Nineteen months after a life-threatening car accident, IAS Graduate golfer Jordan Zunic completed a remarkable comeback with Sunday’s breakthrough win at the New Zealand Open. Zunic kept his cool down the stretch, sinking a one-metre putt on the final hole after his dead-eye approach shot had slammed into the pin. The 23-year-old carded a final-round 66 to finish 21-under for the tournament, one shot clear of fellow Australian David Bransdon, who closed with a 64. Zunic, who finished tied for eighth in the New Zealand PGA earlier this month, trailed Brandson by a stroke midway through the back nine before Brandson bogeyed the final hole. After safely playing out of trouble and securing a par on the 17th, Zunic went for broke on the 18th, playing two of the best shots of his career to set up the victory-clinching birdie. Zunic’s dreams of a professional golf career seemed a long shot when he suffered serious injuries in a car accident in America in August 2013. He never stopped believing he would achieve his life-long goal and was reaping the rewards on Sunday night in the form of a $180,000 winner’s cheque. Jordan plans on using Sunday’s thrilling victory as a springboard to greater glory in Japan and Europe. The Wollongong golfer was still buzzing when he returned to Australia on Monday, less than 24 hours after a 72nd-hole birdie sealed his first win as a professional. “I’m still trying to come to terms with it,” he said. “Words can’t describe how I felt at the time. It’s slowly starting to sink in because I just had a look at my world ranking as a professional. I was 1500 or something and now I’m 414, so I’ve jumped about a thousand spots with that win, which I wasn’t expecting. I thought I might get inside the top thousand, but to be in the top 500 in the world, it’s unbelievable to achieve that so early. “I’m just excited to see where it takes me now, because it’s opened so many doors for me.” Zunic isn’t just being modest. He honestly thought he would have to toil away for at least a couple of years before putting himself on the map. “No way I thought this would happen so early,” the 23-year-old said. “If you had’ve told me last week I would’ve done this, I would’ve said ‘get outa here’. I had no status. I had to go and pre-qualify for some tournaments and that’s all I was expecting to do this whole year. I thought I’d do that all year and then go back to tour school at the end of the year.” All his hopes and dreams of a professional career were put on hold when Zunic was seriously injured in a car accident in America in August 2013. He made a rapid recovery and decided to turn pro earlier this year. After finishing tied for eighth at the New Zealand PGA earlier this month, he officially signalled his arrival in the golfing world with his gutsy triumph at the Open. Tied at 20-under with fellow Aussie David Brandson, who was back in the clubhouse after a final-round 64, Zunic hit the pin with his approach shot on the last hole. He calmly knocked in a one-metre birdie putt to avoid a play-off and immediately burst into tears. “They were tears of joy,” he said. “When I was lying in that hospital bed, I didn’t know if I’d ever get back to where I was, and to come back and be better than I was is hard to believe. I’ve put a lot of hard work in, and it’s nice to have some reward for the hard work.” Zunic said he stood on the final tee with a clear mind and knew exactly what he wanted to do. He then executed two of the best shots of his life before adding the winning putt. “All I was thinking was ‘make birdie and win this tournament’. I wasn’t even thinking about a play-off, and that might’ve helped me because I put that shot in so close,” he said. “It was amazing that it happened the way it did. I didn’t know it hit the pin until I got down there. I actually saw it on the TV highlights later that night and it was unlucky not to go in.” Zunic will take a short break before making his next move. “I’ll sit down with my manager and sort out what I’m going to be playing in,” he said. “I’ve got three exemptions for starts on the Japan tour, so I just have to sit down and evaluate what I’ve got. I’m just excited to have stuff to play in and I just want to keep going.” After keeping himself together throughout his victory speech, Zunic fell apart when he spoke of his close-knit family. “They’ve always been great, so supportive in every way,” he said. “As soon as I mentioned my mum and dad and brother, I started crying. People in the crowd told me it brought a tear to their eyes, but that was coming straight from the heart because my family means so much to me. “I’ve had so much good support. I was in awe with all the messages coming through for six straight hours on Sunday night. “Text after text and Facebook and Twitter and 150 notifications on my app. It’s something I’ll remember forever.”
