ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – A perfectly-crafted 5-under 65 from senior Carson Bacha propelled Auburn men’s golf to a 10-under second round Thursday at the SEC Championship hosted by Seaside Golf Club on St. Simons Island, Georgia.
Through 36 holes, No. 1 Auburn stands tied for first place with No. 7 LSU at 26-under-par. The Tigers made just five bogeys over the entirety of Thursday’s round.
“We played solid golf today, and we should be proud of that,” head coach Nick Clinard said. “Only five bogeys for the entire team is outstanding, but we did not make enough putts to shoot very low. Some days are like that in our sport, but we will make our share of them tomorrow.”
Clinard’s crew sits 21 shots clear of the projected cutline ahead of Friday’s final round of stroke play.
Bacha was one of three Auburn men to go bogey-free on the day. He added five birdies on holes 2, 4, 6, 7 and 15 to lead the lineup.
“I was really happy with how I played today,” Bacha said. “I got off to a great start, making some early birdies, and was able to play really solid golf after that. This course is all about bogey avoidance. There are birdies to be had out there. I’m really proud of the guys as a whole. We’re looking forward to tomorrow.”
Bacha and sophomores Josiah Gilbert and Jackson Koivun hold firmly at tied for sixth on the individual leaderboard at 6-under-par. Jay Mendell of LSU leads the pack at 9-under.
Gilbert’s second round was an even-par 70. He used birdies on 5 and 8 and to erase bogeys on 1 and 14. Koivun birdied three of his first six holes and parred his final 12 to finish with a 67 (-3).
Senior Brendan Valdes shot 68 (-2) for the second consecutive day. He began the round with 13 straight pars before making birdie on 14 and 15, then closed out with pars on the final three.
Sophomore Cayden Pope shot 71 (+1). He and Valdes sit at 4-under heading into Friday.
The Tigers will play alongside LSU and No. 6 Oklahoma for the stroke play finale. The threesomes will tee off the front at 7 a.m. CT. Following the round, the top eight seeds will advance to the match play stage, which is set for Saturday and Sunday.