Auburn Men's Golf advances to 2023 NCAA Championship

[augolf1716 21,432]

Well we made it after a bad showing at the SEC tourney. Vandy made a big move on the back nine to almost tie it up and for some who may not be aware Vandy is #1 in the country.

 

 

AUBURN, Ala. – For the 27th time in program history, Auburn men's golf is headed to the NCAA Championship as the Tigers shot even par in Wednesday's final round of the NCAA Regional hosted by Auburn University Club to finish first and punch their ticket to the sport's premier event.
 
The 2023 NCAA Championship is set for May 26-31 at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
 
The Tigers shot 1-under 863 to edge out No. 1 Vanderbilt by a single shot. The win ties the school record as the only other team to record five victories in a year came during the 1996-97 season.
 
"We haven't won a regional since I've been here, so I'm really proud of the guys for grinding it out and getting this one done," Auburn head coach Nick Clinard said. "They all played great. It's tough out there, but they were resilient. They're such a hardworking group, so this is well-earned. We're headed to the National Championship and we're going to enjoy it."
 
Four of the Tigers' five players finished the week inside the top 15, highlighted by sophomore Brendan Valdes in sixth.
 
Valdes finished his run with a 74 (+2). The Orlando, Florida native made birdie four more times in his final round, all coming in a five-hole stretch, to bring his season total to 140, the eighth-most all-time.
 
Auburn found its low round of the afternoon via senior Alex Vogelsong. Vogelsong fired a 70 for the 44th subpar round of his career. The Palm City, Florida product made 15 straight pars before making birdie on 16 and 17 and parring 18 for the clean 2-under.
 
"I stayed pretty patient all day and hit a lot of good shots," Vogelsong said. "My putts just weren't falling in, but then I made two coming in late that were icing on the cake for a good round. It was a great week for all of us though. I'm proud of this team and how we played."
 
Juniors Carson Bacha and J.M. Butler both shot even par Wednesday. Bacha played a clean 34 on the front half with a pair of birdies on 2 and 7 while Butler finished strong on his back stretch with a 35 thanks to birdies three of his final six holes. Freshman Reed Lotter wrapped up his regional debut with a 75 (+3).
 
"Honestly, I just poured my heart and soul into today's round, and really gave it everything I had and just stayed in the fight," Butler said. "Just really grinding my butt off because I knew I didn't have my best stuff."
 
Advancing from the Auburn Regional are No. 13 Auburn, No. 1 Vanderbilt, Chattanooga, No. 25 Ohio State and No. 24 Colorado State. As the low-scoring individual of a non-advancing team, Drew Salyers of Indiana secured the individual ticket.
 

Placement	Golfer	R1	R2	R3	Total
6th	Brendan Valdes	70 (-2)	69 (-3)	74 (+2)	213 (-3)
T10th	J.M. Butler	74 (+2)	70 (E)	72 (E)	216 (E)
T13th	Alex Vogelsong	75 (+3)	72 (E)	70 (-2)	217 (+1)
T13th	Carson Bacha	73 (+1)	72 (E)	72 (E)	217 (+1)
T26th	Reed Lotter	75 (+3)	72 (E)	75 (+3)	222 (+6)
1st	TEAM	292 (+4)	283 (-5)	288 (E)	863 (-1)

TEAM STANDINGS:
1. No.13 Auburn 863 (-1)
2. No. 1 Vanderbilt 864 (E)
3. Chattanooga 866 (+2)
4. No. 25 Ohio State 872 (+8)
5. No. 24 Colorado State 874 (+10)
6. Washington 880 (+16)
7. Indiana 881 (+17)
8. No. 12 Tennessee 889 (+25)
9. TCU 895 (+31)
10. Marquette 896 (+32)
11. Houston 900 (+36)
12. Siena 926 (+62)
13. Augusta 927 (+63)

[Butthead 525]

Was sweating it out when our #1 went bogey/bogey on the final 2 holes.  Nice job Tigers.  Go win a Natty.

[AUBwins 10,107]

And #12 Tennesee is done.

[Gr82batigr 97]

Update on AU NCAA Golf?  Are we at #14 after 2nd day?  Nothing on the AU site so bad news = no news?

[augolf1716 21,432]

54 minutes ago, Gr82batigr said:

Update on AU NCAA Golf?  Are we at #14 after 2nd day?  Nothing on the AU site so bad news = no news?

We are #11 atm been following it last two days we're playing just ok. Tough course........below is the schedule 

• Friday, May 26 | Stroke play (All 156 participants)
• Saturday, May 27 | Stroke play (All 156 participants)
• Sunday, May 28 | Stroke play ( All 156 participants)
• Monday, May 29 | Stroke play (Top 15 teams, top nine individuals)
• Tuesday, May 30 | Match play (Top eight teams, Individual champion crowned)
• Wednesday, May 31 | Match play (Team champion crowned)

 

[AURex 2,051]

I am elated, but frankly sort of surprised. Damn, what a great run this is.

 

[augolf1716 21,432]

Even par so far thru 5 holes this morning. We started on the back nine which is harder then the front nine imo. Just got to get into top 15 to get to final round. We are 3 stokes behind to get into match play

[Grumps 3,705]

It looks like we are at #15 right now. Yikes! Brigham Young must have had one heck of a party last night! They dropped from #13 to #28 today.

[Grumps 3,705]

We are now at #13.

FYI, apparently BYU played their 3rd round on Thursday, the day before they (and everyone else) played their first round. The NCAA accommodated their longstanding practice of not playing on Sunday for religious reasons. That's why they are already through and why their 3rd round scores are so much worse 

[Golden Eagle 410]

Auburn finished in 11th place after the preliminary rounds so they made the cut and will keep playing.  They got better each day, posting scores of 288, 286 and 282.

https://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=team&tid=26002

 

[tigerman1153 9]

Need a better round tomorrow to get into the final 8....go gett'em!!!!

[augolf1716 21,432]

43 minutes ago, tigerman1153 said:

Need a better round tomorrow to get into the final 8....go gett'em!!!!

3 strokes out of top 8 to advance to stroke play

[augolf1716 21,432]

Well we got off to a great start Brendan Valdes is 3 under after two holes. He had an eagle 2 on the first hole and birdied his second hole

 

[Grumps 3,705]

2 hours ago, augolf1716 said:

Well we got off to a great start Brendan Valdes is 3 under after two holes. He had an eagle 2 on the first hole and birdied his second hole

 

Did they start on the back 9 again?

[augolf1716 21,432]

5 minutes ago, Grumps said:

Did they start on the back 9 again?

Yes

Other teams ahead of us are playing well we're now 4 strokes behind getting into top 8

[Grumps 3,705]

12 minutes ago, augolf1716 said:

Yes

Other teams ahead of us are playing well we're now 4 strokes behind getting into top 8

I am watching the leaderboard. It looks like 6 teams vying for the last 3 spots, all within 5 strokes. The problem is that 4 of those teams are the #1,4,6 &7 teams in the country. We have a chance, but will certainly have to earn it.

Are you surprised at how the teams seem to do according to their rankings? Only a few teams in the top 20 didn't make it this far.

[Grumps 3,705]

We need for the wind to REALLY pick up as soon as we finish!

[augolf1716 21,432]

1 hour ago, Grumps said:

I am watching the leaderboard. It looks like 6 teams vying for the last 3 spots, all within 5 strokes. The problem is that 4 of those teams are the #1,4,6 &7 teams in the country. We have a chance, but will certainly have to earn it.

Are you surprised at how the teams seem to do according to their rankings? Only a few teams in the top 20 didn't make it this far.

Surprised Virginia is playing so well today at -3 under and how bad Vandy is playing overall being the #1 ranked team don't think Vandy will make the cut. Overall I just wonder what has happen to Oklahoma ST. recently

 

[LPTiger 5,202]

13 minutes ago, augolf1716 said:

Surprised Virginia is playing so well today at -3 under and how bad Vandy is playing overall being the #1 ranked team don't think Vandy will make the cut. Overall I just wonder what has happen to Oklahoma ST. recently

 

We get in with our #1 playing not so well...   good reason to be optimistic right?

[augolf1716 21,432]

1 hour ago, LPTiger said:

We get in with our #1 playing not so well...   good reason to be optimistic right?

We're not going to get in the final 8 for match play. The team as a whole kinda of slid toward the end of the season. We'll be good next year just how golf works.

[augolf1716 21,432]

We have 4 players returning with a good recruiting class coming in. We should continue to be very good in golf for the future.

 

 

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. –  One of the best seasons in the 75-year history of the Auburn men's golf program came to a close Monday as the Tigers finished 10^th at the NCAA Championship hosted by Grayhawk Golf Club, shooting 18-over for the four-round period.
 
On Monday, Auburn matched its score from the previous day with a 282 (+2), ending the tournament six strokes back of the cutline to advance to match play. Auburn's finish ties the third-best in program history and is the third top-10 national placement of the last five championships under head coach Nick Clinard.
 
"We played great," Clinard said. "Our guys came out and hit a lot of good shots and made some really good putts early in the round. We just ran out of gas. We hit some hard holes coming in and our putter kind of let us down. The last two days, they played some really good golf. I'm certainly proud of what they showed this week and all season long."
 
After the dust settled, the Tigers finished the year with a 278.70 team scoring average, a new school record. The previous record, 282.80, came during the 2017-18 season.
 
Auburn's top individual for the tournament was none other than true freshman Reed Lotter. Lotter carded a 1-over 71 in his final round to shoot 285 (+5) for the week. He finished tied for 36th.
 
"I had a tough start," Lotter said, "but I stuck to my gameplan, and thanks to Chris (Williams), I was able to help my team out these final few rounds. Obviously, we're gutted to not make match play, but it's only going to make us hungrier for next year. We're going to come out smoking and win this thing. Count on it."
 
Junior J.M. Butler shot a team-best 2-under 68 to close out the championship. His card was highlighted by four birdies, including three in a row on 14, 15 and 16. Auburn found a second subpar performance from sophomore Brendan Valdes who saved his best for last, shooting 1-under 69. Valdes birdied three times and began his day by holing out from 10 fairway for eagle.
 
Valdes capped his breakout season with a 70.03 scoring average, smashing Michael Johnson's (2011-16) previous record of 70.37 from 2015-16.
 
Auburn's last two players, junior Carson Bacha and senior Alex Vogelsong, shot 77 (+7) and 74 (+4), respectively, in their final rounds of the season.
 

Placement	Golfer	R1	R2	R3	R4	Total
T36th	Reed Lotter	76 (+6)	71 (+1)	67 (-3)	71 (+1)	285 (+5)
T40th	J.M. Butler	76 (+6)	72 (+2)	70 (E)	68 (-2)	286 (+6)
T48th	Carson Bacha	68 (-2)	72 (+2)	73 (+3)	74 (+4)	287 (+7)
T63rd	Alex Vogelsong	71 (+1)	71 (+1)	72 (+2)	77 (+7)	291 (+11)
T72nd	Brendan Valdes	73 (+3)	74 (+4)	78 (+8)	69 (-1)	294 (+14)
10th	TEAM	288 (+8)	286 (+6)	282 (+2)	282 (+2)	1,138 (+16)

Team Standings (Stroke Play)
1. #2 North Carolina 1,114 (-6)
T2. #9 Florida 1,118 (-2)
T2. #3 Illinois 1,118 (-2)
4. #8 Pepperdine 1,120 (E)
T5. #11 Georgia Tech 1,126 (+6)
T5. #7 Florida State 1,126 (+6)
7. #16 Virginia 1,131 (+11)
T8. #4 Arizona State 1,132 (+12)*
T8. #6 Stanford 1,132 (+12)
10. #12 Auburn 1,1138 (+18)
T11. #1 Vanderbilt 1,141 (+21)
T11. #15 Alabama 1,141 (+21)
13. #14 Texas A&M 1,144 (+24)
14. #25 Georgia 1,149 (+29)
15. #23 Ohio State 1,160 (+40)
MISSED CUT
16. #5 Texas Tech 866 (+26)
17. #10 Oklahoma 867 (+27)
18. RV Arkansas 870 (+30)
19. #17 Texas 872 (+32)
20. San Francisco 873 (+33)
21. Colorado 874 (+34)
22. RV Duke 878 (+38)
T23. Chattanooga 879 (+39)
T23. BYU 879 (+39)
T25. New Mexico 880 (+40)
T25. #18 Mississippi State 880 (+40)
27. #19 Oregon 882 (+42)
28. #22 Colorado State 885 (+45)
29. ETSU 886 (+46)
30. RV Baylor 893 (+53)

* = Arizona State deafeated Stanford in play off to advance to match play. 

[augolf1716 21,432]

Here is our 2023 recruiting class you'll see Jackson Koivun is the #1 Junior player in AJGA rankings. All three players are excellent players and ranked in the top 30 AJGA rankings. Future continues to look bright. I said and still believe we win a national championship with Nick as our coach. 

 

 

AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn men's golf head coach Nick Clinard announced the signing of three new student-athletes set to join the program at the start of the 2023-24 season Wednesday.
 
Set to join the long legacy of golfers to don the Orange & Blue are three elite young performers in Josiah Gilbert, Jackson Koivun and Cayden Pope.
 
"I would like to thank Coach (Chris) Williams for his relentless effort in recruiting what is arguably the best class in the nation," Clinard said. "This is a group of outstanding young men with exceptional skill. They will, without a doubt, compete at an elite level.
 
"All three of them have wonderful families who have brought them up with high character and an incredible drive to chase excellence in all areas of their lives, which is exactly the fit and culture we're looking for in our program. There is no doubt that the future of Auburn golf is bright."

JOSIAH GILBERT
Hometown: Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
Junior Golf Ranking: No. 24
Favorite Course: Lake Karrinyup Country Club
 
Bio: Son of Jeremy & Erika Gilbert… father, Jeremy, is the Director of Instruction at Capitol Hill in Prattville, Alabama… has four younger siblings, Judah, Shiloh, Jireh and Jezrah… ranked as the No. 24 player in the class per the Junior Golf Scorecard… multi-sport athlete in golf, basketball, baseball, cricket and Australian football… currently attends Ezekiel Academy… captain of Gosnells Golf Club Junior Pennant Team… Western Australia Junior Golf All-State Team selection… chose Auburn over Alabama.
 
Clinard on Gilbert: "Josiah is an ultra-talented guy that has won a lot of golf tournaments already in his young career. We were really impressed very early on, and we knew that we wanted him to be an Auburn Tiger."

JACKSON KOIVUN
Hometown: San Jose, California
Junior Golf Ranking: No. 1
Favorite Course: Sage Valley
 
Bio: Son of Meghan and George Koivun… currently attends Laurel Springs School… Presidential Honor Roll Member… plans to study business at Auburn… tabbed the No. 1 player in the class via the Junior Golf Scoreboard… chose Auburn over Duke, Illinois, Pepperdine, SMU, Tennessee, UNC, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest.
 
Clinard on Koivun: "Jackson is a great competitor with a high skillset. His passion and drive will propel him to become a force to be reckoned with at the collegiate level."
 

CAYDEN POPE
Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky
Junior Golf Ranking: No. 20
Favorite Course: Concession Golf Club
 
Bio: Son of Tracey and Greg Pope… has a younger sister, Caroline… currently attends Lauren Springs School… tabbed as a top-30 signee in all three major recruiting polls, including a nod as No. 20 in the American Junior golf Association (AJGA) rankings… Kentucky High School Athletics Association Team State Champion… chose Auburn over Vanderbilt.
 
Clinard on Pope: "Cayden has a tremendous work ethic and is someone that has a maturity well beyond his years. He goes above and beyond to be a great player and a great teammate. We're extremely excited about getting him here next fall."

 

[augolf1716 21,432]

Don't care for UF but thank god they beat ga tech for the golf championship. I will say tech surprised the hell out of me. UF has been playing really well the last few month. 

[Golden Eagle 410]

On 5/30/2023 at 8:25 AM, augolf1716 said:

chose Auburn over Alabama.

 

On 5/30/2023 at 8:25 AM, augolf1716 said:

chose Auburn over Duke, Illinois, Pepperdine, SMU, Tennessee, UNC, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest

 

On 5/30/2023 at 8:25 AM, augolf1716 said:

chose Auburn over Vanderbilt

VERY impressive recruiting class on top of a very impressive group of returning golfers.   Have to believe they're going to make some noise next year.