Honors & Awards
SEC Gofer of the Week (Oct. 2, 2024)
Haskins Award Fall Watch List (2024)
U.S. Amateur Quarterfinalist (2024)
Golf Channel First Team Preseason All-American (2024-25)
Golfweek First Team Preseason All-American (2024-25)
U.S. Open Qualifier (2024)
SEC Academic Honor Roll (2023-24)
PING First Team All-American (2024)
First Team All-SEC (2024)
Palmer Cup Team USA (2024)
SEC Golfer of the Week (April 17, 2024)
Tiger Invitational All-Tournament Team (2024)
Ben Hogan Award Watch List (2024)
Fred Haskins Award Final Watch List (2023-24)
Athletic Director's Honor Roll (2022-23)
U.S. Amateur Qualifier (2023)
Golfweek Honorable Mention All-American (2023)
PING Honorable Mention All-American (2023)
U.S. Open Qualifier (2023)
PING All-Southeast Region (2023)
First Team All-SEC (2023)
Palmer Cup Watch List (Rank: 20)
AUSPYs Newcomer of the Year Nominee (2021-22)
Tiger Invitational All-Tournament Team (2023)
SEC Golfer of the Week (Oct. 26, 2022)
Isleworth Collegiate Individual Champion (2022)
SEC Community Service Team (2022)
Tiger Invitational All-Tournament Team (2022)
SEC Freshman of the Week (March 9, 2022)
Career Highlights
Low 18 : (-8) SEC Fall Preview Second Round (9/25/23)
Low 54: (-15) Amer Ari Invitational (2/8 - 2/10/24)
2023-24 (Junior)
One of the athletic leaders on the best team in program history and one of the most decorated in the history of the sport... Named First Team All-SEC and a PING First Team All-American... Named to the watch lists for both the Haskins and Hogan Awards... selected to represent the United States at the 2024 Arnold Palmer Cup in Ireland... averaged 70.60 strokes per round over 40 rounds played... joined Jackson Koivun as the only two players to start in every team event over the entire season... picked up one win, nine top 10s and 11 top 20s... carded 26 rounds at par or better, including 17 in the 60s... made four eagles and a career-best 165 birdies, the second-most in a single season in school history... counted 36 of 40 team rounds played... started the season with six consecutive top 10s from September's Mirabel Maui Jim Intercollegiate to February's Southern Highlands Collegiate... shot 68-69-67 (-12) at the Mossy Oak Collegiate to tie teammate J.M. Butler for medalist honors and secure Auburn's sweep of first through fifth on the individual leaderboard... secured one of Auburn's four points in the SEC Championship quarterfinals against No. 11 Arkansas, handily defeating Christian Castillo 6&5... responded from a tough stroke play showing at the NCAA Championship with massive match play wins over Ohio State's Jackson Chandler (1-UP) in the semifinals and Florida State's Frederik Kjettrup (4&3) in the finals.
2022-23 (Sophomore)
Pieced together one of the most impressive seasons in the 75-year history of the program, carving his name into the top-10 of nearly every single-season record... Averaged 70.03 shots per round through 37 rounds of play, setting the Tigers' new record by 0.34 strokes... carded seven eagles and 153 birdies, the second and third-most by an Auburn golfer in any given season... also matched Michael Johnson's 2015-16 program record with 24 total subpar rounds... counted 31 of 34 team rounds played... Valdes finished in the top 10 seven times and in the top five four times... opened the year with a career low at the Maui Jim Individual, shooting 12-under for a third-place finish... was named SEC Golfer of the Week following first collegiate win at the Isleworth Collegiate to close out the fall, shooting 67-67-72--206(-10) to secure the victory... contributed to all three of Auburn's fall wins, which locked up the best start to a season in the program's history... began the spring slate with four consecutive top-15 placements at the Dorado Beach Collegiate, Tiger Invitational, General Hackler Championship and Mossy Oak Collegiate... crafted a streak of 16 consecutive rounds at or below par, spanning Oct. 2 to April 10... shot 69 (-3) in the middle round of the NCAA Auburn Regional to smash yet another record, the single-season mark for rounds in the 60s with 16... led Auburn to its fifth victory of the year in the regional to match the most wins by an Orange & Blue squad in a season since 1997... finished 20th in the United States Palmer Cup standings... voted the first First-Team All-SEC Auburn golfer since Jovan Rebula in 2020... also named All-Region and an honorable mention PING All-American.
2021-22 (Freshman)
Averaged 72.32 shots per round through 25 rounds of competition... carded 13 rounds at par or better, including 11 below par and eight in the 60s... earned three top-20 finishes and two top-5 finishes at both the Tiger Invitational and NCAA Norman Regional... birdied 93 times, averaging 3.72 per round... made a team-high four eagles, including one at the NCAA Championship as one player of only six out of 154 to do so, joining teammate Carson Bacha as the only duo some the same team to accomplish the feat... counted 19 of 25 (.760) team rounds played... recorded a 3.40 shots per round average win differential, second-best on the team... named to the SEC Community Service Team following efforts to battle pediatric cancer with the Brendan Valdes Charity Golf Scramble... finished tied for 11th in collegiate debut at the Isleworth Collegiate, shooting 74-69-73–216 (E)... obliterated the Auburn 54-hole record at the Tiger Invitational, shooting 67-70-68–205 (-11) to finish second, earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team and securing SEC Freshman of the Week honors... coasted to a top-5 finish at the NCAA Norman Regional with a 69-68-73-–210 (-6) performance... carded the only below par round on behalf of the Tigers at the NCAA Championship, shooting a 2-under 68 in his opening frame.
Personal
Born February 5, 2003 in Orlando, Florida... Parents are Tammy and Matthew Valdes... Has one older sister, Bailey... Graduate of Doctor Phillips High School... Major is pre-business.
| Valdes' Career Stats | ||||||
| Year | Tournaments | Rounds | Strokes | Average | Low 18 | Rounds At/Below Par |
| 2021-22 | 9 | 25 | 1,808 | 72.32 | (-5) | 13 |
| 2022-23 | 12 | 37 | 2,591 | 70.03 | (-6) | 28 |
| 2023-24 | 13 | 40 | 2,824 | 70.60 | (-8) | 26 |
| Career | 34 | 102 | 7,223 | 70.81 | (-8) | 67 |