AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn men’s golf returns to competition this week, Oct. 19-21, as the No. 4 Tigers ready for The Williams Cup at Eagle Point Golf Club in Wilmington, North Carolina.
“Our last performance was obviously not up to the standard we’ve set for this program, so we’re excited to finally get back out on the course with a shot at redemption in our own hands,” Tigers head coach Nick Clinard said. “Eagle Point is a great course that a lot of our guys have played before. Hopefully, we can all click as a team and leave here with a trophy.”
Auburn plays Monday’s first round alongside No. 1 Utah and No. 12 North Carolina. Freshman Logan Reilly leads off from the five spot at 7:15 a.m. CT.
Also competing in Wilmington are No. 11 Texas, No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 23 Notre Dame, No. 24 Arizona, RV Florida, RV Louisville, Augusta, Kentucky, NC State, Oregon State and UNC Wilmington. North Carolina will also compete a second group of five as a “B” team.
The starting lineup for the Tigers consists of junior Jackson Koivun (1), junior Cayden Pope (2), sophomore Billy Davis (3), junior Josiah Gilbert (4) and Reilly (5). Fellow rookie Jake Albert will compete as an individual for the duration of the tournament.
Last time out, Auburn had a substandard showing at the Ben Hogan Collegiate Invitational, tying for eighth place amongst 15 teams. Pope was the team’s best player at 3-over-par. He finished just inside the top 20.
Prior to the Hogan, the Tigers earned runner-up honors at the Honors Course Invitational to kick off the new season. Gilbert tied for low medalist after shooting 6-under-par.
A win this week would be the team’s first of the season and the 60th in the 17-year tenure of Clinard. It would also be Auburn’s first win at The Williams Cup in its third attempt after finishing second in 2023 and third in 2024. Of the returning men, Gilbert had the best outing at Eagle Point last season with a third-place finish. He shot 8-under to lead the team to a 12-under week. The year prior, Koivun was the only active player to compete. He shot 5-over and finished 19th.
Live scoring for the 2025 Williams Cup can be tracked at Golfstat.com.
