Auburn races out to early lead at NCAA Louisville Regional

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Auburn races out to early lead at NCAA Louisville RegionalAuburn races out to early lead at NCAA Louisville Regional
Cody Voga/Auburn Athletics

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Despite chilly temperatures and gusty winds, the No. 11 Auburn men's golf team got off to a hot start and leads the field after the first round of the NCAA Louisville Regional Monday afternoon.

The Tigers shot an 8-under 276 in their first tour of the par-71 University of Louisville Golf Club and have four players inside the top 20 overall.

"We had a good day and it is a good start to the week," head coach Nick Clinard said. "It's tough conditions out here – the rough is up, the wind is blowing and it felt like it was 30 degrees when we teed off today.

"I'm really proud of the guys. They hung in there and didn't make a ton of bogeys today. We're here to win every day and try to win a regional championship."

One of the highlights of the day came on the ninth hole as Auburn closed out the front nine. Despite 10-15 mph wind blowing straight back to add to a daunting 495-yard par-4, all five Tigers were able to par the hole.

Auburn was one of only two teams in the 13-team field (Oklahoma State) to escape the hole unscathed.

Graysen Huff and Jovan Rebula were two of only four golfers at the site to produce a bogey-free round.

Rebula is one shot off the lead and in a four-way tie for second at 4-under. The junior was steady all day and carded three of his four birdies on the back nine.

"I got off to a good start, made a couple pars on the first few holes, made a birdie on hole No. 4 and then from there just carried on and played some solid golf today," Rebula said. "I kept the ball in play and hit a lot of greens and that's what was needed today."

Just one stroke behind his teammate, Huff is tied for sixth at 3-under. The fellow third-year player did his damage on the front nine with three birdies and played the back nine at even par.

Trace Crowe is tied for 11th after firing a 1-under 70. The senior had just one bogey to go along with 15 pars and two birdies in his first circuit of the course.

Brandon Mancheno survived an up-and-down round and came out at even par in a tie for 16th. The sophomore shot 3-under on the front nine, but ran into trouble on the back nine, shooting 3-over.

Jacob Solomon rounded out the lineup and is tied for 35th overall at 2-over.

The Tigers lead the field by two strokes at 8-under (276), followed by No. 1 Oklahoma State (278), No. 21 Louisville (280), No. 25 Baylor (280), West Virginia (286), Arizona (287), Iowa State (288), No. 13 North Florida (292), Mississippi State (294), Arkansas State (295), Jacksonville State (300), Southern Illinois (301) and New Mexico (302).

The top five teams and one individual from the regional will advance to the 2019 NCAA Championship in Fayetteville, Ark., May 24-29.

Auburn is paired with Louisville and Oklahoma State for the second round off the No. 1 tee beginning at 6:30 a.m. CT. Live scoring is available on Golfstat.com.

Team Scores
1. Auburn: -8 (276)
2. Oklahoma State: -6 (278)
T-3. Louisville: -4 (280)
T-3. Baylor: -4 (280)
5. West Virginia: +2 (286)
6. Arizona: +3 (287)
7. Iowa State: +4 (288)
8. North Florida: +8 (292)
9. Mississippi State: +10 (294)
10. Arkansas State: +11 (295)
11. Jacksonville State: +16 (300)
12. Southern Illinois: +17 (301)
13. New Mexico: +18 (302)

Auburn Individuals
T-2. Jovan Rebula: -4 (67)
T-6. Graysen Huff: -3 (68)
T-11. Trace Crowe: -1 (70)
T-16. Brandon Mancheno: E (71)
T-35. Jacob Solomon: +2 (73)

NCAA Louisville Regional Second Round Tee Times (CT)
6:30 a.m. – Jacob Solomon
6:41 a.m. – Brandon Mancheno
6:52 a.m. – Trace Crowe
7:03 a.m. – Graysen Huff
7:14 a.m. – Jovan Rebula