Golfer
Sparks was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. From 1992 to 1994, she played golf at Duke University, where she was an All-America. A wrist injury threatened her career early, though, and she was forced to quit the team before graduating in 1996. As an amateur, Sparks won the 1993 Women's Western Amateur, a Women's Eastern Amateur, a West Virginia State Amateur, and the 1992 North and South Women's Amateur at Pinehurst.
In 1996, after graduation, Sparks joined the Futures Tour, the LPGA's developmental tour. In 1999, Sparks finally got her LPGA card in a playoff at Q-School. So emotional was the moment for Sparks that she fell to the ground in tears numerous times while walking back to the clubhouse. 2000 was Sparks' only season as an LPGA player (she became a professional as a Futures Tour player), as back surgery at season's end forced her to retire. She made one cut at the Electrolux USA Championship in Nashville, Tennessee, earning $997.
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