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 10th 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.