Nick Clinard is in his 25th year as a collegiate head coach and his 17th season leading the Auburn men’s golf program in 2025-26. Under his leadership, Auburn has experienced the most successful stretch in program history, highlighted by the 2024 national championship — the first in school history — and an SEC Championship during a record-setting 2023-24 campaign. That season, the Tigers won 10 tournaments, including seven consecutive titles to close the year, and posted a remarkable 185-9-1 head-to-head record. For his efforts, Clinard was named SEC Coach of the Year and the Dave Williams National Coach of the Year. Auburn has consistently ranked among the nation’s elite, capturing multiple SEC titles and advancing to NCAA Championships in 12 of his 16 seasons on the Plains.
Clinard has coached numerous All-Americans, SEC Players of the Year, and national award winners, including Jackson Koivun, who swept all three major national player of the year honors in 2024. His teams have combined elite performance with academic excellence, regularly earning All-Academic Team honors. Before arriving at Auburn in 2009, Clinard served as head coach at UCF, leading the Knights to conference championships and NCAA Regional success. A Gastonia, North Carolina native, Clinard played collegiately at SMU and Wake Forest before competing professionally. He earned his degree in speech communication from Wake Forest and, alongside his wife Susan, has two daughters, Chloe and Peyton.
