WAIKOLOA, Hawai’i – It came down to his 54th and final hole of the week, but with a birdie on the par-5 fifth Saturday at the Mauna Lani Golf Course, senior Carson Bacha officially set a new program record for tournament score at 18-under 198. He placed tied for third, individually, at the Amer Ari Invitational.
Bacha led No. 3 Auburn to a fourth-place finish, eight spots higher than where it stood following the first round.
“It was a great week out here in Hawai’i. The weather was great and the course was very scoreable,” Bacha said. “Played really solid all week. I kept the ball in play and took advantage of the easier holes. I’m proud of the team for pulling it together the last couple of days and putting up a great final round.”
The Tigers saved their best round for last as they shot 27-under on Saturday to soar up the rankings.
“Proud of the guys for showing that they can make adjustments from round to round and take advantage of some scoreable opportunities when they are presented,” Tigers head coach Nick Clinard said. “They showed a lot of fight and made a great push up the leaderboard today. There are a lot of positives we can take from this week that will make us a strong team as we progress forward.”
Auburn’s top finisher, Bacha, shot 68-66-64 to pave his bronze-worthy path. He bogeyed just three holes while picking up 19 birdies and one eagle.
Not far behind Bacha was fellow senior captain Ryan Eshleman, who locked up his 10th career top 10 with an impressive 15-under-par week on the links.
“It was a fun week with all the guys at a really cool spot.” Eshleman said. “It was really nice to finish with a solid low round today. I’m happy with how I’ve started this year, for sure. It’s early in the spring, but if we can improve our wedges and putting, I’d put our team up against anyone in the country.”
Eshleman went 70-68-63 to cement a new personal career low. In the final round, he turned in a clean scorecard with birdies on 4, 5, 7, 10, 12, 13 and 15 as well as an eagle on 2. It was the Tigers’ fourth clean card of the tournament.
Sophomore sensation Jackson Koivun finished one back of Eshleman at 14-under, and true freshman Billy Davis finished one back of Koivun at 13-under.
Koivun’s week consisted of a 69, a 67 and a 66. He erased five bogeys with 15 birdies and two eagles. Davis, the individual player, bookended a Friday 73 with a pair of 65s on Thursday and Saturday. Both of his 65s came without a bogey.
It was a tied 10th finish for Koivun and a tied 13th finish for Davis.
Rounding out Auburn’s contingent was junior Reed Lotter, who finished at 5-under overall, and sophomore Cayden Pope, who leaves Hawai’i with a 4-under showing.
No. 9 Oklahoma State captured the team title at 64-under 800. Texas’ Tommy Morrison topped the Tar Heels’ Hampton Roberts on the first hole of a playoff to earn low medalist. Both men shot 21-under for the week.
Auburn returns to action in approximately a month, teeing off at the Southern Highlands Collegiate, a three-day event set for March 2-4 in Las Vegas.