Jeff Guan was climbing the professional golf ladder, rung after rung.
A two-time Australian amateur champion, Guan had made his PGA Tour debut in the United States and was signed by the same management agency as Spanish superstar Jon Rahm.
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Earning a card on the DP World Tour was the logical next step. Then his rise to the top of the game was taken away from him.
A week after his September 2024 U.S. bow, Guan was hit in the face by a stray bullet during a Pro-Am event, leaving him permanently blinded in his left eye.
This week, the 21-year-old from Sydney caps off a remarkable comeback. He is part of a strong field at the Australian Open – the crown jewel of the country’s golfing summer – rubbing shoulders with Masters champion Rory McIlroy, as well as major Australian winners Adam Scott and Cameron Smith.
“Playing these events, especially with so many DP World Tour pros coming to Australia, is so exciting,” Guan told BBC Sport.
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“It will be good to see where I stand on the pitch and test where my game is at.”
The life-changing incident at the Catalina Club in New South Wales left the young player fearing he would never play for a club again.
Guan’s return to the elite level is a story of remarkable courage and perseverance.
After hitting his second shot from the third fairway, Guan walked to a buggy to put the iron back in his bag. Seconds later, he was hit.
“I remember falling to the ground and feeling a shooting pain at the top of the left side of my head,” he recalled.
Guan was quickly taken to a Canberra hospital, where a scan revealed he would immediately need surgery on his fractured eye socket.
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The next day he was transferred to the Sydney Eye Hospital for a second operation and spent two weeks in intensive care there.
When Guan was allowed to go home, doctors insisted that he stay within the confines of his room to stabilize eye pressure and prevent particles from entering the area.
Some days he couldn’t bear to get out of bed. For others, he couldn’t stand looking at his golf clubs.
“I’ve always loved golf and played it my whole life. So to have it disappear all of a sudden was a mental challenge,” said Guan, who was told days later that he would not regain sight in that eye.
“Luckily I was good to go after a few weeks and started walking again and doing strength work.”
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Fortnite & COD – the game helps Guan adapt
Guan remembers the rehabilitation process as a series of “little steps” on a long road back to the golf course.
Three months after the second operation, he picked up clubs for the first time with gentle chipping and putting.
He had to patiently move forward in the bag and, about three months later, he took flight with the driver.
“My first thoughts were ‘wow, my clubs are so long,’” Guan said.
“I hadn’t played for six months and holding the club felt really awkward, I wanted to stand way too tall.
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“I didn’t know if I would be able to play again, but as the sessions continued and I practiced more, I started to see results.”
Specialists gave Guan a series of vision therapy exercises to strengthen his right eye and encouraged him to play console games.
Fighting opponents online in Marvel Rivals, Fortnite, Rainbow 6 Siege, and Call of Duty added a fun element to the rehabilitation process.
“Gaming helps improve hand-eye coordination and increases awareness of peripheral vision. It helps that I enjoy playing anyway,” Guan said.
The change in his depth perception made playing from the bunkers – where he would be penalized for grounding his club – particularly difficult.
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Visually impaired golfers from around the world, who contacted Guan via social media after hearing his story, provided him with crucial advice.
Squinting with his right eye to block out peripheral objects and using the sun’s shadow to know where his club is have improved his sand game.
When he started putting, Guan found his reading of the greens to be “atrocious.”
Guan couldn’t judge the contours – even though there were steep breaks – and quickly adopted a technique used by many golfers to improve putting accuracy.
“I started learning the Aimpoint – where you stand on the second third of the putt and feel how much the slope is with your feet – to confirm what I’m seeing,” he said.
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“I always read a putt normally behind the ball or hole, then I’ll use Aimpoint quickly to make sure it’s correct.”
How did he behave upon his return?
After increasing his workload through daily practice sessions with long-time coach Gary Barter at the revered Australian Golf Club, Guan had his mind set on returning to the professional ranks.
“Even when training was going well, I was 50-50 if I was going to take another year off,” he said.
“I have two years of medical exemption and, after talking to my team and my parents, I felt that two years without golf was too long.”
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Guan was fitted with a prosthetic eye, which he wears when performing so that he feels “100% confident” in front of other people.
His first tournament back was at the Northern Territory PGA Championship in August, failing to make the cut after carding rounds 74 and 73.
A fortnight later he played in the Western Australian PGA Championship – finishing in 10th place after shooting a 66 on the final day.
Guan says his comeback has been fueled by personal motivation, but he also credits the overwhelming support from the golf world for added support.
A recent video message from Ryder Cup star Tommy Fleetwood – who Guan describes as an “idol” – was a particular source of inspiration.
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Fleetwood will not participate in the Australian Open, but Guan is cautiously dreaming of being able to line up alongside the Englishman in the future.
“I would love to be part of the DP Tour or PGA Tour as a member, but at the moment I am just focusing on the Australian calendar and progressing from there,” he said.
“I would like to say that (winning tour cards) is a goal, but it’s still very early to say.”
