AUBURN, Ala. – No. 3 Auburn men's golf will wrap up its fall season at the Isleworth Collegiate for the fifth time in the last six years, competing Oct. 23-25.
"We are grateful for another opportunity enjoy the world-class event that is Isleworth," Tigers head coach Nick Clinard said. "It's obviously somewhere that is dear to my heart, but it is also an incredible experience for any collegiate golfer. It will challenge us in all the ways that any team with championship aspirations needs to be challenged. Not only is the course a tall task, but the competition will be unrelenting, which is exactly why we've scheduled it. Our guys are excited to get out there and show everyone just how hard they've been working."
Hosted by Isleworth Country Club in Windermere, Florida, the Isleworth Collegiate began in 2003 and was originally coined the Tavistock Collegiate Invitational after being co-founded by none other than Clinard himself.
At this year's edition, 15 total programs and 79 total players will be vying for the tournament title. Alongside No. 3 Auburn, teeing off this week will be No. 22 Arizona, Augusta, Cal-Berkeley, No. 11 Florida, No. 9 Illinois, RV LSU, Minnesota, RV North Florida, Purdue, South Carolina, UCF, UNLV, Utah and West Virginia.
The Orange & Blue contingent will consist of senior Alex Vogelsong, juniors Carson Bacha, J.M. Butler and Ryan Eshleman and sophomore Brendan Valdes. Vogelsong will return to competition in his home state for the first time since capturing the 105th Florida State Amateur Championship in June. Valdes also returns to familiar grounds in Orlando as he graduated from high school just five miles away from the course.
"I'm looking forward to playing a pristine course that I grew up right next to," Valdes said. "We are just trying to finish off a great fall even better."
Four of the Tigers' five, Bacha, Butler, Valdes and Vogelsong, all contributed to the team's third-place performance at the event last fall. Butler finished tied for fifth at 212 (-4) while Valdes and Vogelsong also carded top-15 outings at 216 (E) and 217 (+1), respectively.
The competition format will consist of 54 holes of play spanning the three-day period. Team and individual titles will be announced following Tuesday's action.
Auburn begins the 2022 Isleworth Collegiate paired with Florida and Illinois. The Tigers will tee off beginning with Vogelsong at 7:25 a.m. CT on hole 10.