There is something to be said for being the first. That’s what Epson Tour rookie Monifa Sealy (Glencoe, Trinidad and Tobago) wants to accomplish. Sealy, who represents Trinidad and Tobago, was recently nominated for Trinidad and Tobago Sports Women of the Year. She actually had to withdraw from the Founders Cup Monday Qualifier in order to attend the ceremony, which had been moved up from its original date.
“I believe I am currently the only female pro golfer in the country,” said Sealy, who played college golf in Orlando at the University of Central Florida. “There are a few male professionals who are working to achieve Tour status and Stephen Ames (4-time winner on PGA TOUR) is the most acclaimed from Trinidad and Tobago, but he carries the Canadian flag. I am looking forward to being the first to wear our Trinidad & Tobago flag on Tour.”
In the process, Sealy hopes to raise the profile of golf in Trinidad and Tobago, a country know mostly for its track & field medals. Sealy picked up the game at the age of ten through a friends dad, who was marketing clubs. After showing promise in junior events, her parents enrolled her at the IMG Academy in Bradenton in 2007. Two years later, she moved to the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy. From 2007 through 2011, she would attend school for half the day and play golf the other half.
“It is a great victory for the sport of golf to be nominated and I hope it rekindles the interest of young players and inspires them,” said Sealy. “I’ve been a top 10 finalist for the award on four different occasions and I was the Female Youth of the Year in 2011. It’s just an honor to be recognized by your country for a national sports award.”
Sealy was the Trinidad and Tobago Golf Association Female Golfer of the Year in 2009, 2010 and 2011. At UCF, she was All Conference in 2012-2013 and 2014-15. Her golf resume is impressive with 33 wins and 62 top 5 finishes. The highlight to this point is earning medalist honors at the 2015 American Athletic Conference Championship.
Sealy, who just missed advancing out of Stage I of LPGA Qualifying Tournament in 2015, has committed to every Epson Tour event, but realistically expects to get into a limited number because of her status. In the meantime, she is playing the NWGA Tour in Florida and has two top 3 finishes to date.
“The nomination motivates me to work even harder now that I am at the professional level”
It seems like new flags are sprouting up all over leaderboards on the Epson Tour and the LPGA and Sealy hopes to see the Trinidad and Tobago flag flying high in 2016 on the Epson Tour.
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