Section 2: Equipment
- Conforming clubs (USGA/R&A List of Conforming Golf Clubs)
- Conforming golf balls (USGA/R&A List of Conforming Golf Balls)
- 14-club limit per stipulated round (Rule 4.1b)
- Updated for 2026: if a club is broken or significantly damaged in the normal course of play and taken out of play, Rule 4.1b(4) now permits the player to build a replacement club using components carried by or for the player or by or for any other player playing on the course, provided the replacement fills the gap left by the removed club and no complete finished club is borrowed from another player. The other restrictions of Rule 4.1b(4) (e.g., the club may not have been discarded or given away, and the replacement must not unduly delay play) continue to apply.
- Distance-only DMD permitted; slope/wind/elevation functions NOT permitted at NCAA championship (per typical NCAA Notice to Players)
- One-Ball Rule (Model Local Rule G-4) applies at NCAA championship
- New for 2026 (optional): Model Local Rule F-2.3 lets a Committee grant free relief under Rule 16.3b when a referee determines a player's ball lies below ground level in an unrepaired pitch-mark made by any player's stroke (not only the player's own), rather than only their own pitch-mark. The MLR is restricted to competitions with on-site referees able to make that determination, and it applies only where and if the NCAA Championship Committee adopts it for a given event; check the year's Notice to Players before relying on it.