Over the years, high schools and middle schools have adopted a two-tier system with junior-varsity and varsity teams to help build their programs. By following this system, junior varsity player get ample practice time while still being able to develop in a competitive setting. This allows golfers to build up their confidence and skill in preparation for the varsity team.
The NCCGA has a similar system where schools can bring two teams to each tournament. Throughout the years, the NCCGA has found that teams that bring both an (A) team and a (B) team to tournaments have had exceptional success when it comes to winning NCCGA tournaments. Having two teams has helped clubs maintain a talented team for many years to come. In a way, they have been able to establish a "farm-system" similar to minor league baseball. Below are 5 reasons why your club golf team should send two teams to NCCGA tournaments:
1) Promote Long-Term Growth
The long-term growth of your team is very important. Just like in all sports, if a team is full of seniors, it is likely that they will have trouble fielding a strong team once those competitors graduate due to lack of experience. By bringing two teams to NCCGA tournaments, clubs can expose and introduce younger players to the level of competition without losing roster spots to older players. Less skilled golfers can start to develop faster while being able to make an impact on the (A) team in the near future.
2) Cheaper Dues
Playing competitive college golf tournaments at amazing venues across the country can get expensive. The NCCGA charges team dues to help off-set the cost of setting up 56 amazing regionals and 1 unforgettable national tournament. NCCGA Club golfers have been spoiled by low semester fees. With only one team, there is a $300 membership fee per semester. If your school has the capacity to compete with two teams, you only pay $500 instead of $600. In other words, the NCCGA is using economies of scale to promote increased college golf and decrease costs. Bring two teams to your tournaments and save $100. In addition, the first semester your club brings a B team, you pay no additional dues. It's simply $300 to cover the A + B teams (normally $500).
3) Improve Qualifying
While players may not switch from the (A) team or (B) team between rounds of a single tournament, clubs may shuffle their rosters for the second tournament. By sending two teams to the first regional tournament, it will be much easier to decide who qualifies for the (A) and (B) teams for the second regional tournament because you can assess how golfers perform under pressure during the first regional tournament.
Note: Players on the (A) team that finish first through fifth in the first regional tournament are not permitted to play on the (B) team in the second regional tournament.
4) Increase Competition
We are all playing in the NCCGA to get our "golf-fix", to have fun and to hopefully win. The more golfers your team brings to each tournament, the more people get to experience the fun and excitement of college golf. Furthermore, a larger pool of golfers at a tournament generally results in increased competition. With more golfers actively competing in tournaments, each (A) team should improve more and more.
5) Increase Team Bonding & Camaraderie
After reading through 200+ surveys that college golfers around the nation submitted to the NCCGA, it is very clear that club golf has a huge impact on the players' lives. To summarize the survey results, many golfers made new friends, had a lot of fun at tournaments, became closer to their teammates and enjoyed the camaraderie. There is so much more to the NCCGA than just golf. There is a reason why more club golf teams are joining the NCCGA each year.
**Brandon Harrold was the 2015 NCCGA President.
