Clemson coach Kelley Hester remembers a time when the NCAA Division I Women’s Championship field was selected solely by rankings. She was in college at Georgia in 1993 when it changed to regional qualifying. At first, the country was split into two regions, East and West. Then it expanded to three sites in 2001, then four in 2015 and, now, for the first time in 2022, there will be six regional tournaments.
The women’s regional setup now mirrors the men’s in the number of sites. However, six fewer women’s teams will advance to the NCAA Championship in Scottsdale, Arizona. The men and women compete in back-to-back weeks at Grayhawk Golf Club.
Why do the men get to send 30 – five teams from each site – when only 24 teams advance for the women?
