2026 NCAA Division ll Women's Golf Central Regional underway at St. Joseph Country Club
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - St. Joseph is adding another chapter to it's rich history of sporting events, with the 2026 NCAA Division ll Women's Golf Central Regional, in full swing at the St. Joseph Country Club.
From May 4 to May 6, a 96 player field comprised of 18 teams and 6 individual selections will compete for the opportunity advance to the championship round at the PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
"What's unique about championship golf at the NCAA level is these events bring more spectators, family and friends than people think," St. Joseph Sports Commission Director Brett Esley said. " These are not elimination events, teams are for multiple days."
The following teams and players are participating in this years Women's Central Regional.
Teams:
Arkansas Tech
Rogers State
Southwestern Oklahoma State
Washburn
Central Missouri
Arkansas-Fort Smith
Central Oklahoma
Henderson State
Nebraska-Kearney
Harding
Minnesota State
Northwest Missouri State
Missouri Western
Wayne State
Missouri Southern
Winona State
Concordia-St. Paul
Augustana
Individuals:
Morgan Simmons – Oklahoma Baptist
Jessica Parker – Northeastern State
Carley Button – Southeastern Oklahoma State
Haley Whittern – Southern Nazarene
Brianna Chamoun – Southern Arkansas
Gracie Doke – Northwestern Oklahoma State
This year marks the sixth time the NCAA Division ll Central Golf Regional has been in St. Joseph and the third for the Women's Central Regional. The field of participants also features many local ties with members of Missouri Western State University and Northwest Missouri State University.
"It's a privilege to be the host institution for the Central Regional," Esley said. "Anytime we can feature our local institutions (MoWest and Northwest) is huge. We don't have a say over them being guaranteed a spot, but those teams had great seasons and they showed why they qualified for this event."
In addition to local teams from St. Joseph and surrounding communities, Central High School alum Ali Perry - now a sophomore at the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith - is among the participants.
"It's really cool to have Ali get to come back and play in front of her hometown fans," Esley said. "Ali was our Bill Snyder Woman of Impact Award winner last year, I got to know her a little bit and see the great human and golfer that she is. She's made that program better and was huge in helping win the Central Region Championship last year. I know this week definitely special for her."
As the Central Regional kicks off, one of the biggest factors Esley has prioritized as part of his role in hosting the event is adding a different wrinkle in the years St. Joseph as hosted in order to make it special.
"I am really into personalization," Esley said. "We always strive to display student athletes, institutions, logos, names and St. Joseph any way we can. We've incorporated simple ideas this year like a player bag tag and a neon sign of the tournament logo with St. Joseph, MO in it. Those are small things that aren't expectations, but those are things I think people will notice when they come to events."
The Women's Central Regional will run from Monday, May 4 to Wednesday, May 6 at the St. Joseph Country Club located at 50 Ridgeland Road. Information about the event can be found on St. Joseph Sports Commission's website and live scoring is available on SCOREBOARD.
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.
This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 7:45 PM.