishing last at Pac-12s during that span. But the Bruins returned to regionals and finished seventh last year, and now they are arguably the Big Ten favorites behind seniors Omar Morales and Pablo Ereno, who combined for six top-10s in the fall. … Illinois saw its streak of eight straight Big Ten titles end last year, so the Illini will be highly motivated to start a new one. Like UCLA, Illinois is strong at the top with senior Jackson Buchanan (one win, three other top-10s) and sophomore Max Herendeen (three top-10s). But also like the Bruins, there isn’t a ton of depth aside from junior Ryan Voois, who had a nice winter with a runner-up at the Patriot All-America and ninth at Jones Cup. The last time Illinois lost back-to-back Big Ten Championships was 2007-08. … The Big Ten is shaping up to be a two-horse race, though don’t count out Northwestern, which bounced back from back-to-back showings outside the top 10 to start the fall, winning both the St. Andrews Links Collegiate and the Clerico to cap the semester. Senior Cameron Adam is the leader, but keep an eye on junior Daniel Svard, who had three top-5s in the fall. … Oregon, which lost some significant talent last year, had a few players shine at different times in the fall, including junior Aiden Krafft winning the season opener at Sahalee. But the Ducks couldn’t put anything together and didn’t post a single top-3 finish as a team. … For the first time since USC let head coach Chris Zambri go in 2020, the Trojans are showing signs of life. They won their fall opener and seem poised to at least qualify for their first regional since 2021, especially if freshman Jack Buchanan takes off after a fall where he teased big things with a runner-up at Trinity Forest. … Purdue played a whopping six events in the fall, winning once but struggling against its two strongest fields. It’s clearly missing its former No. 1 in graduated Herman Wibe Sekne. … Ohio State was always going to take a step back with the departures of Neal Shipley, Maxwell Moldovan and Adam Wallin, though it could’ve been worse if not for sophomore Jack Vojtko, won the East Lake Cup and posted two other top-15s. … Indiana has made four straight NCAA regionals, though it needs some help behind Clay Merchent, who had two top-4s in the fall in his first college action since September 2022 because of slipping rib syndrome. … Michigan hasn’t played an NCAA regional since 2017 – and it’s been 14 years since the Wolverines’ last NCAA Championship berth – though this arguably might be its best chance at an at-large in some time. … Iowa’s path to the Big Ten title and an NCAA regional berth just got infinitely tougher with Kent opting to enter the transfer portal after the fall. Kent will not play for the Hawkeyes this spring before joining Florida’s roster next fall.

Pick to win: Illinois

WOMEN

Championship info: April 18-20, Bulle Rock GC, Havre de Grace, Maryland

Recent champions: Indiana (2024), Illinois (2023), Michigan (2022), Michigan State (2021), Ohio State (2019), Michigan State (2018), Michigan State (2017), Northwestern/Ohio State (2016), Northwestern/Ohio State (2015), Michigan State/Ohio State (2014)

Team rankings: USC (4), Oregon (6), Northwestern (9), Michigan State (22), UCLA (28), Ohio State (29), Purdue (33), Minnesota (42), Washington (52), Maryland (64), Michigan (67), Indiana (69), Illinois (70), Wisconsin (109), Rutgers (112), Penn State (116), Iowa (123), Nebraska (177)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – Jasmine Koo, USC (1); Catherine Park, USC (12); Kiara Romero, Oregon (14); Natasha Kiel, Purdue (19); Vivian Lu, Washington (20); Second – Suvichaya Vinijchaitham, Oregon (29); Ashley Yun, Northwestern (31); Brooke Biermann, Michigan State (36); Bailey Shoemaker, USC (49); Lauryn Nguyen, Northwestern (59)

What to watch: Only one team proved it could hang with Stanford in the fall, and that team was USC, which tied the Cardinal for the win on their home golf course. Freshman Jasmine Koo won three times and is the current favorite for the Annika Award while junior Catherine Park was her usual self (one win, two seconds). USC’s only non-win came at Windy City, where Park was T-59 and the Trojans placed third. The backend of the lineup is dicey, but arguably no team but Stanford and maybe South Carolina comes close to USC’s top three. … If not USC, then another former Pac-12 school is likely to win the Big Ten. Oregon technically didn’t win in the fall, though it did capture the stroke-play crown at the Stephens Cup and otherwise was always in the mix. The Ducks got some great stuff from their two freshmen, especially Suvichaya Vinijchaitham, and sophomore Kiara Romero had a couple top-5s. If sophomore Ting-Hsuan Huang, who hurt her wrist at Windy City, can get healthy, Oregon can go far. … It’s hard to believe that Northwestern has not won the Big Ten since 2016, but this might be the deepest Wildcats team in a while. Four players notched a top-5 in the fall, and that didn’t even include senior Lauryn Nguyen, who still had a pair of top-10s. … There’s a bit of a drop-off after the first three teams, though Michigan State has potential. Senior Brooke Biermann was excellent (top-11s in all four starts) and Alabama transfer Taylor Kehoe had acclimated well (four top-25s). The Spartans, who still had two runner-up showings, just need a better fourth score. … After reaching the NCAA final last spring, UCLA hit a wall this fall with no finishes better than fourth. Senior Caroline Canales was the Bruins’ highest-ranked player, at No. 100, and it was a huge boost when she decided to defer her Epson Tour status and not enter the final stage of LPGA Q-Series. The same cannot be said of first-team All-American Zoe Campos, who turned pro. UCLA can still go five deep, but there are consistency concerns, especially after the fall. … Ohio State looked its best to start the fall with a third at the Folds of Honor, but the lack of a consistent fifth score hurt the Buckeyes too often. Adding freshman Chloe Lam, a two-time winner in New Zealand last year, should help that. If senior Faith Choi, ranked No. 78 after the fall, keeps that level of play up and junior Kary Hollenbaugh builds off her big Sally victory this winter, Ohio State could surprise this spring. … Purdue tested itself by playing a couple elite events in the fall, but it got exposed (last at Annika, 12th of 15 at Windy City). That’s largely due to depth, as there wasn’t much consistency behind senior Natasha Kiel (two wins, one runner-up). … Junior Bella McCauley won an event and didn’t finish outside the top 7, including at the Annika, for Minnesota, which doesn’t have another player ranked inside the top 200. … Washington mostly struggled, but a third at the Molly Intercollegiate shows this team has more in it. Sophomore Vivian Lu didn’t finish worse than T-11 in four fall starts.

Pick to win: USC

Big 12

MEN

Championship info: April 22-24, Southern Hills CC, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Recent champions: Texas (2024), Oklahoma (2023), Oklahoma (2022), Oklahoma State (2021), Oklahoma State (2019), Oklahoma (2018), Texas (2017), Texas (2016), Texas (2015), Texas (2014)

Team rankings: Arizona State (2), Oklahoma State (9), Arizona (11), Utah (17), Texas Tech (21), Colorado (34), BYU (36), Houston (45), Kansas (46), TCU (49), Cincinnati (56), Iowa State (58), Kansas State (64), West Virginia (94), Baylor (99), UCF (152)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – Josele Ballester, Arizona State (3); Connor Williams, Arizona State (10); Ethan Fang, Oklahoma State (20); Zach Pollo, Arizona (24); Sergio Jimenez, Utah (25); Second – Nick Mason, Kansas State (29); Tim Wiedemeyer, Texas Tech (58); Peter Kim, BYU (63); Gunnar Broin, Kansas (65); Ryan Ford, Cincinnati (66)

What to watch: Winning the last Pac-12 title last spring didn’t result in regional success as Arizona State could not advance to nationals, finishing sixth as the top seed in Rancho Santa Fe, California. It was the first time since 2014 that Arizona State didn’t qualify for the NCAA Championship. Arizona State was then thrown more adversity this summer with the early exit of Wenyi Ding, followed by senior Preston Summerhays placing outside the top 10 in three of four fall appearances. But the Sun Devils withstood, not finishing outside the top three when Josele Ballester was in the lineup. The reigning U.S. Amateur champion has a win and two top-5s in three starts, and the emergence of sophomore Connor Williams has helped the Sun Devils remain one of the nation’s elite. … Oklahoma State snapped the longest win drought in program history (19 events) by winning the Stephens Cup as transfers Ethan Fang and Eric Lee have had immediate impacts. Fang’s three top-8s have led a team that is the deepest it’s been since the departures of Eugenio Chacarra and Rasmus Neergaard-Peterson. … Arizona had a nice fall with a win at the Windon and a stroke-play title at St. Andrews, though now it must replace Tiger Christensen, who turned pro after going through DP World Tour Q-School this winter. The Wildcats can still go five deep, though juniors Zach Pollo and Filip Jakubcik still probably need to prove they can be consistent stars. … Two wins to open the fall have led to Utah’s best national ranking at midseason since at least 1990, when the school began keeping complete records. Sophomore Sergio Jimenez (one win and another top-3) is one of four players ranked in the top 200 nationally, so the Utes have the firepower to make a third NCAA Championship in four years. … Texas Tech’s struggles (one top-5 in three stroke-play tournaments) can mostly be traced to the slump of preseason first-team All-American Calum Scott (three finishes of T-37 or worse) and serious wrist injury to Matthew Comegys, who didn’t play at all in the fall and will take a medical redshirt after having surgery. Scott should figure it out, though the Red Raiders will need to rely on its young guys more than ever. … It wasn’t a brute of a fall schedule, but Colorado did what it needed to do with a win and four other top-3s. As a result, Colorado is ranked far better than the No. 102 position that it entered last spring with. Senior Dylan McDermott remains the lynchpin, but it was actually fellow senior Justin Biwer who had the better fall (four top-8s, including a win). … BYU probably would’ve been a preseason top-25 team if not for sophomore Cooper Jones redshirting, but sixth-year senior Cole Ponich, a former AJGA standout, delivered some of the best golf of his college career last fall, helping the Cougars to three top-4s and a 5-0 showing at the Big 12 Match Play. … Houston sure does miss the graduated Santiago de la Fuente, who ended last season ranked No. 20 nationally and helped the Cougars to a sixth-place regional finish. Junior Hudson Weibel is the only current player ranked in the top 200, though Houston did finish second twice in the fall. … Senior Gunnar Broin was his usual self with four top-14 finishes in the fall, but Kansas will be on the at-large bubble unless Broin gets some more consistent help. … TCU again finds itself under .500 after falling to the rule last season in head coach Bill Alcorn’s first season, which ended in a last-place finish at Big 12s. This year’s squad is better, with some potential comeback players in Scott Roden and Joe Pagdin, but it still might be another year away.

Pick to win: Oklahoma State

WOMEN

Championship info: April 15-17, Houston Oaks GC, Hockley, Texas

Recent champions: Texas (2024), Oklahoma State (2023), Texas (2022), Oklahoma State (2021), Texas (2019), Texas (2018), Texas (2017), Oklahoma State (2016), Baylor (2015), Oklahoma (2014)

Team rankings: Arizona State (7), Arizona (8), Oklahoma State (21), TCU (23), Kansas (24), Houston (25), Baylor (27), Kansas State (30), Iowa State (32), UCF (36), BYU (46), Texas Tech (53), Colorado (54), Cincinnati (129)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – Grace Kilcrease, Oklahoma State (13); Patience Rhodes, Arizona State (27); Charlotte Back, Arizona (28); Carolina Melgrati, Arizona (34); Carla Bernat, Kansas State (37); Second – Beth Coulter, Arizona State (43); Paula Schulz-Hanssen, Arizona State (44); Sera Hasegawa, Baylor (55); Maria Jose Barragan, BYU (56); Isla McDonald-O’Brien, Arizona State (66)

What to watch: Only five players? No problem for Arizona State, which had four of those players finish the fall ranked No. 66 or better, including freshman Isla McDonald-O’Brien, the third highest-ranked first-year player not on Stanford or USC. The Sun Devils won the Windy City and didn’t finish worse than fifth while playing a difficult schedule. The only concern is senior Grace Summerhays, who didn’t finish better than T-18 in five fall starts. With no margin for error, Arizona State needs its lone senior to step it up if it wants to challenge Stanford for the NCAA title. In the Big 12, this conference is probably more wide open than the rankings suggest. … In its first semester under new coach Giovana Maymon, Arizona won the Folds and then bookended the fall with a match-play win at St. Andrews. Senior Carolina Melgrati and sophomore Charlotte Back combined for six top-6 finishes. There is some good depth as well, so even though the Wildcats were -21 shots against their in-state rivals in the fall, don’t count them out in their first year in the Big 12. … Getting Tulsa transfer Grace Kilcrease was huge for Oklahoma State. The senior won once among five top-10s individually. As a team, the Cowboys were solid, though never contended. They also needed to climb seven spots on the final day to finish seventh at the Schooner. Even if Kilcrease continues her elite play, Oklahoma State needs to shave some scoring averages if it wants to contend in April. … TCU won twice in the fall, though not against the toughest fields, but there’s reason for optimism with this squad as the two freshmen, Camille Min-Gaultier and Gracie McGovern, trended nicely with a combined three top-11s. … Kansas won three of its four fall events, though again, it wasn’t against the nation’s elite. Senior Lily Hurst led the way with three top-7s and was one of three Jayhawks ranked in the top 120 individually. Shockingly, though, seniors Jordan Rothman (520) and Lauren Clark (318) struggled. If they get things sorted out, Kansas could take a big leap. … Houston was the definition of consistency in the fall. It won once, was second twice and never finished worse than third. Also, it had five players ranked between Nos. 145-185 individually. … Baylor was up and down in the fall, but the Bears now get a big boost with the midseason arrival of Malena Castro, who is No. 291 in WAGR. … Kansas State continues to ride junior Carla Bernat (one win, three other top-10s), though it has no other players ranked inside the top 200. … Iowa State didn’t finish better than seventh in four fall starts, though the Cyclones challenges themselves with a tough schedule. … Out of all the teams in the Big 12, UCF might be most frustrated with its fall. Junior Pimpisa Sisutham and sophomore Molly Smith combined for five top-11s, yet neither is ranked better than No. 95. At the same time the two heralded freshmen, Jamie Camero and Mila Jurine, only had one top-20 in seven starts among them. The good news is there is still a lot of talent on this team, and the trend was positive after an opening 11th at Annika. … BYU freshman Maria Jose Barragan was the conference’s best freshman in the fall with three top-10s among five top-20s.

Pick to win: Kansas

SEC

MEN

Championship info: April 23-27, Sea Island GC (Seaside), St. Simons Island, Georgia

Recent champions: Auburn (2024), Florida (2023), Vanderbilt (2022), Vanderbilt (2021), Arkansas (2019), Auburn (2018), Vanderbilt (2017), Georgia (2016), LSU (2015), Alabama (2014)

Team rankings: Ole Miss (1), Auburn (3), Oklahoma (4), Texas (5), LSU (7), Florida (14), Vanderbilt (15), South Carolina (18), Mississippi State (20), Alabama (25), Tennessee (26), Texas A&M (28), Georgia (30), Kentucky (88), Arkansas (89), Missouri (98)

Midseason All-Conference team: First – Michael La Sasso, Ole Miss (4); Christiaan Maas, Texas (6); Tommy Morrison, Texas (7); Josiah Gilbert, Auburn (11); Algot Kleen, LSU (15); Second – Arni Sveinsson, LSU (17); Drew Goodman, Oklahoma (22); Jack Turner, Florida (23); Jackson Koivun, Auburn (26); Brendan Valdes, Auburn (27)

What to watch: Two seconds and two firsts helped Ole Miss end the fall atop the national rankings. Junior Michael La Sasso righted the ship after a disastrous summer with a win and three other top-11s while LSU transfer Cohen Trolio closed with three straight top-10s to make an early case for comeback player of the year. While the Rebels are pretty set with their top five, all ranked inside the top 100, where they take the next step might be with junior Cameron Tankersley, who posted three top-8s in the fall before breaking out even more this summer with a win at the Patriot and top-10 at the Jones Cup. If he starts winning college tournaments, Ole Miss can beat anybody. … It’s hard to be ranked third and still have underwhelmed, but that’s a testament to just how talented Auburn is. The defending NCAA champion didn’t win a stroke-play event in the fall, but it also didn’t finish worse than third. Sophomore Jackson Koivun hasn’t replicated his ultra-consistent freshman year, but he did win at Inverness and is still ranked No. 26 nationally. Sophomore Josiah Gilbert has been the breakout star with a win and four top-15s, while freshman Billy Davis settled in nicely after a T-51 to begin his college career. The depth continues to be silly, and it’s why Auburn will be in the conversation all spring. … Winning the Hogan Collegiate did a lot for Oklahoma’s credibility. This is a squad with a lot of solid parts, but that week at Colonial, the Sooners, which also won two other events, proved it could beat anybody – including Auburn, by six. Senior Drew Goodman and junior Jase Summy are pretty settled at the top, but the rest of the starting lineup will probably continue to change this spring. This will be one of head coach Ryan Hybl’s most challenging semesters, but Oklahoma has a lot of opportunities to bring an NCAA title contender to La Costa. … This young Longhorns team didn’t win a stroke-play title in the fall, but it was runner-up at the Hogan and fifth at Olympia Fields, so experience is being garnered quickly. Juniors Tommy Morrison and Christiaan Maas are first-team All-America candidates with neither finishing worse than T-14 in the fall, while freshman Daniel Bennett is the top-ranked player in the country, though he played just one tournament, the Hogan, where he placed third. Texas’ only issue besides having no seniors? It probably won’t run more than four deep. … Two wins and a top-10 national ranking exceeded even LSU first-year head coach Jake Amos’ high expectations. Now, the Tigers must find a touch more consistency and get the rest of the guys rolling behind senior Algot Kleen and freshman Arni Sveinsson, who combined for two wins and two more runners-up in the fall. … Florida hit a little bit of a wall after a scorching summer, and a ninth-place finish at Olympia Fields showed what can happen when the Gators don’t show up. But it’s tough to discount the talent that is here, especially with senior Ian Gilligan and sophomore Jack Turner, who combined for three top-8s in five combined stroke-play starts. Gilligan missed the Williams Cup, where Florida was fourth, to play the PGA Tour event in Las Vegas, where he made the cut. He then won the Australian Master of the Amateurs this winter. What’s likely head coach J.C. Deacon’s top priorities this spring? Get junior Parker Bell and senior Matthew Kress going, especially Kress, the former walk-on who is the lone player left from the 2023 NCAA title team. Kress’ best finish in the fall was T-45. … Vanderbilt lost a little momentum each time out after a solid start to the fall, and it’s hard not to highlight senior Gordon Sargent, who didn’t post a top-10 finish in the fall, the first time he’s done that in his college career. Senior Jackson Van Paris has carried much of the load so far, but there is no doubt Sargent needs to turn his game around in a hurry. Junior John Broderick had a couple top-11s early, though can he continue to be that reliable fourth guy? The fifth spot is a big concern, too, as the Commodores are probably a longshot to win SECs without both of its first-team All-Americans raking. … South Carolina played it safe with scheduling in Rob Bradley’s first season as head coach, but it’s hard to ignore a top-20 national ranking. And that was even with senior Nathan Franks not posting a top-10 and ending the fall outside the top 200 individually. … Like South Carolina, Mississippi State was a nice surprise in the fall, which was highlighted by the Bulldogs finishing second at Blessings. However, they were 16 shots back of LSU there, and that was the closest they came to winning all fall. Junior Garrett Endicott had three top-13s, but the Bulldogs need more at the top and from the fifth spot. … Alabama roared out of the gates by winning the Folds of Honor title, but then it crashed back to earth finishing 12th-seventh-14th (last), albeit against three stout fields. Stetson transfer Dominic Clemons won the individual title at Folds but then mimicked his team by not finishing better than T-37 after that. With no real No. 1 and two big-time recruits, freshmen Nicholas Gross and William Jennings, struggling, the Tide have much to improve on. … Junior Lance Simpson (three top-5s) has done his best to carry Tennessee, but the rest of the lineup was marked by inconsistency, and the Vols lost some momentum each time out in the fall. The biggest concern is freshman Jackson Herrington, who twice finished outside the top 60 and then withdrew from the Jones Cup with a sore knee. … After getting knocked around early, Texas A&M took advantage of some confidence boosters late, including winning Furman’s event to cap the fall. Junior Jaime Montojo being ranked a shocking No. 482 individually probably explains why the Aggies haven’t been better. … Georgia got a lot of run with five fall tournaments, though it failed to crack the top three in any of them. The usual suspects are playing well – senior Buck Brumlow and VCU transfer Grayson Wood are both top-70 players – but the lack of depth hurts.

Pick to win: Auburn

WOMEN

Championship info: April 14-18, Pelican GC, Belleair, Florida

Recent champions: Mississippi State (2024), Texas A&M (2023), LSU (2022), Auburn (2021), Ole Miss (2019), Arkansas (2018), Florida (2017), Alabama (2016), Texas A&M (2015), Vanderbilt (2014)

Team rankings: Arkansas (2), South Carolina (3), Texas (5), Mississippi State (10), Vanderbilt (15), LSU (16), Texas A&M (17), Ole Miss (19), Auburn (20), Florida (26), Kentucky (34), Tennessee (40), Oklahoma (44), Alabama (58), Missouri (61), Georgia (62)

Midseason All-Conference teams: First – Maria Jose Marin, Arkansas (2); Hannah Darling, South Carolina (7); Kendall Todd, Arkansas (8); Reagan Zibilski, Arkansas (9); Farah O’Keefe, Texas (15); Second – Avery Weed, Mississippi State (16); Rocio Tejedo, LSU (17); Louise Rydqvist, South Carolina (21); Cayetana Fernandez Garcia-Poggio, Texas A&M (24); Anna Davis, Auburn (25)

What to watch: Sure, there is the annual Blessings rankings boost for Arkansas, but the Razorbacks won another time while finishing second in their other two stroke-play events (they also won the match-play title at Stephens Cup). There’s a lot to love about this team, which has three top-10 individuals, including sophomore Maria Jose Marin, who won the South American Amateur by 12 shots earlier this month. Freshman Clarisa Temelo added three top-7s, and nice depth means the fifth spot shouldn’t be an issue come April, either. … South Carolina, which opened the fall by winning the Annika, was already hot on Arkansas’ heels – and that was before the Gamecocks added freshman Eila Galitsky (No. 18 in WAGR) after the fall. Adding Galtisky to a lineup that already includes senior Louise Rydqvist and a resurgent Hannah Darling (one win, three other top-11s last fall) gives South Carolina one of the best trios in the nation. … Texas probably expected more than one win in head coach Laura Ianello’s first semester, but the Longhorns remain NCAA and SEC contenders. Sophomores Farah O’Keefe and Lauren Kim combined for four top-3 finishes in the fall, and if senior Bo Park’s winter win at the Patriot is a signal of a comeback – Park only played one college event this year, at last spring’s Darius Rucker (T-82) – Texas will be a tough out. … Sophomore Avery Weed (two wins, two other top-11s) had a breakout fall for Mississippi State, but the Bulldogs have the unfortunate task of now replacing Julia Lopez Ramirez, who turned pro for Q-Series last winter. … Vanderbilt had four different players post a top-7 finish in the fall, including sophomore Sara Im, who had three top-10s. If junior Tillie Claggett, who is ranked No. 250 individually, improves, the Commodores are deep enough to make some noise in match play at SECs. … Three top-3s and then a sixth at Stanford wasn’t bad at all for an LSU team that lost Ingrid Lindblad and two other All-Americans. Freshman Rocio Tejedo had three top-5s in the fall to the lead the Tigers. … Texas A&M only had three top-300 players after the fall, and now one of those, Adela Cernousek, has turned pro. … Ole Miss shook off an 11th at the Cougar Classic to win back-to-back tournaments in the fall. Senior Caitlyn Macnab had a win and a third, but it is a very young team behind her, which could be good or bad as it pertains to this spring. … Auburn went 1-2-3-4 this fall, in that order, and it can’t afford this spring to be so reliant on super sophomore Anna Davis, who had a win and didn’t finish worse than third in four fall starts. … Watch out for Florida this spring. The Gators haven’t reached nationals since 2019, but their deep roster arguably got deeper this winter as junior Karoline Tuttle, who didn’t hit a shot in the fall, won the Dixie and placed fifth at the Sally this winter. … Kentucky only beat one SEC opponent ranked better than it in the fall, though the Wildcats might have a future star in freshman Elin Pudas Remler, who had three top-12s in the fall.

Pick to win: South Carolina.

Mid-majors

MEN

Top teams: Pepperdine (19), South Florida (23), Charlotte (29), San Diego State (32), College of Charleston (35), Long Beach State (39), Colorado State (40), Little Rock (41), UNLV (44), Marquette (47), Kennesaw State (48), Pacific (50)

Top individuals: Kieron van Wyk, College of Charleston (5); Jake Peacock, South Florida (12); Mahanth Chirravuri, Pepperdine (39); Patrick Adler, Marquette (40); Jay Pabin, Colorado State (42)

WOMEN

Top teams: Georgia Southern (37), UNLV (38), San Jose State (39), UC Davis (41), Campbell (47), Pepperdine (48), Long Beach State (50)

Top individuals: Lauren Gomez, Pepperdine (51); Catherine Rao, Pepperdine (52); Riana Mission, San Francisco (53); Davina Xanh, Cal State-Fullerton (54); Louise Reau, Georgia Southern (60)