Believe it or not, but this might be the most important blog post we have ever written! Granted, this might sound a bit dramatic, but it is crucial for every aspiring college golfer to really understand this information before he or she starts the recruiting process. This will allow you to make the best possible decision for your future college golf career, based on facts, numbers and by fully understanding the different divisions and governing bodies of college golf.
There are some big misconceptions that a lot of young golfers have about certain teams and about the different divisions. At Sports & Study USA, we take our job as consultants very serious, so we try to explain the differences (and similarities) to all our golfers either before we start the recruiting process with them, or at least very early on. Now, here is the bottom line…you will find very good, good, average and weaker teams in every division!! When we say every division, we want to focus mainly on NCAA Division 1, NCAA Division 2, and on the NAIA, since the NJCAA and NCAA Division 3 are slightly different for athletes because of academics and scholarships. Anyways, here are some important numbers and comparisons to prove that NCAA Division 2 and the NAIA actually compare much more to NCAA Division 1 than most people think:
Let’s start with the men’s side! At the division 1 level, the team that is ranked 150th in the Clippd D1 rankings, Gonzaga University, averages 288.8 strokes per round. That is the total score for four players, so an average of 72.2 per counting player. The team that is currently ranked 225th in the rankings, Morehead State University in Kentucky, averages 294.8 per round. Lastly, the US Air Force Academy, which is ranked 250th in division 1 has a 296.9 scoring average per tournament round. Now, let’s compare these numbers to some NCAA division 2 and NAIA programs. The number 1 ranked team in division 2, Grand Valley State University, has averaged 277.4, so 69.35 per player, so far this season. In comparison to that, the 50th ranked team in the country, Belmont Abbey College in North Carolina, has a 291.7 scoring average per round, which would place them within the top 200 in the NCAA Division 1 rankings. The same trend can be found in the NAIA, where the number 1 team, Keiser University in Florida has averaged 281 shots per round and the 25th ranked team, Southeastern University has had a 290.4 scoring average so far this season, again placing them within the top 200 in division 1 golf if you strictly look at team scoring averages.
Now, does the same rule of thumb apply to the women’s side? The answer is easy, yes it does! If we look at the team that is ranked 150th in division 1 golf, University of Wyoming, the team has averaged 299.6 so far this season. The University of Alabama Birmingham, which currently occupies the 225th spot in the D1 rankings, has averaged 313.8 as a team during the fall semester. Let’s do the same here and compare these numbers to division 2 and to the NAIA. The number 1 ranked D2 team in the country, Wingate University in North Carolina, currently has a 287.2 scoring average, while the 50th ranked team, Point Loma in California has averaged 307 shots per round, which would also place them in the top 200 in the D1 golf rankings based on scoring averages. At the NAIA level, you will again see similar numbers, with the best team, Keiser University, averaging 291 per round, while the 25th ranked team, Milligan University, has averaged 313.1 so far this season as a team.
So as you can see, the difference between NCAA Division 1, Division 2, and NAIA are not as big as most people think. To the contrary, many D2 or NAIA teams would be very competitive at the D1 level. Now granted, not every team plays on the same golf courses and some courses might be easier than others, so these numbers need to be looked at with a grain of salt, but in general we strongly believe in the fact that you will find both, good and weaker teams, in all college golf divisions! So make sure you look at each individual team, rather than focusing on which division the university plays in before you make your final decision. That, in our opinion, is by far the best approach and will allow you to get the best possible experience out of your college golf career!