FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, April 26th, 2017

GOLF CHANNEL RAMPS UP SIX WEEKS OF COMPREHENSIVE COLLEGE GOLF COVERAGE CULMINATING WITH THE NCAA WOMEN’S AND MEN’S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS, MAY 19-31

More than 100 News and Tournament Hours Planned for Women’s and Men’s Championships, Back-to-Back Weeks at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill.

Two National Championships – Individual and Team – to be Decided Over a Three-Day Span at Both Women’s and Men’s Golf Championships

Golf Channel to Announce NCAA Division I Women’s and Men’s Golf Championships Selections on Thursday, April 27 and Thursday, May 4

Golf Channel Analyst and Northern Illinois Alum Mark Rolfing Joins NCAA Golf Championships Coverage as News Analyst

ORLANDO, Fla., April 26, 2017 – With conference championships underway, golf fans will be able to follow their favorite college golf programs and alma maters as they attempt to qualify and compete in the 2017 NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships in May when Golf Channel gears up its comprehensive on-air and digital collegiate golf coverage the next six weeks.

Beginning Thursday, April 27 at 11 am ET (women) and continuing Thursday, May 4 at Noon ET (men), Golf Channel will announce live the teams and individuals selected by the NCAA to participate in the women’s and men’s regional championships, the first step on the road to the NCAA Golf Championships.

Taking place at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill., May 19-31, the 2017 NCAA Women’s and Men’s Golf Championships will be contested in back-to-back weeks, with more than 100 hours of combined news and tournament coverage  on Golf Channel, as well as expanded coverage online via Golf Channel Digital and through the network’s social media channels.

“Now in the fourth year of our partnership, the NCAA and Golf Channel are successfully raising the profile of college golf by shining a spotlight on the game’s future stars and the passion these programs have in competing for national championships,” said Molly Solomon, Golf Channel executive producer. “Our viewers have been treated to some of the most dramatic and intense match-play competition the past few years, including the Oregon men and Washington women both needing extra holes in 2016 to win their first NCAA golf national championship in their school’s histories.”

REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS SELECTION ANNOUNCEMENTS: The men’s and women’s regional selection announcements will be made live on Golf Channel and feature live interviews and reaction from coaches and players:

  • Women’s Golf Championships Regional Selections, Thursday, April 27, 11 a.m. ET: Morning Drive will announce (live) the 72 teams and 24 individuals selected to compete in the four NCAA Women’s Regional Championships, May 8-10 (18 teams and six individuals per regional). 24 teams and 12 individuals will advance from regional sites to the national championships.
  • Men’s Golf Championships Regional Selections, Thursday, May 4, Noon ET: Golf Central will announce the 81 teams and 45 individuals selected to compete in the six NCAA Men’s Regional Championships, May 15-17 (13 teams and 10 individuals at three regionals and 14 teams and five individuals at three regionals). 30 teams and six individuals will advance from regional sites to the national championships.

REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS COVERAGE: Morning Drive and Golf Central will feature scores, highlights and analysis from the women’s regional sites (Monday-Wednesday, May 8-10) and the men’s regionals (Monday-Wednesday, May 15-17). Golf Channel Digital and will provide up-to-date scoring and news coverage of the regional championships.

NCAA GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS COVERAGE: Contested in back-to-back weeks, May 19-31, Golf Channel will dedicate its full suite of production resources to the NCAA Women’s and Men’s Golf Championships, featuring nearly 30 hours combined hours of live tournament coverage, as well as more than 50 hours of encores. In addition, Golf Central will feature nearly 30 hours of combined pre-and post-event live news coverage produced on location, as well as daily news updates on Morning Drive and Golf Channel Digital.

Hosted by Northern Illinois University at Rich Harvest Farms, the 2017 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships will feature teams and student-athletes who advanced from the NCAA Regional Championships. Competing in an individual stroke-play format over 72 holes Friday-Monday, the top eight teams will advance to the team match-play tournament Tuesday and Wednesday. Two national championships – individual and team – will be decided over each of the three days and the women’s and men’s championships.

Golf Channel’s live tournament coverage of the women’s championships will begin on Monday, May 22 to crown the individual national champion, as well as to track 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 23 and Wednesday, May 24. The same television coverage is planned for the men’s national championships the following week: Monday, May 29-Wednesday, May 31.

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

Golf Channel NCAA Men’s Golf Championships Coverage
Monday, May 29        Individual National Championship     4-8 p.m. ET (Live)
Tuesday, May 30        Quarterfinals, Team Match Play         11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. ET (Live)
Tuesday, May 30        Semifinals, Team Match Play 4-8 p.m. ET (Live)
Wednesday, May 31   Team National Championship 4-8 p.m. ET (Live)

GOLF CHANNEL ANALYST MARK ROLFING JOINS NCAA COVERAGE AS NEWS ANALYST
Northern Illinois alumnus and Golf Channel/NBC Sports analyst Mark Rolfing will join Golf Channel’s on-site news coverage for the NCAA Men’s Golf Championships. Rolfing, a native of DeKalb, Ill., who competed collegiately at DePauw University in Indiana, will contribute to both Morning Drive and Golf Central during the men’s championships.

COLLEGE CENTRAL – GOLF CHANNEL DIGITAL COVERAGE: Golf Channel is providing comprehensive coverage leading up to and during the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships as part of College Central, Golf Channel Digital’s home for college golf. Led by Jay Coffin, Ryan Lavner and Steve 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.

NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS FEATURES: Over the next six weeks, Golf Channel will integrate several high-quality features and unique stories on teams and players leading up to the NCAA Golf Championships. Scheduled features include:

  • 2016 NCAA Women’s Golf Championship Remarkable Finish – A look back at the dramatic finishing holes between 2015 national champion Stanford Cardinal and the Washington Huskies to decide the 2016 team national championship, where Washington needed extra holes to claim their first championship in school history.
  • Not Just NCAA Student Athletes, Now Olympians – Duke’s Leona Maguire, Stanford’s Albane Valenzuela and USC’s Tiffany Chan represented their countries at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Golf Channel will share experiences the players had competing for their respective countries when golf returned as an Olympic sport.
  • Hometown Oregon defeats Texas for the 2016 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship – The University of Oregon, playing on its home course at Eugene Country Club, swept the 2016 NCAA titles, with Aaron Wise winning the individual national championship and the Ducks needing extra holes to defeat Texas to win its first team national championship.
  • Top-Ranked University of Southern California Men’s Golf Team – The USC Trojans capped their 2016-17 season with four wins, highlighted by the 18-stroke win at the Western Intercollegiate to conclude their regular season. Golf Channel will take a look at the unique personalities that make up this veteran team heading into the NCAA Golf Championships.
  • Player Profiles: Illinois’ Dylan Meyer, Oregon’s Wyndham Clark, Stanford’s Maverick McNealy Golf Channel will profile three of the top men’s collegiate golfers in the country – Illinois junior Dylan Meyer, Oregon senior Wyndham Clark and Stanford senior Maverick McNealy.

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS NEWS COVERAGE: Golf Channel will cover the conference championships with scores and analysis across its on-air news platforms – Morning Drive and Golf Central – and online within College Central.

ABOUT THE NCAA
The NCAA is a diverse association of more than 1,100 member colleges and universities that prioritize academics, well-being and fairness to create greater opportunities for nearly a half a million student-athletes each year. The NCAA provides a pathway to higher education and beyond for student-athletes pursuing academic goals and competing in NCAA sports. More than 54,000 student-athletes experience the pinnacle of intercollegiate athletics by competing in NCAA championships each year. Visit www.ncaa.org and www.ncaa.com for more details about the Association and the corporate partnerships that support the NCAA and its student-athletes.

ABOUT GOLF CHANNEL
Golf Channel is a multimedia, golf entertainment and services company based in Orlando, Fla. Serving the most-affluent audience in all of television, Golf Channel – co-founded by Arnold Palmer in 1995 and now part of NBC Sports Group – is available to nearly 500 million viewers in 78 countries and nine languages around the world. Golf Channel features more live golf coverage than all other networks combined, including tournament action from the PGA TOUR, LPGA Tour, The Open, Olympics, and Ryder Cup, as well as high-quality news, instruction and original programming. Delivering unmatched coverage of the world of golf, fans are able to enjoy 24/7 live streaming of Golf Channel content through Golf Channel Digital and the NBC Sports App, powered by Playmaker Media. In addition, Golf Channel connects the world to golf through a wide array of digital and lifestyle services including Golf Channel Mobile, a comprehensive app covering golf’s latest headlines, scores and analysis; GolfNow, the world’s largest online tee time booking platform and golf course technology partner, which includes the GolfNow Mobile App, featuring on-course GPS tracking, in-round scoring and game tracking; GolfAdvisor.com, the world’s largest golf course ratings and review resource for golfers, by golfers; a North American network of Golf Channel Academy instructional facilities; and Golf Channel Am Tour, the world’s largest amateur golf tour.

-NBC Sports Group-