The 2000 Division I Men's Golf Championships has a new qualification format designed to provide additional opportunities to institutions that might not otherwise have the chance to compete in the national tournament.

The tournament will employ automatic qualification to the regionals for the first time. A total of 28 conferences will earn automatic berths to one of three regionals, leaving 19 at-large selections. Because this is the first time for automatic qualification, a number of conferences that would not have qualified in the past (due to strength-of-schedule ratings or other reasons) will have an avenue to qualify for the national championships.

"We're excited about being able to offer more programs and conferences the opportunity to participate in the national championships sooner than they would have in the past," said Betsy Reed, chair of the subcommittee and the assistant athletics director/
senior woman administrator at St. Mary's College (California).

Reed hopes the new automatic-qualification formula will create more excitement around the championships and open the tournament to a broader group of student-athletes.

"This will change the dynamics and match up the good teams," Reed said. "Rising programs, by virtue of automatic qualification, will have a clear opportunity to participate in the tournament. This change brings us more in line with the way the rest of the Association is going."

Potential expense

As with any change, there have been and will be issues the subcommittee must deal with in order to have a successful championship. A primary issue is the potential cost factor for some institutions. Member schools are responsible for their expenses at the regional level in men's golf.

"Obviously, an athletics director has to decide whether or not the added expense is worth it," said Bob Livingstone, a subcommittee member from Long Beach State University. "I think it would be tough to come to your team and tell them they can't go, but that might be the reality at some schools."

Livingstone also said with automatic qualification, there will be some institutions that will be going to the regional mainly for the experience and not with a realistic shot at qualifying for the national tournament.

"I'm realistic in saying some of the teams are just not going to be able to compete," he said. "That, to me, is a long-term issue. Knowing that every team will get a chance to be there will be a pretty big improvement, I think. We hope this leads to parity in the long term."

College golf is treated in much the same way as cross country, which does not have selections for its championship. However, with the decision to automatically qualify teams, Reed said the subcommittee will ask the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet to fund the regionals.

"In the future, it is our hope that we will cover the expense," Reed said. "In some individual sports -- cross country, for example -- selections are not made. In the future, we hope we won't have to put a school in a tough spot."

That's not to say teams necessarily will be turning down bids to participate in the championship.

"We have to be prepared for the possibility (of a team declining to participate)," said John Cochrane, the NCAA's assistant director of championships assigned to the tournament. "We certainly hope it does not happen."

Regional alignment

Another issue is the alignment of districts and regionals. The West Regional, with fewer teams in its geographic region (two districts), has the largest number of at-large selections. So, there is a good chance that an automatic qualifier from the East will be placed in the West regional, mainly because the number of open slots is fewer in the East and Central.

"Right now, our main problem is making sure the right teams are in the field and making sure the at-large teams are deserving," Livingstone said. "Once you have the field, determining where they go is the big issue. We will have a lot of discussion about placing teams."

Another point the committee has addressed is the equity for access to the championships. In the past, regional rankings played a large part in the qualification procedure. As with any ranking, teams must prove their worth repeatedly -- sometimes over a period of years -- before breaking into the rankings. Subsequently, institutions that might have deserved a championship opportunity were not included.

"It took up-and-coming programs two years or so to get to the level they are at now because of the rankings," Reed said. "Usually, a program that was on the rise would just have to wait to get the recognition. Likewise, a program that was established, but maybe not as talented, was still included because of the nature of rankings. Now, each team has a chance to qualify."

Another new twist comes after the field is selected on May 9. The committee will meet via conference call after selections and discuss the strength of each region. Based on those discussions, the committee will decide how many teams will advance from each region. In the past, regional allocations were made before selections, and those numbers were based largely on historical data.

"Every coach at each regional feels the region they are in is the best," Livingstone said. "We will look at the current season instead of past history, which just makes sense. Our main goal is to make sure the best teams make it to nationals."

Overall, the committee hopes additional opportunities will enhance the current tournament and raise the level of interest in the championships.

Eventually, Reed sees the championships growing and raising the level of play nationwide.

"Certainly, this is going to be a learning process, and we will have to see how it works at the end of the championships," she said. "We expect there to be some wrinkles we need to iron out. We have tried to think of all the scenarios, but there will be a situation that presents itself that no one has considered. We do think this will make a better, more representative competition for college golf."