Freshman Miguel Delgado lines up a putt.

Men's Golf to Play in Auburn's Tiger Invitational

March 4, 2016

By John Patrick Bruno

NOTRE DAME, Ind. –The University of Notre Dame men’s golf team enters its third competition of the spring as they head to Opelika, Alabama to play at the Grand National Lake Course at Auburn’s Tiger Invitational. The event, presented by Jason Dufner, kicks off on Sunday, March 6.

“We’re happy for the quick turnaround this week, getting back after it at Auburn’s tournament,” Head Coach Jim Kubinski said. “While our finish in Tucson didn’t meet expectations, no matter what time of year, we saw enough good things to feel we can play good golf at Grand National’s Lake Course.”

The Details:
Date: Sunday Mar. 6- Tuesday Mar. 8
Golf Course: Grand National Lake Course
Course Info: par-72, 7,149 yards
Tournament field: No. 4 Auburn, Georgia State, Jacksonville State, Kansas State, Kennesaw State, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, SE Louisiana, South Alabama, Troy, Tulsa, UNCG, UNCW, VCU, Auburn (B).

Format:

54-hole stroke play 18 holes each day, with the low four of five scores counted each round for the team total.

Tee Times:
Sun. March 6 – 1st round, 18 holes, 7:45 AM start on holes 1 & 10
Mon. March 7 – 2nd round, 18 holes, 7:45 AM start on holes 1 & 10
Tues. March 8 – final round, 18 holes, 7:45 AM start on holes 1 & 10

Live Scoring/Leaderboards:
Golfstat

On the Tee

— The event is stroke play, with the lowest four of five scores for each team counted toward a team total, aggregated over the three days.

— Juniors Blake Barens and Matthew Rushton start the competition alongside Freshmen Ben Albin, Kevin Conners, and Miguel Delgado.

— Freshman Ben Albin earned his first top-10 finish last week, tying for eighth at the National Invitational Tournament in Tucson, Arizona.

— Jason Dufner, who is sponsoring the tournament, won the 2013 PGA Championship and is a 2000 graduate of Auburn.

Coach Kubinski Quotes:
On what last week’s tournament showed …
“Between Ben’s Top-10 finish, Blake’s two solid rounds, Matt’s closing round in the red and long stretches of good play from Kevin and Miguel at different points, last week showed enough positives to keep our confidence where it needs to be. We want to get better every week, right through ACCs, so this week is a nice opportunity.”

On what could improve the team’s confidence …
“We didn’t make the putts out in Tucson, so, being the good putting team we are, I look for us to hole a few more this week. There’s no doubt a few made putts will give us a boost, some positive vibes, which we’ll look to build upon through Spring Break and beyond.”

Scouting the course …
“I haven’t been to the Lake Course since attending the 2000 NCAA Championship, which probably dates me. I recall it not being overly long but having challenging Par 3 holes and a couple very strong Par 4 holes. There are also a few shorter Par 4s and a set of Par 5 holes that can be reached, which should offer players a few nice birdie opportunities.”

— ND —


John Patrick Bruno is a sophomore student assistant for Fighting Irish Media, working closely with the Athletics Communications Directors for swimming, hockey, golf, and lacrosse. An Economics and Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics Major, Bruno is from St. Paul, Minnesota.