DORADO BEACH, Puerto Rico –No. 2 Auburn men's golf concluded play at the Dorado Beach Collegiate Tuesday, shooting 8-under 280 to finish sixth at 17-under 847 overall.
"Our performance this week was less than desirable because we all know we're capable of so much more than what we showed out here," Tigers head coach Nick Clinard said. "Yes, it's our first tournament back from break, but that's never an excuse. We've got to be sharper, more focused, and play smarter moving forward. If we want to defend our home course at the Tiger Invitational, we're going to have to play with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder and show those other teams that we don't go down without a fight."
The Auburn lineup was led by sophomore Brendan Valdes throughout all three rounds. Valdes finished just outside the top 10 in eleventh place with a 9-under 207 overall. Following his play at Dorado Beach, the Orlando, Florida product has carded 26 of 40 career rounds at par or better and is just three rounds shy of cracking the top-10 for total rounds in the 60s in program history.
Following Valdes, Auburn's second-lowest scorer of the week was Ryan Eshleman. The junior saved his best round for last, firing a 69 (-3) to fall to 4-under (212) for the tournament. Eshleman's day was highlighted by five birdies, leading to a front nine 32.
"We're obviously not pleased with our week," Eshleman said. "All we can do is learn from it and move on. We've got an incredible opportunity to rebound next week at one of our home courses and show our fans why we're one of the best teams in the country."
After Eshleman's 4-under, senior Alex Vogelsong and junior Carson Bacha both shot 215 (-1) to contribute to the overall team tally. Vogelsong ended his week with a 71 (-1) a while Bacha closed out with a 72 (E).
Also shooting even par for the third consecutive round, sophomore Evan Vo concluded the event at 216 (E) overall.
While competing as individuals, both freshman Reed Lotter and junior J.M. Butler shone all tournament for the Tigers but were not allowed to count their totals toward the team score. Lotter finished tied for 13th with a 208 (-8) and Butler carded the highest finish of any Tiger in Puerto Rico, shooting back-to-back 68s to score 206 (-10) and tie for eighth place.
Cincinnati captured team honors at Dorado Beach with a 44-under 820, and Duke's William Love earned individual medalist status with a 17-under 199.
Next up, Auburn returns home to host the Tiger Invitational March 5-7 at Grand National in Opelika, Alabama.
Auburn Scoring:
| Placement | Golfer | R1 | R2 | R3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T8th | J.M. Butler (Ind.) | 70 (-2) | 68 (-4) | 68 (-4) | 206 (-10) |
| T11th | Brendan Valdes | 69 (-3) | 68 (-4) | 70 (-2) | 207 (-9) |
| T13th | Reed Lotter (Ind.) | 68 (-4) | 68 (-4) | 72 (E) | 208 (-8) |
| 30th | Ryan Eshleman | 71 (-1) | 72 (E) | 69 (-3) | 212 (-4) |
| T37th | Carson Bacha | 73 (+1) | 70 (-2) | 72 (E) | 215 (-1) |
| T37th | Alex Vogelsong | 74 (+2) | 70 (-2) | 71 (-1) | 215 (-1) |
| T44h | Evan Vo | 72 (E) | 72 (E) | 72 (E) | 216 (E) |
| 6th | TEAM | 285 (-3) | 280 (-8) | 280 (-8) | 847 (-17) |
Team Scoring:
1. RV Cincinnati 820 (-44)
2. RV Duke 828 (-36)
3. UNCG 833 (-31)
4. Augusta 837 (-27)
5. No. 12 Virginia 842 (-22
6. No. 2 Auburn 847 (-17)
7. Rutgers 849 (-15)
8. West Virginia 852 (-12)
9. Ball State 853 (-11)
10. Kennesaw State 859 (-5)
11. Drexel 861 (-3)
12. Boston College 862 (-2)
13. Old Dominion 881 (+17)
14. Army West Point 917 (+53)