Following a runner-up finish at the Innovational at the Honors Course, No. 1 Auburn Men’s Golf looked to replicate their strong performance at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational, but came up six shots back from the lead, finishing in 8th place against a highly competitive field.
This year’s invitational was hosted by TCU at a challenging course in Colonial Country Club, which forced many struggles amongst the competitors throughout the 54-hole tournament which took place on Monday and Tuesday. The draw was filled with many talented golfers and schools, with 13 out of the 15 teams being ranked in the top 25 prior to the event.
Monday morning commenced with a shotgun start for round 1 as the Auburn Tigers got off to a hot start with Jackson Koivun posting a two-under round along with sophomore Billy Davis. Veteran Cayden Pope fought back to get to even on the day after a one-over front 9, and freshman Jake Albert rounded out the Tigers' top 4=four, posting a +1 score in his second collegiate event. Auburn’s -3 round 1 total placed them in 3rd place behind No. 8 Virginia (-7) and No. 19 Texas Tech (-6).
Auburn head coach Nick Clinard’s team regressed in their second round of the day, as not a single golfer completed their round in the red. Pope and Josiah Gilbert both carded 3 over, while Koivun and Albert struggled early on in their rounds to finish at 4 over, respectively. At the conclusion of Monday’s competition, Auburn was +11 overall, leaving the Tigers tied for 8th place and 12 strokes behind the leading Virginia Cavaliers with just 18 holes remaining.
Tuesday morning was led by Pope for Auburn as he opened the day with back-to-back birdies, which allowed him to steady his play through the difficult course and finish at even par for the round and +3 overall for the tournament. Koivun also finished at +3 total after recording a +1 score in round three, which placed him and Pope tied for 17th in the individual leaderboard. Davis and Albert were both above par on Tuesday, which dropped Auburn to 16 over for the tournament and an eighth-place finish in the Invitational.
The struggles the team faced were definitely out of the norm for the No. 1 team, but the Tigers should learn from their weaknesses and prosper as the season progresses.
“We were simply not good enough this week. Not even close to it,” said Clinard. “Disappointed in the result, but I know we will learn from our mistakes and not make them again. The fall season is for learning and growing, and we will certainly take something away from this performance that will make us better in the long run.”
Clinard and the Tigers will have some more time to prepare for their next event, but will look to bounce back in The Williams Cup at Eagle Point Golf Club in Wilmington, North Carolina, on October 19-21.
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Will is a sophomore majoring in journalism. He started with The Plainsman in the spring of 2025.
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