Golf Channel's Live Coverage of 2016 NCAA Women's Golf Championships Begins May 23

Field of 24 Teams and 12 Individuals Headlined by Defending Champion Stanford University

(ORLANDO, Fla.) – Golf Channel will deliver comprehensive news and tournament coverage of the 2016 NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championships, airing in primetime Monday, May 23-Wednesday, May 25 from Eugene Country Club in Eugene, Oregon.

Golf Channel’s live tournament coverage of the women’s championships begins on Monday, May 23 to crown the individual national champion, as well as tracking the teams attempting to qualify for the eight-team match play tournament. Golf Channel’s coverage also will include all three rounds of the team match-play tournament on Tuesday, May 24 and Wednesday, May 25. In addition, Golf Central will surround live tournament coverage with pre-and post-event news coverage produced on location, as well as daily news updates on Morning Drive and online via Golf Channel Digital. News and tournament coverage also will be live streamed on Golf Live Extra.

Golf Channel NCAA Women’s Golf Championships Coverage (all times ET)
May 23 - Final Round, Individual National Championship - 7-10 p.m. (Live)
May 24 - Quarterfinals, Team Match Play - 1:30-3:30 p.m. (Live)
May 24 - Semifinals, Team Match Play - 6:30-10 p.m. (Live)
May 25 - Finals, Team Match Play - 6-10 p.m. (Live)

NCAA Women’s Golf Championships Format: The championship format consists of 24 teams and 12 individuals (not on those teams competing) in 54 holes of stroke play, beginning Friday, May 20. Following Sunday’s third round, the top-15 teams along with nine individuals not on an advancing team will compete on Monday, May 23 to crown the individual national champion. The top eight teams from the 72-hole stroke play championship will advance to the team match play championship on Tuesday and Wednesday, May 24 and 25.

Teams competing: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, BYU, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Furman, Georgia, Miami, Michigan, North Carolina, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Oregon, South Carolina, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, USC, Virginia and Washington.

Individuals competing: Elise Bradley (Louisiana State), Sarah Burnham (Michigan State), Olivia Cason (Louisville), Leonie Harm (Houston), August Kim (Purdue), Jennifer Kupcho (Wake Forest), Marianne Li (California-Berkley), Laura Lonardi (Baylor), Bianca Pagdanganan (Gonzaga), Lauren Stephenson (Clemson), Linnea Strom (Arizona State) Andrea Wong (California-Davis).

Marathon Classic Offers Two Exemptions From 2016 NCAA Women’s Golf Championships
The individual champion from the 2016 NCAA Women’s Golf Championships and a representative from the team national champions once again will receive exemptions to compete in the 2016 Marathon Classic presented by Owens Corning and O-I taking place in July.

Semifinal Teams in Match Play to Receive Invitations to Compete in East Lake Cup: The East Lake Cup, taking place in late October at historic East Lake Golf Club and featuring the top-performing teams from the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships, will expand to a new three-day format for 2016. Invitations for the field will be extended to the semifinalists of the team match-play tournaments at both the 2016 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships. Modeled after the NCAA Golf Championships, the new format for the East Lake Cup will consist of an opening round of stroke play to crown an individual male and female champion and determine seeding for the following two days of match play competition. Golf Channel will air live coverage of the East Lake Cup Monday-Wednesday, Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

Blumenherst and Castrale Join NCAA Broadcast Team: Newcomers to Golf Channel’s NCAA on-air team include Amanda Blumenherst – one of the most decorated women’s collegiate athletes in history from Duke University and 2008 U.S. Women’s Amateur Champion – who will join Golf Channel as a news analyst for the women’s golf championships. Golf Channel analyst Nicole Castrale also will join the live tournaments team as a course reporter for the women’s golf championships.

Women’s Golf Championships On-Air Teams: Golf Channel’s on-air team for the NCAA Women’s Golf Championships will feature major champion Karen Stupples as lead analyst and Bob Papa as play-by-play host. Curt Byrum will serve as hole announcer, with Billy Ray Brown, Castrale and Kay Cockerill reporting from the course. Golf Channel’s college insider Steve Burkowski will join the broadcast booth as co-analyst. Lisa Cornwell will host Golf Central, joined by Paige Mackenzie, Blumenherst, Burkowski and Golf Channel Digital senior writer Ryan Lavner.

College Central – Golf Channel Digital Coverage: Golf Channel will provide comprehensive coverage via College Central, Golf Channel Digital’s home for college golf. Led by Jay Coffin, Lavner and Burkowski, College Central will be the source for all things college golf, including tournament results and scores, features and columns, video highlights and breaking news.

ANNIKA Award Winner to be Announced on Golf Central Tuesday, June 7: Golf Channel will announce the winner of one of the most prestigious awards in college golf –the ANNIKA Award Presented by 3M – following the conclusion of the NCAA Women’s Golf Championships, on a live edition of Golf Central, Tuesday, June 7 at 6 p.m. ET. The show will include profiles on the top candidates for both awards and live interviews with the winner, who also will receive an exemption to compete in the 2016 Evian Championship in September, the final major on the LPGA Tour in 2016. The ANNIKA Award Presented by 3M honors the nation’s most outstanding female Division I collegiate golfer as selected by her peers, coaches and the golf media. The 2015 winner of the ANNIKA Award was Duke Freshman Leona Maguire, who tallied three wins and finished individual runner-up in the 2015 NCAA Women’s Golf Championships.