What does the House settlement mean for college golf?

June 18, 2025

College golf is entering a new era with the House settlement—one that reshapes scholarships, NIL, and athlete compensation across the sport. While the settlement’s sweeping changes are set to take effect for the 2025-26 academic year, ongoing legal challenges could still delay key aspects of the rollout.

Here’s what the landmark agreement means for golfers and programs right now.

Key details and timeline

The House settlement stems from the 2020 lawsuit House v. NCAA, led by former college athlete Grant House and others. It was later combined with Hubbard v. NCAA and Carter v. NCAA, all challenging NCAA and conference rules that restricted athletes’ ability to earn from NIL and share in college sports revenue. This consolidation let courts address broader athlete pay and NIL issues, making the settlement more comprehensive.

The settlement was preliminarily approved in October 2024 and finalized by Judge Claudia Wilken on June 6, putting major changes for college sports into effect.

College golf enters a new era under the NCAA banner, reshaped by the House settlement’s sweeping reforms to scholarships, NIL, and athlete pay | Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP Photo

New rules

Elimination of scholarship caps and roster limits: The House settlement eliminates old scholarship caps in favor of new roster limits for Division I golf. Starting in 2025-26, both men’s and women’s golf teams are limited to nine players—all potentially scholarship-eligible if the school chooses to fund them.

This is a significant increase from previous limits of 4.5 scholarships for men and six for women, potentially creating over 1,000 new men’s and 500 new women’s scholarships if every team fully funds all spots. In practice, most schools are expected to fall short of full funding, so actual increases will likely be smaller.

The new rules mean more flexibility for scholarships but put a hard cap on roster size, which could squeeze out walk-ons and force tough roster decisions. Some schools or conferences may set an even lower limit, but the official NCAA cap for golf is nine.

NIL Clearinghouse (NIL Go) and reforms: All NIL deals worth $600 or more must be submitted to the NIL Go clearinghouse, run by Deloitte. The clearinghouse reviews each deal to ensure fair market value and a legitimate business purpose while also preventing pay-for-play. It verifies payor association, business intent, and compensation range, flagging any deals that miss the mark.

Under the new rules, schools cannot prevent most third parties from making legitimate NIL payments to athletes at market rates. The new framework also makes it clear that, although some restrictions were possible after 2021, they are now banned.

Additional reforms and clarifications

• School involvement in NIL: Schools can now facilitate NIL opportunities, including paying athletes directly for NIL, marking a new level of permitted involvement.

  
  

• NIL in recruiting: Schools can include NIL opportunities in written offers to recruits, but agreements cannot be finalized until the athlete officially signs a letter of intent or enrolls at the school.

  
  

• Neutral arbitration for NIL disputes: Disputes over NIL payments or restrictions now go to neutral arbitration. This marks a major shift in how athlete grievances are handled.

• Revenue sharing: The settlement now allows schools to directly share revenue with athletes—a major new compensation mechanism.

  
  

• Academic eligibility: Golfers must maintain academic eligibility to compete in NCAA Division I and to access most NIL payments and benefits. While NIL payments are not directly tied to academic eligibility by NCAA rule, loss of eligibility usually means loss of team access and NIL opportunities.

Financial aspects

Back pay: The $2.8 billion in back damages will be paid to former and current Division I athletes who competed between 2016 and 2024. While the total amount is confirmed by recent reports, the latest official documents do not specify exactly which organizations are responsible for each portion, though most of the funding is expected to come from the NCAA and its conferences.

For eligible golfers, the deadline to file a claim for a share was Jan. 31, 2025. Athletes who missed the deadline may not be eligible for those payments.

Future revenue sharing: Moving forward, schools can pay athletes up to $20.5 million per year (with annual increases), which is approximately 22% of the average Power Four school's revenues—now referring to the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, and SEC. This is in addition to scholarships and other benefits.

Each school will decide how annual revenue is distributed among athletes. Most schools are expected to prioritize football and men's basketball, but each institution has discretion to support all sports, including golf.

Upside with a downside

The House settlement brings more scholarships to golf, expanding access and opportunity across the country. Athletes now enjoy greater freedom to earn from NIL deals while pursuing their education, and neutral arbitration is expected to offer a fairer, more transparent process for disputes outside the NCAA.

Still, roster limits mean many athletes will lose their spots—potentially ending college sports careers—while smaller conferences, women’s sports, and non-revenue sports like golf may see less settlement funding, raising concerns about fairness and Title IX compliance. As athletic departments face tough budget decisions, some may turn to private equity for solutions that could help with funding but also prompt cuts to costs and programs.

Last month, Stephen F. Austin announced it will end men’s and women’s golf after the 2025 season, citing budget pressures and preparing for new financial obligations linked to Division I athlete revenue sharing. Cleveland State will also cut women’s golf after the 2025 season as part of its plan to address a projected $40 million university-wide budget shortfall by 2029. At the same time, Saint Francis will transition from Division I to Division III starting in 2026–27, pointing to rising costs, NIL, pay-for-play concerns, and declining revenues, a move that also ends athletic scholarships.

Factoring USGA guidelines

As NCAA and conference rules shift, it's worth noting that USGA rules already allow amateur golfers to sign NIL contracts and make money promoting products or services, so long as it doesn't violate a college or university's eligibility policies. It's recommended that players consult with the USGA and a trusted advisor before signing.

Rules also require that any compensation from event sponsors or organizers cannot be tied to performance in that event, and payments must fall within the amateur prize limit. There are no USGA restrictions on commercial logos for amateur golfers, but event organizers may set their own rules on logo size and placement.

Settlement rollout and potential legal challenges

The settlement’s terms are set to take effect for the 2025-26 academic year, starting as early as July 1. Legal challenges, including the current Title IX appeal, could delay the rollout of certain aspects, especially payment of back damages. Other provisions, such as direct school payments, are set to proceed but remain subject to potential future legal complications.

Several states have already passed laws authorizing universities to pay athletes or shielding them from NCAA enforcement of NIL restrictions. Michigan’s recent bill is the latest example of states challenging the settlement’s framework.