The longest day of the college golf year is over. Across six sites — Athens, Bermuda Run, Bryan, Columbus, Corvallis and Marana — 81 teams and 45 individuals played for 30 team spots and six individual berths at the NCAA Championship. The brackets are now settled, and the field for Omni La Costa Resort & Spa is set. Some favorites cruised. Two host schools went home. And the bubble, as always, was merciless.
Every regional was livestreamed for the first time by Babygrande Golf. Here's how all six played out, who's moving on, and what's waiting in Carlsbad from May 29.
The six regionals, site by site
Athens — Vanderbilt steals the show
University of Georgia GC. This was supposed to be a coronation for top-ranked Auburn and Jackson Koivun. Instead, No. 13 Vanderbilt ran away with it, closing at 28-under to win by two over Louisville (-26). Auburn (-22) settled for third — safely through, but firmly reminded that the No. 1 ranking guarantees nothing in May. BYU (-20) and host Georgia (-19) claimed the last two spots. The cruelest scoreline of the week belonged to Charleston, which finished sixth at -18, one shot shy of the cut.
Bermuda Run — Virginia and Pepperdine tie at the top
Bermuda Run Country Club. Last year's national runners-up did exactly what a No. 1 seed should: Virginia tied for the regional title at 816, sharing the trophy with a superb Pepperdine side. No. 10 Ole Miss, hot off its first SEC title in 41 years, took third at 821 (-31) — the seventh-best tournament in school history relative to par — behind a brilliant week from Cameron Tankersley, second individually at -16. USC (825) and Mississippi State (826) grabbed the final two berths. The headline casualty: host Wake Forest, which missed its own regional, finishing seventh.
Bryan — Texas runs away with it
Traditions Club. The host Longhorns turned their regional into a procession, posting a staggering 45-under-par to win by five over second-seeded Texas A&M (-40) at the Aggies' own course. Luke Potter took individual medalist honors. The drama, as ever, was at the cut line: eleventh-seeded Chattanooga produced the upset of the bracket to finish third at -23, and North Carolina (-19) and Tennessee (-18) edged out TCU for the last two spots. The Horned Frogs, ranked No. 34 and seeded sixth, finished — painfully — sixth.
Columbus — Florida survives a windswept grind
OSU Golf Club. No. 2 Florida was the only team to reach the clubhouse at par or better, winning a wind-battered regional at even par — by a remarkable 24 shots. Luke Poulter earned medalist honors for the Gators. Behind the runaway leader it was a true scramble: Stanford (+24), Memphis (+25), Arizona State (+30) and Florida State (+31) all survived to claim the remaining spots, with the Sun Devils and Seminoles climbing in over a tightly bunched chase pack. Conditions, not the field, were the story in Ohio.
Corvallis — Oklahoma cruises, a playoff for the last seat
Trysting Tree Golf Club. No. 17 Oklahoma was untouchable, riding a program-record 19-under second round to a 20-shot win at 34-under. UCLA (-14), Arkansas (-11) and Purdue (-10) followed. The fifth and final spot came down to a playoff: San Diego beat Liberty to advance, with Liberty's Michael Lugiano taking the individual berth as the low player not on a qualifying team. Two big names went home — host Oregon State finished seventh, and No. 7 Texas Tech, one of the best teams in the country all season, came up short in eighth.
Marana — Arizona owns the desert
The Gallery Golf Club. The host Wildcats, the No. 18 ranked team and only the No. 3 seed, blew the doors off their own regional — winning by 14 shots at 49-under 815 for the program's eighth regional title and first since 2022. Defending national champion Oklahoma State was a comfortable second at -35, with LSU (-30) third and Duke and Arkansas State tying for the last two spots at -24. The painful exit here belonged to No. 20 Alabama, which missed the cut along with Clemson, San Diego State and West Virginia. UTEP's Dylan Teeter advanced as the individual qualifier.
The 30 teams headed to Omni La Costa
| Regional | Advancing teams (finish order) |
|---|---|
| Athens | Vanderbilt, Louisville, Auburn, BYU, Georgia |
| Bermuda Run | Virginia, Pepperdine, Ole Miss, USC, Mississippi State |
| Bryan | Texas, Texas A&M, Chattanooga, North Carolina, Tennessee |
| Columbus | Florida, Stanford, Memphis, Arizona State, Florida State |
| Corvallis | Oklahoma, UCLA, Arkansas, Purdue, San Diego |
| Marana | Arizona, Oklahoma State, LSU, Duke, Arkansas State |
Six individual qualifiers — the low player not on an advancing team from each site — also reach Carlsbad, among them Liberty's Michael Lugiano (Corvallis) and UTEP's Dylan Teeter (Marana). Source: Scoreboard by Clippd.
Heartbreak hill: the bubble that broke
Every postseason has a cliff at fifth place, and 2026 sent some quality teams over it:
- Texas Tech (Corvallis, 8th). A top-10 team all year, the Red Raiders never found their footing at Trysting Tree and saw their season end well short of the line.
- Alabama (Marana, missed cut). The No. 20 team in the country couldn't keep pace in a Marana field that Arizona blew open.
- Two hosts went home. Wake Forest (Bermuda Run, 7th) and Oregon State (Corvallis, 7th) both missed their own regionals — a tough look on home turf.
- Charleston (Athens, 6th). One shot. The Cougars finished a single stroke outside the cut after three rounds of good golf.
- TCU (Bryan, 6th). The No. 34 team, seeded sixth, finished sixth — the most literal near-miss of the week.
- Liberty (Corvallis, T5, lost playoff). The Flames did everything but win the playoff against San Diego; Michael Lugiano at least advances as an individual.
Individual storylines
Eric Lee, Oklahoma State. A 9-under 63 at The Gallery, one shy of Jordan Niebrugge's school regional record (62 in 2015), powered the Cowboys' run to second in Marana.
Cameron Tankersley, Ole Miss. Second individually at Bermuda Run at 16-under, including a closing eagle, his week was the second-best three-round showing in Rebels history relative to par.
Luke Potter, Texas & Luke Poulter, Florida. Regional medalists at Bryan and Columbus respectively — Poulter winning the windiest test of the week at even par.
The individual qualifiers. Six players reached Carlsbad without their teams, among them Liberty's Michael Lugiano and UTEP's Dylan Teeter, who carded an 11-under 205 at Marana.
What's next: Omni La Costa, May 29 – June 3
Course: Omni La Costa Resort & Spa — North Course (formerly the Champions Course), Carlsbad, California. A 7,500-yard, par-72 Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner redesign that has hosted the NCAA Championship since 2024 and is locked in through 2028.
Format: 30 teams and six individuals play 54 holes of stroke play (May 29–31). The top 15 teams and nine individuals (not on advancing teams) play a fourth stroke-play round on June 1 to crown the individual champion and set the eight-team match-play bracket. Quarterfinals and semifinals are June 2; the final, June 3.
Defending champions: Oklahoma State, who beat Virginia 4-1 in the 2025 final. Ole Miss's Michael La Sasso won individual medalist honors a year ago. Both programs are back in the field.
What to watch:
- The top of the rankings. Auburn (#1), Florida (#2) and Oklahoma State (#5) all advanced and arrive among the favorites — Auburn chasing the title that slipped away in 2025, Florida riding a season-long surge, Oklahoma State eyeing back-to-back crowns.
- Regional momentum. Texas (-45 at Bryan), Arizona (-49 at Marana) and Oklahoma (-34 at Corvallis) didn't just advance — they dominated. Whether that form travels to a tougher La Costa setup is the question.
- The Ben Hogan Award. Finalists Jackson Koivun (Auburn), Preston Stout (Oklahoma State) and Ben James (Virginia) are all in the field; the winner is announced May 25 in Fort Worth, four days before stroke play.
- Match-play chaos. Three different team champions in three years. The 1-vs-8 and 2-vs-7 quarterfinals are where brackets break; chalk rarely survives.
- The medalist's prize. The individual champion earns invitations to the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills and the 2027 Masters — the richest reward in college golf.
How to follow
Final regional leaderboards: Athens · Bermuda Run · Bryan · Columbus · Corvallis · Marana
Championship livestream: Babygrande Golf
Championship hub: NCAA.com
Sources: Scoreboard by Clippd (final Athens, Bryan, Corvallis leaderboards); Ole Miss Athletics; Oklahoma State Athletics; Texas Tech Athletics; Auburn Athletics; NCAA.com; Golf Bible.