Tiger Invitational: Auburn defends its home turf with ease

March 12, 2024 | by Justin Golba of AmateurGolf.com

J.M. Butler with Jason Dufner (Auburn Athletics Photo)

Auburn won the team title by 15 shots and J.M. Butler of Auburn won the individual title over teammate Jackson Koivun by one shot

The No. 1 ranked Auburn Tigers won the Tiger Invitational at Grand National, Lake Course, in Opelika, Ala.

The Tigers defended their home turf by 15 shots, shooting 16-over and beating Florida Gulf Coast, who finished in solo second place at 31-over.

Auburn shot rounds of 298-284-298 to finish at 16-over.

UNCW and Elon finished T3 at 38-over, and Auburn's B team finished in solo fifth place at 39-over. Lipscomb and Kennesaw State finished T6 at 54-over, and East Carolina finished in solo eighth place at 55-over.

The win marks the Tigers' fifth as a team this season, matching the school record set in 1996-97 and tied last year (2022-23).

In the individual competition, John Marshall (J.M.) Butler of Auburn finished 2-over and defeated teammate Jackson Koivun by one shot.

Koivun finished in solo second place at 3-over. Butler shot a 5-over 77 final round to open the door to the field, but a bogey from Koivun on his final hole, No. 18, gave Butler the outright win. Butler survived a double bogey and a triple bogey in the final round.

Butler shot rounds of 71-70-77, while Koivun shot rounds of 71-73-75.

This is Butler's second individual win of his career. His first came at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate in the fall of 2021.

With the win, Butler into the top 20 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com U.S. Rankings. He is currently ranked No. 20.

Brendan Valdes of Auburn, Claes Borregaard of Kennesaw State, and Austin Cherichella of Florida Gulf Coast finished T3 at 4-over. Carson Bacha of Auburn finished in solo sixth place at 6-over.

Results: Tiger Invitational

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	John Marshall Butler	Louisville, KY	400	71-70-77=218
2	Jackson Koivun	Chapel Hill, NC	300	71-73-75=219
T3	Claes Borregaard	, Denmark	200	75-75-70=220
T3	Austin Cherichella	Orlando, FL	200	73-72-75=220
T3	Brendan Valdes	Orlando, FL	200	71-70-79=220

View full results for Tiger Invitational

About the Tiger Invitational

Tiger Invitational: Auburn defends its home turf with ease

54 hole men's collegiate golf tournament hosted by Auburn University. Team (best four scores out of five players each round) and individual competitions.