Searching for the Right Collegiate Team: Part 3

Depth of Competition in Men's Golf Do not let the NCAA designation of Division I, II or III cloud your view of a golf program. The difference between I, II, and III is mainly the amount of available athletic based scholarship (explained in the previous post) and depth of competition. Division affiliation should not influence your view regarding important factors such as competitiveness of the program, quality of the coach, quality of the facilities, team environment, and the total cost of attending school. Depth of Competition There are approximately 280 Division I golf teams, 170 Division II golf teams, and 230 Division III golf teams. It is important to understand that not all Division I teams are better than all Division II teams and both are not better than all Division III teams. In my opinion one major difference between the divisions is the number of quality teams that exist at each division. At the Division I level there are a lot of teams that usually compete at a high level at the Division II level this number is much smaller and at the Division III level it is even smaller. Though the number of quality teams is smaller in Division II and III, the teams at the top of those Divisions are excellent and can compete with many division I schools. It is wise to pick your college based on the facts, not on the generalization of Division.