NJ Golf Hall of Fame Spotlight: Marina Alex
Photo Courtesy Kathryn Riley/USGA
From her New Jersey beginnings, Marina Alex has carved out a legacy on golf’s global stage. In recognition of her achievements, she is being inducted into the New Jersey Golf Hall of Fame.
“I'm really humbled to be a part of this class going in and to be able to represent the state of New Jersey for my entire career playing amateur golf, collegiate golf and professional golf.”
Thanks to her father, Steve, Alex quickly rose above the norm. One of the only girls her age in the sport locally, she was naturally ahead of the curve, playing alongside her brother, godfather, Charlie Cowell, as well as the club professionals and the top male players at North Jersey Country Club, the club she grew up at.
“I spent a lot of my afternoons playing with head pro Chris (Dachisen) and some of the other guys in the shop at North Jersey, so I give a lot of credit to my dad for having those great relationships and feeling comfortable bringing my brother and I out to play with him and his friends pretty regularly,” added Alex. “I think that developed both of us into good golfers at an early age, but also very aware of golf etiquette, golf rules, how to handle yourself with people that are a bit older than you. It was a very maturing experience and in a lot of ways and I didn't quite understand that until I was on my own.”
Her constant devotion to the game helped her soar to new heights. Following a successful junior career, Alex went on to play Division I golf at SEC powerhouse, Vanderbilt University. It was there—with determination and hard work—that she truly began to unlock her full potential.
“About midway through college I felt like there was a chance at this being my career, but it took a lot of time to get there and a lot of competitive reps and experience to feel capable,” said Alex.
At Vanderbilt, she distinguished herself as a two-time SEC Golfer of the Year and a First-Team All-American, solidifying her place among the nation's elite.
Her dreams would become a reality, and after a short period on the LPGAs developmental circuit, the Symetra Tour, Alex joined the top female talent on the LPGA Tour. Spending 13 years on Tour, Alex, 34, won the Portland Classic in 2018 and the Palos Verdes Championship in 2022. She also collected 83 top-25 finishes in her career and 35 in the top 10. One of her biggest achievements was earning a spot on the prestigious Solheim Cup team in 2019.
“I know the outcome wasn't what was expected, but playing a Solheim Cup and playing that match meant so much to me. I did the best that I absolutely could and I felt like I really represented our team and the USA as well as I could. That was a really proud moment for me.”
After retiring at the end of this past season, Alex is taking time to reflect on the journey and accomplishments that have defined her career—one in which New Jersey has played a significant role.
"There are some things that you learn when you are playing in New Jersey and in the Northeast you can’t learn anywhere else,” Alex explained. “There are so many uphill and downhill shots and there's that innate understanding of how long or how short something might play when you're hitting uphill and downhill, putting across and chipping across surfaces with a lot of slope. A lot of those traditional courses, whether they're Donald Ross or Tillinghast – the back to front greens where your error is always a little bit short and trying to stay a little below the hole to have your best chance at birdie and sometimes chipping is better than putting from 30 feet above the hole, there are definitely those characteristics that you learn early on that served well for major championship golf.”
Being a New Jersey native, Alex dealt with the harsh weather from time to time when golfing in the fall and spring.
"Those seasons were tough,” Alex, now a Florida resident for over the last decade, said. “A lot of rain, bad weather. That all helped when I ended up playing internationally, specifically Open golf and the conditions of it were definitely things that I was familiar with. My dad would drag my brother and I out in the spring and go play when we didn't have a whole lot to do. He would always find a place for us to play and you carry that with you, where you're just kind of used to it.”
Over the last few years, Alex has had the opportunity to visit New Jersey when the Tour made stops in the Garden State for the Corgnizant Founders Cup, Mizuho Americas Open or even the ShopRite LPGA Classic.
“It's been great,” Alex recalled. “There's a level of comfort when you have friends and family coming out to watch. I don't get to spend a whole lot of time in New Jersey, so it’s nice to come back home and touch base with things that you know are familiar to me and where I grew up.”
The decision to retire from the LPGA wasn’t something Alex took lightly. After spending her entire life dedicated to the sport, it was time to move on.
“I wasn't quite finding those levels of joy that I had had early on in my career, and it just felt like it was time to close the chapter on it and close it in the best way possible,” Alex expressed. “I was really happy I was able to do that. Not a lot of people get the opportunity to end on a term that they want to.”
Before building her impressive collegiate and professional career, Alex made her mark early—winning the 2003 New Jersey Junior Girls’ Championship and finishing runner-up at the 2005 New Jersey Women’s Amateur.
She will be inducted into the NJ Golf Hall of Fame on Tuesday, April 29 at Essex County Country Club. To purchase tickets for the event, click here.
