DENVER — A lot can change in one year. Last March, DU sophomore golfer Anna Zanusso could only sink shots into a bucket into her backyard outside of Venice, Italy. Now, she's one week away from sinking a final putt on the storied greens of Augusta National.
It was 14 months ago that Zanusso got the call. She had qualified for the Augusta National Women's Amateur (ANWA).
"I saw all of my hard work paying off and I just let all of the feelings going out," she said. I started crying, I was so happy."
Instead of boarding a plane for Georgia, she boarded a plane for Italy and didn't return until January 2021. The world had shut down due to COVID-19, including the cancellation of the 2020 NCAA golf season and the 2020 ANWA.
Since the previous event was canceled, this will still be only the second-ever ANWA in history. The magnitude of the moment isn't lost on her.
"The first year was of course, one for the books, because it was the first year that women amateur were competing in Augusta. It's the best experience a woman can ever imagine," Zanusso said.
The winner of the first was none other than Colorado's own Jennifer Kupcho. Kupcho was entering the field as the strong favorite, after coming off of a 2018 NCAA DI Women's Golf Championship at Wake Forest. She reached out to the newest Colorado-connection last spring.
"She gave me a couple pieces of advice. She told me about her experience," Zanusso said. "Of course, I'd like to keep the trophy in Colorado."
Zanusso has a heavy weight on her, representing both Denver and Italy alike, but she feels like it's an honor and will have both of her coaches present.
"I'm just grateful to Denver that they're allowing me to miss school and miss practices," she said. "And to have my [Italian] coach and teammates there, it will be a big moment for me."
Nothing will be as big of a moment, though, as the first tee box.
"I feel like my whole life is going to go through my mind at that time and I can't wait to tee off to get the pressure away," she said. "After that, I'm going to enjoy every single shot and every single moment in that course. The atmosphere is going to be magic, just because I've seen the course only on TV and I saw the best players in the world playing there. I'm going to enjoy it as much as I can."
The same year Kupcho walked the famous fairways, a pretty famous golfer had a spectacular comeback moment. Zanusso said she'll never forget that 2019 Masters.
"Tiger Woods," she said. "His win a couple of years ago was amazing."