Michael Johnson, the leader of the Auburn men's golf team, recorded one of his best rounds ever on Saturday to vault the team — and himself — to the top of the leaderboard at the Schenkel Invitational.
Though the team failed to stay on top through the final round, Johnson managed to do so individually.
The All-SEC senior fired a 2-under-par 70 on Sunday to capture his third win of the season — and fifth of his career — at the Forest Heights Country Club in Statesboro, Georgia.
Johnson carded a birdie on the second playoff hole to edge out Vanderbilt's Will Gordon, who also finished at 13-under 203.
“It feels great,” Johnson said. “It’s hard to win just once. I feel extremely blessed to have been able to do it three times this year."
Despite Johnson's strong round, Auburn was unable to hang on to the one-shot lead it owned after Saturday's play.
The fourth-ranked Tigers finished fifth in the 14-team field, which included three other ranked teams. Auburn shot 23-under 841, while No. 15 Vanderbilt won the tournament at 41-under 823.
Senior Jake Mondy and freshman Jacob Solomon tied for 25th at 4-under, and junior Will Long finished in a tie for 37th at 2-under.
Sophomore Ben Schlottman, playing as an individual for the first time this season, bounced back from a rough Day Two to card a 4-under 68 in Sunday's round, finishing in a tie for 10th at 8-under.
But the spotlight belonged to Johnson, who finished strong down the stretch of the tournament and is doing the same when it comes to his career at Auburn.
"This was the hardest win of the year, no doubt,” Johnson said. “The two others I really didn’t feel much pressure, but having to birdie the last hole to get into a playoff was a cool feeling. It felt awesome to birdie the last when you have to.”
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
