Golf Channel to Deliver Nearly 30 Hours of Live Coverage of '17 NCAA Women's Golf Championships

Two National Championships to be Decided Over a Three-Day Span – Individual (May 22) and Team (May 24)

(ORLANDO, Fla.) – Golf Channel will shine a spotlight on women’s college golf and the LPGA Tour’s future stars at the 2017 NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championships, taking place Monday-Wednesday, May 22-24. With nearly 30 hours of live tournament and news coverage on-site from Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill., Golf Channel’s comprehensive coverage will be the most number of live hours of the NCAA Women’s Golf Championships in history.

Golf Channel’s live tournament coverage of the women’s championships begins on Monday, May 22 to crown the individual national champion, which also will track the teams attempting to qualify for the eight-team match play championship. Golf Channel’s coverage on Tuesday and Wednesday, May 23-24 will include all three rounds of the team match play, ultimately crowning a team national champion. 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 Channel Digital.

Golf Channel NCAA Women’s Golf Championships Coverage (all times ET)
Monday, May 22
Individual National Championship
4-8 p.m. (Live)
Tuesday, May 23
Quarterfinals, Team Match Play
11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Live)
Tuesday, May 23
Semifinals, Team Match Play
4-8 p.m. (Live)
Wednesday, May 24
Team Match Play National Championship
4-8 p.m. (Live)

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 19. Following Sunday’s third round, the top-15 teams along with nine individuals not on an advancing team will compete on Monday, May 22 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 23 and 24.

Teams (24): Alabama, Arizona State, Baylor, California, Clemson, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Furman, Kent State, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon, Pepperdine, Purdue, South Carolina, Southern California, Stanford, Texas, Texas Tech.
Individuals (12): Martina Edelberg (Cal State Fullerton); Bianca Pagdanganan (Gonzaga); Nadine White (Campbell); Jennifer Kupcho (Wake Forest); Laura Fuenfstueck (College of Charleston); Maya Walton (Princeton); Cara Gorlei (Arkansas); Camila Serrano (Florida International Univ.); Maddie Szeryk (Texas A&M); Julienne Soo (Oklahoma); Alex White (Brigham Young); Susie Cavanagh (Oregon State).

Marathon Classic Offers Two Exemptions From 2017 NCAA Women’s Golf Championships: The individual champion from the 2017 NCAA Women’s Golf Championships and a representative from the team national champions once again will receive exemptions to compete in the 2017 Marathon Classic presented by Owens Corning and O-I taking place July 17-23.

Semifinal Teams in Match Play to Receive Invitations to Compete in East Lake Cup presented by Hewlett Packard Enterprise: The East Lake Cup, taking place in late October at historic East Lake Golf Club will feature the top-performing teams from the 2017 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships. Invitations for the field will be extended to the semifinalists of the team match play tournaments at both the 2017 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships. Modeled after the NCAA Golf Championships, the 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. 30-Nov. 1.

Women’s Golf Championships On-Air Team: 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, Kay Cockerill and Gail Graham 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, Amanda Blumenherst, Chantel McCabe and GolfChannel.com 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.
Golf Channel also will deliver comprehensive social media coverage via the network’s official social media platforms on Twitter, Facebook and Snapchat. Social media host Alexandra O’Laughlin will make her Golf Channel debut at the NCAA Women’s and Men’s Golf Championships. O’Laughlin, a former college golfer with Lewis University in suburban Chicago, will contribute to Golf Channel’s digital and social media coverage for both championships.

ANNIKA Award Winner Announced on Golf Central Wednesday, 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, Wednesday, 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 2017 Evian Championship in September, the final major on the LPGA Tour in 2017. 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 2016 winner of the ANNIKA Award was UCLA junior Bronte Law, who won three times and recorded eight top-10 finished in 10 starts during her 2015-16 NCAA season.