It’s hard to fathom an entire round of golf being canceled because of one hole, but here we are. That’s exactly what happened during the NCAA’s Division III women’s golf tournament on Thursday.
The sixth hole at Mission Inn and Resort’s El Campeon Golf Course was deemed unplayable during a weather delay on Thursday during the tournament. The pin placement being on a severe slope was the problem.
Multiple videos popped up on social media showing putts coming up just shy of the hole and rolling WAY back to where they came from. It was a pretty ridiculous scene. Let’s dive into the details.
Wait, why is the third round being canceled?
The slope on the sixth hole is just too severe for teams to golf on. On putts within about 10 to 15 feet, the ball just rolls back down the slope right where it came from.
It’s ridiculous. Take a look.
Round 3 of the NCAA D3 Women’s Golf Championship was canceled (with nearly 60% of the field finished) because of this hole location, which the NCAA deemed “unplayable.”
Story: https://t.co/lJdUMFYQDc pic.twitter.com/rrsZg2ySIS
— Brentley Romine (@BrentleyGC) May 12, 2023
That’s not on the golfer — that’s on the course. The hole was reportedly cut on a 5 percent slope instead of a flatter surface, the Golf Channel reports. This sort of hole is something you’d see on a mini-golf course, not a competitive one.
The course staff tried watering the area around the hole to make it a bit better but, obviously, it didn’t work.
Wow. What a mess.
It gets even messier, honestly. A whopping 60 percent of the 151-player field had already finished the round, meaning they’d somehow powered through on this ridiculous hole. That throws a bit of a wrench in things.
With the round canceled, the NCAA has decided to cut the tournament down to 54 holes instead of 72. That’s created a bit of drama. Here’s more from the Golf Channel.
Before the third-round scores were scrapped, Claremont Mudd Scripps had posted four scores of 79 or better to gain two shots on 36-hole leader George Fox University. Instead, George Fox, at 45 over, will keep its five-shot lead entering Friday’s final round. Emory had also closed its gap between it and George Fox to seven shots thanks to the round of the championship so far, a 17-over 309, but it will now revert back to a 10-shot deficit.
This situation is absolutely going to impact the outcome of this championship tournament. That’s not a good look.
Does the NCAA have anything to say about this?
The NCAA provided this statement to the Golf Channel on the situation.
“Throughout Round 3 on Thursday, and despite efforts to improve conditions, it became apparent that the pin placement on hole No. 6 … was unplayable,” the committee said in statement provided to GolfChannel.com. “After play was suspended due to lightning late Thursday afternoon, the committee analyzed numerous different options on how to complete the tournament in the time allotted.”
The NCAA is responsible for placing the pins on the course. So this situation is on the NCAA first and foremost.
This is so messed up
But it seems to be par for the course for women’s golf when it comes to the NCAA.
Whenever there are major problems that arise, there seem to just be half-baked solutions that don’t really benefit anyone. It’s a similar situation to when the NCAA women’s golf regional tournament was canceled in Baton Rouge in 2021 because of a downpour. The entire tournament was ended because of what the NCAA deemed an unplayable course.
These women deserve so much better. It’s up to the committee to give it to them. Make it happen, NCAA.
