Baylor women’s golf begins 2017 NCAA Tournament play at the Athens (Ga.) Regional, which runs Monday through Wednesday at University of Georgia Golf Course.
The 54-hole tournament will be played on the par-72, 6,344-yard course. Eighteen teams compete at each of the four regional sites, and the six lowest scoring teams along with the three lowest scoring individuals not on those teams advance to the 35th-annual NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championships. The 2017 NCAA Championships are scheduled for May 19-24 at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill.
Baylor is making its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance in six seasons under head coach Jay Goble and the 15th appearance in program history. The Lady Bears are looking to advance to the NCAA Championships for a third time in the last six years (2012, 2015). Baylor’s last NCAA Tournament appearance culminated in a runner-up finish, as BU fell in a 19th-hole playoff against Stanford in the national title match.
The 18-team field at the Athens Regional features No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Northwestern, No. 4 Arizona, No. 5 Baylor, No. 6 Wake Forest, No. 7 UCF, No. 8 Tennessee, No. 9 North Carolina, No. 10 Clemson, No. 11 Augusta, No. 12 Auburn, No. 13 Kansas State, No. 14 Michigan State, No. 15 Troy, No. 16 Princeton, No. 17 North Florida and No. 18 Quinnipiac.
Baylor’s lineup is led by junior Amy Lee, who was named 2017 Big 12 Player of the Year, becoming the first Baylor player to win the league’s top individual honor. She’s followed by redshirt sophomore and 2017 Big 12 individual champion Dylan Kim. Sophomore Maria Vesga is in the No. 3 spot, freshman Fiona Liddell is No. 4, and senior Maggie Beth Byers returns to the lineup in the No. 5 slot after sitting out two of the last three tournaments.
Monday’s first round is slated for tee times beginning at 6:30 a.m. CT from the first and 10th tees. As the No. 5 seed, Baylor is in the second trio of teams off the first tee, joining No. 4 Arizona and No. 6 Wake Forest. Byers is up first at 7:27 a.m., and she’ll be followed in nine-minute intervals by Liddell, Vesga, Kim and Lee, respectively.
Live scoring will be available for each round in the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championship at www.Golfstat.com. Follow @BaylorWGolf on Twitter and Facebook for updates throughout the season.
NCAA ATHENS REGIONAL (Golfstat Ranking)
1. Alabama (No. 3)
2. Georgia (No. 8)
3. Northwestern (No. 11)
4. Arizona (No. 14)
5. Baylor (No. 19)
6. Wake Forest (No. 22)
7. UCF (No. 25)
8. Tennessee (No. 31)
9. North Carolina (No. 35)
10. Clemson (No. 39)
11. Augusta (No. 43)
12. Auburn (No. 45)
13. Kansas State (No. 51)
14. Michigan State (No. 53)
15. Troy (No. 85)
16. Princeton (No. 109)
17. North Florida (No. 134)
18. Quinnipiac (No. 210)
