Auburn looks to continue 'magical run' at AU Club Regional

AUBURN, Ala. – Sandwiched between the SEC Championship and the NCAA Championship, the NCAA Auburn Regional represents three days of drama.

Finish in the top five, and it’s California, here we come; a ticket to Carlsbad to try defend their national championship.

Finish out of the top five and the season is over.

For the second time in three years, the Tigers are hosting a regional at Auburn University Club, a chance for local fans to see the defending national champs.

“The more, the merrier,” Auburn coach Nick Clinard said. “These guys like to play in front of people. The great players do. It gives them an opportunity to show off.”

Course familiarity and sleeping at home, says Clinard, are the best things about hosting. On the other hand, playing at home brings pressure to perform.

“Once they tee off and they get between those ropes, all that stuff’s gone,” Clinard said. “It’s time to hit shots, compete and make putts.”

In 2023, Auburn won its first regional in the Clinard era on the home course. Last year, the Tigers did it again in Baton Rouge. In both tournaments, Brendan Valdes, now a senior, posted Auburn’s best finish.

“We approach it the same way as every other event,” Valdes said. “Go out there with something to prove. The mindset is, there are a lot of great teams coming and we want to beat them.”

Auburn enters regional play as the No. 1 national seed.

“It’s great to be respected by everybody else,” Valdes said. “Our goal is to go out there and win. If that happens as the No. 1 seed, great. That’s the plan for us.”

Auburn takes momentum into the regional after winning three tournaments in the past two months as well as the stroke play portion of the SEC Championship.

“We have great team camaraderie,” Valdes said. "We all believe in each other. We believe in ourselves as well. Being able to have that good team chemistry, that’s what’s helped us through this spring.

“Our team from last year, we were about as close as you could possibly be. This team, as of right now, is trying to do the exact same thing. I know if I go out there and play well, the other boys are going to have my back.”

A year ago, Auburn rolled into the regional after winning the SEC Championship, then came home from California with the program’s first national title.

“As a stepping stone into this year, it was a really big confidence booster knowing we can do it, and we’ve got the team to do it again this year,” said sophomore Josiah Gilbert. “We know we’ve got a target on our back. We are defending, but that’s in the past. We’re just staying locked in on that one goal of a national championship.”

The Tigers return four of the five players who helped Auburn bring home the 2024 NCAA title, with sophomore Cayden Pope entering the lineup for J.M. Butler, who’s now playing professionally.

“I’ll say this about J.M. Butler, he’s got a lot of dog in him,” Clinard said. “He’s tough as nails. That’s something that we’re trying to continue to challenge these guys. We’ve got a lot of dudes, but we need some dogs, too.”

Seeking a program record third consecutive regional title, the top-seeded Tigers tee off Monday at Auburn University Club.

“We’re on a magical run that you dream about as a coach,” Clinard said.

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer