Sadena Parks

Sadena Parks (born May 4, 1990) is an American professional golfer who plays on LPGA Tour.[1] Parks became the first African American to earn her Tour card through the Symetra Tour and just the fifth African American to earn an LPGA Tour card.

Sadena Parks
Personal information
Born (1990-05-04) May 4, 1990
Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.
Height5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)
Nationality United States
Career
CollegeUniversity of Washington
Turned professional2013
Current tour(s)LPGA Tour
Professional wins2
Number of wins by tour
Symetra Tour2
Best results in LPGA major championships
ANA InspirationDNP
Women's PGA C'shipT22: 2015
U.S. Women's OpenCUT: 2014
Women's British OpenDNP
Evian ChampionshipCUT: 2015

Family and education

Parks was born in Raleigh, North Carolina and after her parents divorced she moved with her father to Washington. She attended Bethel High School in Spanaway and spent four seasons at the University of Washington studying American Ethnic Studies.[2][3]

Amateur career

At the age of 9, Parks joined Classic Club, a club program for young golfers and her father also enrolled her in the Leisure Hour junior golf program in Portland, Oregon. She won the Washington State High School Championship and got runner-up place.[4][5][6]

Collegiate career

2008–09 (freshman)
  • Played in final seven tournaments, eight overall
  • Huskies top finisher and tied for 20th overall at the 2009 NCAA Central Regionals after shooting a 13-over-par 229
  • Recorded best round of 74 in second and third round of UNLV Spring Rebel Invite and third round of Lady Buckeye Invite

2009–10 (sophomore)
  • Played in all 11 tournaments
  • Top Husky finisher at the Pac-10 Championship, finishing 13th.
  • Huskies second-best finisher three times (Turtle Bay Invitational, Peg Bernard Classic, Longhorn Invitational)
  • Recorded best round of 70 in first round of Pac-10 Championship
  • Recorded three top-20 finishes on the year (Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational, Peg Bernard Classic, Pac-10 Championship)

2010–11 (junior)
  • Had seven top-25 finishes in 12 events this season
  • Scoring average of 76.19, ranked second on the team
  • Set women's course record at Washington National with a career-low 66 (−6) in the second round of the West Regional
  • Her 66 tied for the second lowest round ever by a Husky and was just the fourth time in UW history a golfer has shot 66 or better
  • Was UW's top finisher at the NCAA Regional placing 22nd and Pac-10 Championship, tying for 19th
  • Career-best 8th-place finish at Peg Barnard Invitational
  • Best 54-hole score 219 came in the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational at Tacoma Country Club

2011–12 (senior)
  • Played in 10 out of 12 events, missing two tournaments to concentrate on graduation studies
  • Her scoring average of 74.79 was second on the team and ranked as the 8th best average in UW single-season history
  • Was the team's top finisher in four events and was second in two others
  • Shot a career-low 66 in the first round of the 2011 Stanford Intercollegiate, a score that ties for second lowest ever in UW history
  • Shot under-par eight times during the season to lead the team
  • Had two top-10 finishes, including a career-best second place in Hawaii at the Rainbow Wahine Invitational
  • Notched a career-low score of 213 (−3) in the Rainbow Wahine Invitational
  • Shot 2-over-par 218 at the Pacific Coast Championship to lead the Huskies and tie for 17th overall
  • Was Washington's low scorer at the NCAA East Regional

Professional career

She went to LPGA qualifying school in 2012 and earned status on the 2013 Symetra Tour. She also participated in a TV reality show Big Break Florida.[7]

On the 2014 Symetra Tour, she won two events and finished fourth on the money list to earn her 2015 LPGA Tour card, only the fifth African American woman to receive a LPGA Tour card.[1]


Parks posed in ESPN The Magazine's "Body Issue"[6] in 2015. In the accompanying article, Parks shared her aspirations and how her dad got her started in golf.[8]

Professional wins

Symetra Tour wins
  • 2014 SEFCU Championship, New England Charity Classic
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References
  1. "Sadena Parks Becomes 5th Black Female to Play on LPGA Tour, Finishes 4th on Symetra Tour Money List to Earn Fully Exempt LPGA Card". African American Golfer's Digest. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  2. Voepel, Mechelle (September 25, 2014). "Sadena Parks Determined To Be A Different Face For LPGA Tour". ESPN.
  3. "Sadena Parks Biography". GoHuskies.com. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  4. "Promising LPGA Rookie Sadena Parks". Bob Parsons Golfing. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  5. "Sadena Parks bio". LPGA. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
  6. Myers, Alex (July 8, 2015). "Sadena Parks becomes the latest golfer to pose for ESPN's Body Issue". Golf Digest.
  7. "Sadena Parks". Golf Channel. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  8. "LPGA Rookie Sadena Parks in ESPN's Body Issue: "I want to be #1 golfer in the world"". Sinuous Magazine. July 11, 2015.
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