The NCAA is making adjustments to the college golf rankings methodology for the 2024-25 season, following feedback and recommendations from various groups after a controversial debut last season.
Members from NCAA Division I, II, and III, as well as NAIA and NJCAA programs, were part of the rankings working groups.
Golfweek obtained the memo announcing the changes, which were also shared on social media.
Four changes are being made to the rankings criteria for the upcoming season. The points scale will be compressed for a more consistent distribution of points, and certain types of competition will have reduced weighting. Guardrails will also be tightened to limit the impact of outlier results.
Feedback from Division I, II, and III Men’s and Women’s Golf Committees, along with collaboration with Mark Broadie and NCAA staff, influenced these changes.
Broadie’s system uses a weighted average points system based on head-to-head stroke differentials. Despite a year of using this method, there was still confusion among coaches last year after decades of a different ranking system.
At last year’s coaches convention, Broadie expressed willingness to adjust his ranking system based on coaches’ feedback.
The adjustments to the rankings criteria will be reflected in the first rankings release next week.
