{{ubiquityData.prevArticle.description}}
{{ubiquityData.nextArticle.description}}
As the 40th anniversary season of the Symetra Tour prepares to tee off Thursday at Country Club of Winter Haven, one former Florida Junior Tour standout is preparing for her professional debut.
Sierra Brooks, 21, the FSGA's 2015 Girls' Junior Player of the Year, is in the 132-player field at the Florida's Natural Charity Classic, a 54-hole tournament that starts the season for the developmental circuit that provides an avenue for qualification to the LPGA Tour.
"It's an exciting thing to start this new season, and just be able to live out my childhood dream," the former University of Florida standout told Damon Hack and Paige Mackenzie during an interview on Golf Channel's Morning Drive program last week. "It's what I've worked for since I was a little girl."
Brooks turned professional after completing her junior season at Florida in May, having led the Gators in 2018-19 with a 72.59 stroke average. She also set the school record for lowest individual round, carding a 62 in the second round of the Cougar Classic hosted by College of Charleston in Hanahan, S.C.
The Orlando golfer also competed last spring in the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur, making the cut to play the final round on the home course of the Masters and finishing T10 overall.
After finishing runner-up to Arkansas' María Fassi in the individual NCAA Championship at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark., Brooks finished T62 at the LPGA Q-Series last autumn in Pinehurst, N.C., qualifying for the Symetra Tour.
Asked about her aspirations for this first season, Brooks said she is looking toward the top level of the women's professional game.
"For this year I want to make it in the top 10 and get my LPGA card," she said. "That's the first goal."
READ MORE
Entries close Wednesday for the Senior/Mid-Amateur Four-Ball Championship, which will be contested March 14-15 at Country Club of Ocala.
A maximum field of 48 two-person teams will compete in 36 holes of four-ball stroke play. Each team must consist of a senior and a mid-amateur, with the title going to the pairing with the lowest gross team score.
Last year, the team of Tom Kleppe and Marc France took home the title at Buckhorn Springs Golf & Country Club in Valrico.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Entries also close on Wednesday for the Women's Four-Ball Championship, to be played March 14-15 on the Ranch course at Black Diamond Ranch in Lecanto.
A maximum of 48 two-person teams will compete in 36 holes of four-ball stroke play. Winners will come from three divisions – Championship, Middle and Forward.
In 2019, junior golfers Chloe Schiavone and Ariel Yu won by two strokes at Stone Creek Golf Club in Ocala, shooting a record 62-66–128 to claim the Championship title for the second time in a row.
Staff and Wire Reports