Butler leads Tigers in day one at Mossy Oak

WEST POINT, Miss. – Auburn men's golf ends day one of the Mossy Oak Collegiate Championship inside the leaderboard's top-5 thanks to a pair of solid performances from sophomore J.M. Butler on Monday.
 
The Tigers saw a delayed start to the day due to storms in the northeast Mississippi area but were able to finish the first round and all but two holes of the second before the day was called due to darkness.
 
"The rain was a challenge at the beginning of the day and the wind continued to pick up as it went on," Auburn head coach Nick Clinard said. "We weren't sharp with our scoring clubs and putters today, but we're excited to get back at it tomorrow because we know we're a great team and are capable of playing some really nice golf."
 
Butler shot his team-leading 14th below-par round of the season with a 2-under 70 in his opening frame. He currently sits 1-under through an incomplete second round of play. Both scores lead the Auburn lineup.
 
Freshman Evan Vo and sophomore Carson Bacha also counted their first-round scores with a 72 and 73, respectively. Vo's opener was highlighted by back-to-back-to-back birdies on holes 11, 12 and 13.
 
Junior Alex Vogelsong carded a 74 to kickstart the day but has chipped off two shots to sit at par through his nearly complete round two. Fellow junior C.J. Easley shot a 75 in round one and sits 1-under through 16 holes of the middle frame.
 
Through 1+ rounds of play at the Mossy Oak Golf Course, Vanderbilt leads the team field at 15 strokes below par while the Commodores' Gordon Sargent leads all players at 9-under.
 
The Tigers will finish the second round in a shotgun start at 8 a.m. CT and will play continuously until all three rounds are in the books. They will be paired with LSU, UAB and Kansas State for Tuesday's competition.