CONTRIBUTED BY
AU ATHLETICS
AUBURN —
The path to the NCAA Championship will run through Auburn as No. 13 men’s golf is set to host one of six NCAA regionals, May 15 to 17, at Auburn University Club.
Each regional will host 13 to 14 teams for three rounds of stroke play competition. The top five schools from each site will advance to the 2023 NCAA Championship, May 26 to 31, at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Participating alongside the Tigers in the regional at AU Club will be No. 1 Vanderbilt, No. 12 Tennessee, No. 24 Colorado State, No. 25 Ohio State, Washington, TCU, Chattanooga, Houston, Marquette, Indiana, Augusta and Siena.
“It’s an incredible field,” said head coach Nick Clinard. “We’ve got a lot of great teams, great coaches and great players. We’re looking forward to the opportunity of hosting at home and playing alongside some strong competition. The course is newly redone and in great shape. We’re still learning it ourselves but excited to have that home course knowledge in our back pockets.”
The AU Club Regional is the lone field to feature five teams ranked inside the top 25 of Golfstat’s latest poll.
Auburn will officially commence its postseason run Monday, May 15, at 8 a.m. CT. For the opening round, the Tigers will be paired with Vanderbilt and Tennessee.
“It’s really exciting to be able to play such a crucial part of our season at home,” said senior Alex Vogelsong. “Everyone’s games are looking really good right now. Our bonds and team chemistry are great. We’re just looking to keep it rolling and punch our ticket to the national championship.”
Teeing off for the Tigers will be the same six that saw action two weeks ago at the SEC Championship — Vogelsong, juniors Carson Bacha, J.M. Butler and Ryan Eshleman, sophomore Brendan Valdes and freshman Reed Lotter. One man will begin the week as the sixth reserve player; however, postseason substitution rules will be in effect, allowing for the substitution of any individual into the lineup following the completion of a round.
Under Clinard, Auburn has appeared in 13 consecutive NCAA Tournaments (excluding the cancelation of 2020) and has made 23 straight appearances as a program, dating back to the 2000 season. The Tigers have advanced to the NCAA Championship 27 times in history, including nine with Clinard at the helm.
Last season, Auburn advanced through the Norman, Oklahoma, regional with a second-place, 848 (-16) performance. At the National Championship, the Tigers shot 1,160 (+40) to finish in a tie for 10th and solidify the third-highest placement in program history.
Four men in the current lineup, Bacha, Butler, Valdes and Vogelsong, were all a part of the record-breaking run in 2022 and will look to best their marks this season. A total of 10 individuals from schools that did not receive a bid to the tournament will also play in the regional. The lowest-scoring player from a team that does not advance will receive a solo ticket to the NCAA Championship. The additional players will be Alex Goff (Kentucky), Brantley Scott (Troy), Erik Jansson (Jacksonville State), Tobias Jonsson (Mercer), Cameron Clarke (Southern Miss), Brian Ma (Harvard), Jackson Skeen (Tennessee Tech), Luka Naglic (Arkansas State), Hugo Thyr (South Alabama) and Killian McGinley (Fairfield).