Spikemark out, Clippd in for scoring, rankings

The NCAA is severing ties with Spikemark after a tumultuous few months.

On Monday evening, the NCAA announced that Clippd, a golf data platform with connections to college golf, will be replacing Spikemark as the official provider of golf scoring and rankings for the NCAA. The transition will occur after an agreed-upon handover period.

This decision comes after Spikemark failed to meet its deadline to publish its first rankings, which were developed by strokes-gained founder Mark Broadie.

Earlier on Monday, Golf Channel reported that Clippd was brought in by Spikemark CEO and former UCLA coach Derek Freeman to address the numerous issues that plagued Spikemark, including a malfunctioning website, app, and live-scoring platform.

Shortly after the NCAA’s announcement, Clippd revealed on its website that Freeman made an urgent request for their assistance in September.

“The complexities, including all divisions, formats, etc., proved more difficult than we ever could have anticipated,” said Freeman in Clippd’s release.

Clippd stated that it helped Spikemark relaunch its website and app using Clippd’s data platform on September 27. Currently, 75% of NCAA Division I golf tournaments this fall have been published, with scores from the remaining DI, DII, and DIII tournaments being added daily.

“By supporting Spikemark, we were supporting college golf across the country,” said Clippd CEO and co-founder Piers Parnell. “With our expertise in golf, data science, and enterprise software construction, we are uniquely positioned to help.”

Clippd has several partnerships in college golf, including with College Golf Experience and over 100 college programs, such as the reigning NCAA champion Wake Forest women’s team and the defending NCAA runner-up Georgia Tech men’s team.

“By far the best program we’ve ever used,” said one coach about Clippd’s performance insights offering.

In its announcement, the NCAA stated that Clippd has provided the necessary infrastructure to compile, validate, and publish results from all Division I, II, and III golf competitions in the fall of 2023. Mark Broadie will continue to be the ranking authority and is collaborating with Clippd to release initial rankings shortly after the conclusion of the fall season.

“We are confident that Clippd will guide us through the technology challenges of the 2023 fall season and serve as a valuable partner in the future,” said Joni Comstock, NCAA senior vice president of championships. “The goal of this partnership is to deliver the quality services that our student-athletes and the college golf community deserve.”

A spokesperson for the NCAA informed Golf Channel that Clippd did not acquire Spikemark but will take over following an agreed-upon handover period.

However, it remains unclear whether Clippd will repurpose Spikemark’s existing website or transfer the results to its own website, or potentially create a new website. It is also unknown if Clippd obtained the contract through the NCAA’s RFP process, which is used for all external vendors, including Spikemark. Spikemark replaced Golfstat this year, and as a result, Golfstat underwent significant downsizing but continues to provide live scoring for many tournaments this fall due to Spikemark’s failure to deliver.

Derek Freeman, who retired as UCLA’s coach after the 2021-22 season, admitted in September that Spikemark was hastily launched.

“This whole thing, you know, we rushed it and probably put it out too fast,” said Freeman, expressing his deep commitment to making things right. “I don’t sleep, I don’t eat, I don’t leave the house. It’s not healthy, honestly. That’s how concerned and committed I am to making this right. I’m doing everything humanly possible to ensure this works.”

Now, Freeman and Spikemark are out, and Clippd is in.