Ilirian Zalli is aiming to become the first player on the DP World Tour to play under the Albanian flag.
As part of this week's collaboration with Monday Q Info, Ryan French tells some of the stories from Q School that often fly under the radar.
After his parents’ arduous journey, Ilirian Zalli has played his way to the Final Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School.
If golf wasn't the most democratic sport, Ilirian Zalli wouldn't be at the final stage of DP World Tour Q school. Zalli is the son of immigrants, both of whom escaped countries in chaos during the fall of communism, and he has defied the odds with every swing. He wasn't a top junior golfer, turned pro at 18, plays on a small mini-tour in Canada and helps care for his mother, who has multiple sclerosis.
I was scrolling through Second Stage leaderboards when I came across a flag from a country I didn't recognise. The black double-headed eagle on a red background stood out. If Zalli is able to nab one of the 20 (plus ties) exempt cards, he will become the first player in DP World Tour history to play under the Albanian flag. I soon received an email from a friend who knew the family and their heroic story.
Zalli plays under the Albanian flag as a nod to his father, Gentian, who escaped the country at 23. "It's a very small country, but the people are great and very resilient,” Ilirian says. “I think about my father, who had made so many sacrifices for me to be here."
Asked how he fled Albania, Gentian offered few details, saying half-jokingly: "I'm not sure the statute of limitations has run out yet."
Adds Ilirian: "Let's just say it took a lot of cash and a lot of bravery."
A friend of the family says Gentian was a stowaway on a ship that sailed to Italy before finding his way to Canada. This much we know: It wasn't an easy journey.
Gentian is an engineer by trade, but because he spoke little English, landing a job didn’t happen immediately. He worked odd jobs, including as a cook at a cafe. He worked there for two years and learned English along the way.
He soon met his wife, Joanna, who had immigrated from Poland and attended the University of Toronto. Joanna became a teacher, and Gentian found a home as an engineer at Xerox.They had two children; Christian is now at Yale.
Gentian and Joanna wanted the kids to choose a sport, giving each an option of tennis or golf. "We both worked all day,” Gentian says. “So we had to have a sport we could do when we could." Both excelled at golf.
Christian won the British Columbia Amateur when he was 17, beating a 14-year-old by a stroke. That would be Ilirian, who had a solid junior career yet did nothing spectacular. However, he always knew he wanted to play professional golf.
Christian chose a different path and now is working towards his master’s degree at Yale. Ilirian decided that living at home with his parents and attending a college there while turning pro was his best bet. He did the latter at age 18.
There was one problem: professional golf takes money and the family didn't have much. Having been diagnosed with MS, Joanna had been unable to work for years. Soon after she stopped working, Gentian did the same so he could care for her.
The Vancouver Tour is a long-running mini-tour with entry fees ranging from around $200 to $500. While the purses are small, the circuit gave Ilirian a place to hone his skills without the expense of travel. Canadians Adam Hadwin, Nick Taylor and Adam Svensson started their careers on the Vancouver Tour. Fraser Mulholland, president of the tour, says he sees some of the same qualities in Ilirian as in the three Canadians, all of whom are now playing on the PGA TOUR.
"His inner belief was really impressive,” Mulholland says. “He came out here at 18 and was playing against guys who went to college and played the Canadian Tour, and he knew he belonged."
In his first year on the Vancouver Tour, Ilirian played 11 events and won twice, finishing seventh on the Order of Merit and winning Rookie of the Year honours. More importantly, he turned a profit.
In 2022, he had three wins, including the Vancouver Open, which came with a $15,000 cheque. It was an event Ilirian and his dad attended many times when Ilirian was a kid.
On the Vancouver Tour YouTube page, there is a video of the 2010 Vancouver Open where one can see a youngster waving in the background as Adam Hadwin, now a PGA Tour winner, taps in to win. That little kid was Ilirian Zalli.
In 2023, Ilirian went to Canadian Tour Q School for the first time, earning status with a tied-14th finish. However, at his first event, he discovered how expensive travelling and playing on that tour would be. After a missed cut, he decided it was best to head back to the Vancouver Tour and save some money.
He validated that decision by winning three times.
In 2024, Ilirian dominated again, honing his game at Richmond Country Club, a course the Vancouver Tour plays, after a member helped him get playing privileges there. With money in the bank from the nearly $60,000 he had earned on the tour, it was time to take the next step.
So Ilirian signed up for DP World Tour Q school and headed for the First Stage in Sweden with his dad on the bag. It was his first pro event outside of Canada. With just five holes left, Ilirian was three strokes outside the number. He responded with birdies on three of the last five holes, making it through on the number.
He then flew home and played in a Vancouver Tour event. He prevailed for the eighth time in 2024, breaking Taylor's single-season record for victories. When I spoke with Mulholland he became emotional talking about Zalli setting the record and the role the Vancouver Tour has played in his young career.
Making it through First Stage of Q school as a 22-year-old professional with no real tour experience would be considered a success, but Ilirian wasn't done. At Second Stage with his dad on the bag again, he cruised to a tie for ninth in Girona.
On Thursday, Ilirian opened the six-round marathon at the Final Stage in Tarragona, with a respectable 69, but he struggled in the second round en route to a 74, which left him well outside the projected four-round cut.
Of course, with his back to the wall, he responded again, turning in a bogey-free 63 that featured an ace on the 191-yard 13th hole. In the group was two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal, who was caddying for his nephew. According to Gentian, Jose Maria was more excited than Ilirian was.
At the halfway point, Ilirian is tied for 12th. The low 20 scores and ties earn DP World Tour cards for the 2025 season. The field will be cut to the low 65 and ties after Monday's fourth round.
Joanna has been at home following the scores online, and there have been nightly phone calls with updates. She’s looking forward to receiving more good news.
As I sat with Ilrian and his father after the third-round, 63, I saw a glimpse into the family's work ethic. Ilrian is still in college, taking three online classes at Vancouver Community College. "I don't want a dumb golfer," Gentian said matter-of-factly. Ilirian said he had a paper due in a couple of days. He looked at his Dad and laughed, hoping he would give him a pass. "Well, you better get it done," Gentian said.
Work hard. Defy the odds.
