The men's golf team finished with a record of 55-79-1 last season. The team suffered the loss of six seniors from the previous year and began the season with a young team, but expected to get better as the year progressed.
Mike Griffin, former head coach of the men's golf team, maintains that his only goal for the team was to make improvements.
"This year they started a new rule, to make it to the NCAA, you have to have a 500, which means winning 50 percent of your season and we won 41 percent, so that's why our season finished at the SEC Championship," said Gary Thorne, sports information director for men's golf.
"We had one senior this year with great experience, Glenn Northcutt," Griffin said. "There was the one very seasoned veteran and others that stepped forward; Cole Moreland, a junior from Austin, Texas and Kyle Kopsick, a freshman from Illinois. Those three played every event through the SEC Championship."
The team's best tournament was the Jerry Pate National held in Birmingham. "I was terribly excited and it looked like we were getting better," Griffin said. "Then at the tournament in the fall in Johnson City, we took a step back."
The team was looking forward to starting the spring season strong, but did not finish in the top five.
Moreland and Northcutt represented Auburn at the Southwest Regionals in Austin, Texas. "They were given invitations individually," Griffin said. "Neither advanced to the championship, but I'm still very proud of them." The team was also proud of Will McCurdy, who was this years Saugahatchee Men's Country Club Individual Tournament winner.
"Over the years, we've always stressed improvement from the beginning of the season to the end. Besides this season, it has always happened," Griffin said. "This season we really didn't get any better."
The team is looking forward to a fresh start next season and gaining experience over the summer.
"It's time for the youngsters to step up and prove that they can represent Auburn. The number one goal is to improve, from week to week and month to month, we just want to get better."
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