‘It’s devastating’: Golfing prodigy awaits further eye surgery after freak accident

Rising Australian golf star Jeff Guan has been transferred to specialist care in Sydney as he awaits further surgery on his eye after a freak accident that may jeopardise his career.

Guan has been moved from Canberra to Sydney Eye Hospital after being hit in the face with a golf ball during a Pro-Am event at Batemans Bay on the NSW south coast on Friday.

Having already undergone one operation in Canberra when airlifted to the nation’s capital, Guan was driven to Sydney on Sunday as he prepares for another operation on his extensive injuries, which include damage to his cheekbone and eye socket.

But most concern is for Guan’s eye, which is why he’s sought specialist treatment in Sydney where doctors will perform more surgery in a bid to save his career.

The golfing community has rallied around the 20-year-old since the horrific accident, which came just a week after Guan made his PGA Tour debut in California.

It was seen as the next big step on what experts considered an inevitable path to a lucrative professional career, with Guan cracking the top 1000 in the world rankings and seeking further opportunities overseas.

Australian golfer Jeff Guan.Credit: Edwina Pickles

Officials were still seeking information on how the accident happened, but according to sources speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, Guan was hit in the face by a ball hit by a Pro-Am partner.

Paramedics were immediately called to the scene and took Guan to a hospital in Moruya before he was airlifted to Canberra.

Specialists are still trying to determine the extent of the damage to his eye.

“He just needs to be in Sydney so he can see the best doctors available,” Guan’s longtime coach and mentor Paul Davis said. “It’s a devastating thing to happen.”

Guan was hoping for a breakthrough summer in Australia after top finishes in the Australian PGA (tied-18th) and Australian Open (tied-21st) last year as a teenager, just a month after he turned professional.

Guan had spent time with Australia’s top male star Cameron Smith in the United States after winning the scholarship named after the 2022 British Open champion.

He also played in four tournaments on the European-based secondary Challenge Tour, with the best finish a tied-10th in a French event.

Meanwhile, Smith’s Ripper GC franchise has made the semi-finals of LIV Golf’s team championship in Dallas as they close in on a $20.5 million payday.

Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert won their singles matches against Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs, enough for the all-Australian team to advance to the final four after Smith and Jones went down in their foursomes contest.

Leishman needed to sink a par putt on the first play-off hole to beat Eugenio Chacarra.

“That might have been the most I felt my heartbeat, ever,” Leishman said.

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