AUBURN, Ala. – No. 13 Auburn men's golf will kick off the 2022-23 season at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate hosted by the Mirabel Club Sept. 9-11 in Scottsdale, Arizona.
"It's really exciting to finally be able to kick off the new season," Auburn head coach Nick Clinard said. "We return great players from a year ago, so our standards are high. We know what we're capable of, and when we play our game, we can go toe-to-toe with any team in the country. Maui Jim is a great event with a loaded field that is going to test us early and often, and I am ready to watch this group rise to the occasion."
Last year, the Tigers also began the season at Maui Jim, shooting 31-under to finish third overall. J.M. Butler won the event's individual crown with an Auburn record 17-under 193.
Butler returns this year to defend his title alongside teammates Carson Bacha, Ryan Eshleman, Evan Vo and Alex Vogelsong. In addition to Butler, Eshleman, Vo and Vogelsong all played in the tournament last fall.
Also making the trek to Scottsdale are sophomores Frankie Harris and Brendan Valdes. The duo will be designated as Auburn's individual players for the week, with Harris making his collegiate debut.
Auburn's core fivesome will play 18 holes a day at Mirabel while the two individual golfers will play the Outlaw Course at Desert Mountain for the Maui Jim Individual Tournament. At Desert Mountain, Harris and Valdes will play 18 holes on Friday, followed by 36 holes on Saturday.
Competing for top honors alongside the Tigers will be a total of 17 other schools, nine of which played the event last year, including the 2021 team champions, Georgia Tech. Suiting up will be No. 25 Arizona, No. 5 Arizona State, No. 24 Clemson, ETSU, No. 19 Florida State, Georgia State, No. 10 Georgia Tech, Louisville, NC State, New Mexico, RV Oregon, San Diego State, No. 22 Tennessee, UCLA, UNLV, No. 16 Wake Forest and No. 11 Washington.
Live scoring for both the Maui Jim Intercollegiate and the Maui Jim Individual will be available at GolfStat.com.