Back to the Golf Newsfeed

For Zunic, just to be playing at Doral is a thrill (The Associated Press)

Related Topics: Doral, Florida, Par (score)

DORAL, Fla. (AP) -- Jordan Zunic shot a 3-over 75 Thursday in the first round of the Cadillac Championship, putting the Australian nine shots off the early leaders.

Not a great day, by any measure.

But you won't hear Zunic complaining.

Just being at Doral this week - or anywhere, really - is a huge deal for the 24-year-old, who nearly died after losing an estimated 40 percent of his blood in a car crash in Arkansas in 2013 and dealing with other injuries. Now recovered, though the scar on the left side of his face is a plainly visible reminder of the crash, Zunic is making his first appearance in a World Golf Championships event, qualifying for this field by finishing second in last year's Australasian Tour Order of Merit.