‘IT’S TRULY AWFUL’: Aussie prodigy Jeff Guan seriously injured in NSW Open qualifier, undergoes emergency eye surgery – Australian Golf Digest

by Admin
September 21, 2024

One of the most promising careers in Australian golf hangs in the balance after a freak accident at a NSW Open regional qualifier event at Catalina Club Batemans Bay on Friday.

Jeffrey Guan, fresh off making his PGA Tour debut at the Procore Championship in California last week, was reportedly struck in the eye by an errant tee-shot of a pro-am participant.

The 20-year-old was treated onsite by paramedics before being transported to Canberra for emergency eye surgery.

In what is very much a developing situation, sources say Guan suffered multiple fractures to his eye socket and was at serious risk of permanent damage to his eyesight. He is now waiting to be transferred to a specialist hospital in Sydney for further treatment.

Paul Davis, Guan’s longtime coach and mentor, was hoping for some positive news for a player touted by many industry insiders as a generational talent.

“Obviously there are fears he may lose some vision but we won’t know the full extent until he goes to Sydney for further assessment,” Davis told Australian Golf Digest.

“It’s truly awful … this was actually the first pro-am Jeff has ever played in. It’s just the worst possible news after such an amazing week in California.”

The NSW Open Golf Regional Qualifying Series is a series of six 36-hole tournaments across the state, offering a prize pool of $50,000 per event, along with qualification into the 2024 NSW Open Championship.

UPDATE (4:50pm): The PGA of Australia an Golf Australia have released the following joint-statement on Guan’s current situation:

“NSW professional Jeffrey Guan has been transported to hospital in Canberra after being struck by a golf ball during a pro-am event at Club Catalina yesterday.

Jeff was hit just below his eye, and received treatment on course, before being transferred to Moruya Hospital for scans. He was then airlifted to Canberra to be assessed by an eye specialist.

The 20-year-old, who played his first US PGA Tour event last week and is a member of the Golf NSW High Performance & Golf Australia Rookie Squad.

The PGA of Australia, Golf NSW and Golf Australia wish to thank everyone who assisted Jeff following the incident and wish him all the best with his recovery.

We would ask people to respect the family’s privacy at this time, and we will endeavour to provide updates on his condition in due course.”