OPELIKA, Ala. – With dominating performances up and down the lineup, No. 7 Auburn men's golf easily cruised to victory Tuesday at the Tiger Invitational presented by Jason Dufner, firing a 41-under to win the event by 31 strokes.
Junior Carson Bacha captured his first collegiate title with a clutch 66 (-6) in the finale, sealing the win at 11-under 205 for the tournament.
Credited to 277 (-11) in the final round, Auburn's "A" team also set a Tiger Invitational record with the 823 (-41) victory, topping the event's previous 54-hole team best of 32-under set a year ago by Florida Gulf Coast. The tally also goes down as the third-best in program history for any tournament as the Orange & Blue have now recorded two of the top three team-scoring marks this season after setting the record last September at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate at 45-under.
"I think we were pretty resilient out there," Tigers head coach Nick Clinard said. "We played some great golf. We got off to a slow start the first day, played awesome the second day, slow start today too, but got hot in the middle there and made a bunch of putts and a bunch of birdies. We got a great win that we're going to celebrate, but then it's back to work to keep getting better."
The Tigers' surge to victory was propelled by Bacha with a blistering 66 on Tuesday as the York, Pennsylvania product earned the first medalist honor of his career with the low round of the day by two strokes. The junior jumped out front thanks a strong home stretch that included an eagle on 14 and a birdie on 16. For the week, Bacha matched five bogeys with 12 birdies and a pair of eagles to total a 205 (-11), a new career low.
"All of us played really well," Bacha said. "What's so cool about this team is how deep we are. We have so many great players and it's a lot of fun getting to go out there and compete against your best friends. It feels great to come out on top today."
Providing the second-best performance of the day for the team was 2022 PING All-American J.M. Butler. Butler signed for a 69 (-3) to lower his score to 209 (-7) overall. Thanks to the junior's 28th career round below 70, nine of the 12 counted rounds for Auburn this week came in the 60s.
Another duo that delivered big were underclassmen Brendan Valdes and Reed Lotter. The pair both shot 71s (-1) in round three to wrap up in a tie for third place at 208 (-8) overall. With the finish, Valdes cards his third career top-five outing while Lotter earns his first. Valdes also joined teammate Bacha as one of seven players to record multiple eagles at the tournament.
Lastly for the "A" team, senior Alex Vogelsong fought off a tough finish with a 78 (+6) to still stay below par at 215 (-1) and place tied for 20th.
For the Tigers' "B" team, it was junior Ryan Eshleman and senior Austin Coggin who carried the torch, both firing 2-under 70s to conclude their stints at the Tiger. Eshleman finished tied for sixth with a 209 (-7) and Coggin finished tied for 18th with a 214 (-2). Overall, the "B" team, shot 291 (+3) Tuesday to finish at 865 (+1) for the week.
The final three golfers to see action this week, Evan Vo, Max Johnson and Hal Dove, finished at 1-over, 2-over and 6-over, respectively.
It's a short break for the Orange & Blue as Auburn is set to play in the General Hackler Championship next week, March 13 and 14, at The Dunes Club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
| Placement | Golfer | R1 | R2 | R3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carson Bacha (A) | 71 (-1) | 68 (-4) | 66 (-6) | 205 (-11) |
| T3 | Brendan Valdes (A) | 67 (-5) | 70 (-2) | 71 (-1) | 208 (-8) |
| T3 | Reed Lotter (A) | 69 (-3) | 68 (-4) | 71 (-1) | 208 (-8) |
| T6 | J.M. Butler (A) | 74 (+2) | 66 (-6) | 69 (-3) | 209 (-7) |
| T6 | Ryan Eshleman (B) | 71 (-1) | 68 (-4) | 70 (-2) | 209 (-7) |
| T18 | Austin Coggin (B) | 72 (E) | 72 (E) | 70 (-2) | 214 (-2) |
| T20 | Alex Vogelsong (A) | 69 (-3) | 68 (-4) | 78 (+6) | 215 (-1) |
| T47 | Evan Vo (B) | 70 (-2) | 75 (+3) | 76 (+4) | 221 (+5) |
| T63 | Max Johnson (B) | 72 (E) | 74 (+2) | 79 (+7) | 225 (+9) |
| T63 | Hal Dove (B) | 74 (+2) | 76 (+4) | 75 (+3) | 150 (+9) |
| 1 | Auburn (A) | 276 (-12) | 270 (-18) | 277 (-11) | 823 (-41) |
| 4 | Auburn (B) | 285 (-3) | 289 (+1) | 291 (+3) | 865 (+1) |
Team Scores:
1. No. 7 Auburn 823 (-41)
2. Troy 854 (-10)
3. Chattanooga 855 (-9)
4. Southern Miss 860 (-4)
5. Florida Atlantic 862 (-2)
6. Auburn "B" 865 (+1)
7. Louisiana Tech 868 (+4)
T8. UNC Wilmington 871 (+7)
T8. Toledo 871 (+7)
10. Stetson 873 (+9)
11. East Carolina 876 (+12)
12. Richmond 878 (+14)
T13. South Alabama 879 (+15)
T13. North Alabama 879 (+15)
15. Georgia State 882 (+18)
16. Wichita State 883 (+19)
17. Lamar 892 (+28)
18. Oakland 904 (+40)