Sept. 10, 2017
ROCKY FACE, Ga. - Junior Trace Crowe finished tied for third at 7-under to lead No. 13 Auburn men's golf to finishing third in the season-opening Carpet Capital Collegiate at The Farm Golf Club on Sunday as the Tigers fired a 9-under final round.
No. 18 Georgia Tech beat No. 19 Alabama in a playoff to win at 14-under, four shots ahead of Auburn as all three teams were 9-under on the day. The Tigers made three eagles on the par 5 12th by Jovan Rebula, Brandon Mancheno and Crowe.
"I'm extremely proud of our guys," said Auburn head coach Nick Clinard. "We played very well in a tough tournament and shined on the final day. We kept getting better each round, and that's important with such a young team. This gives us a lot to build on.
"Trace has picked up where he left off last season when he earned All-SEC honors. His play was exceptional. Jovan just missed a top 10 finish and had a wonderful final round 68."
No. 7 LSU was fourth at 4-under ahead of No. 10 Florida (-2), Tennessee (-2), No. 17 Clemson (-1), South Carolina (+1), California (+4) and North Florida (+5) in 10th.
Kennesaw State was 11th at 10-over followed by Dalton State (+16), Chattanooga (+28), No. 15 Virginia (+39) and Troy (+50).
Crowe shot an even par 72 to finish in a four-way tie for third, four shots behind medalist Alejandro Tosti of Florida.
Rebula, a sophomore, tied for 12th at 3-under with a final round 4-under 68 that featured birdies at Nos. 1, 4, 5 and 13 with an eagle on No. 12. Jacob Solomon tied for 26th at 2-over with a bogey-free 2-under 70.
Freshman Brandon Mancheno tied for 34th at 4-over, firing a 69 that had four birdies and an eagle while freshman Wells Padgett tied for 44th at 6-over with a 74. Andrew Kozan, who played as an individual, tied for 52nd with a 75.
Auburn returns to action at the Trinity Forest Invitational at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas Sept. 24-26.