Danny Sinksen entered his seventh season as the head coach of the Augustana men's golf program in 2021-22. Sinksen was named the 16th head coach in program history on Aug. 20, 2015.
The 2021-22 season saw Sinksen coach the Vikings to a victory at the UMary Invite. He also coached four NSIC All-Academic student-athletes and one CoSIDA All-District At-Large honoree in 2022. The squad finished seventh at the NSIC Championships with one golfer finishing in a tie for 10th place. Overall, the Vikings competed in 10 events during the 2021-22 season.
During the 2020-21 campaign, the Vikings were unable to compete in the fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Once competition started in the spring, however, Sinksen saw his squad finish in 6th at the NSIC Championships while seeing Jacob Lee earn Second-Team All-NSIC and All-Tournament Team honors.
The 2019-20 season featured another young roster for Coach Sinksen with over half of the team being underclassmen. As a team, the Vikings earned their best finish of the season with a second-place finish at the Augustana Invite on Sept. 29, 2019. The Vikings would only compete in six events on the season as it was cut short due to COVID-19.
2018 started as an important year for Danny professionally. The Sioux Falls native was promoted to the position of Sioux Falls PGA Director of Player Development, overseeing all instructional programs for all three Sioux Falls Golf facilities. The 2018-19 season featured a young roster for Coach Sinksen with over half of the team being freshmen. As a team, Sinksen’s group claimed five top-ten finishes, including a season best second-place finish at the Augustana Invite on Sept. 30, 2018. Coach Sinksen had two of his players receive Academic All-NSIC honors for the spring golf season: Erik Malling and Sam Mock.
In his third season at the helm of Augustana Golf, Danny Sinksen coached a senior led golf squad to a sixth place finish at the NSIC Championships. Overall, the 2017-18 season saw the team secure two top-five finishes and five top-ten finishes. Parker Klitzke led the way with individual awards such as NSIC Preseason Men’s Golfer of the Year, NSIC Golfer of the Week for the week of March 27th, after a first place finish at the NSIC Preview, and a spot on the All-NSIC First Team for Men’s Golf. Erik Malling also earned Academic All-NSIC honors for the spring golf season.Â
In his second season as head coach Sinksen coached junior Parker Klitzke to the program's first ever NSIC Golfer of the Year. Klitzke also became the first Viking ever to win the NSIC Championship after shooting a 2-under par. For his success Klitzke also earned First Team All-NSIC honors. Sinksen guided Klitzke to the NCAA Regional where he shot a 14-under par, finishing third in the Midwest/Central Regional. During the 2016-17 season the Vikings had two top-5 team finishes and posted a season average of 21-over par: 308.
In his first season at the helm of the men’s golf program in 2015-16, Sinksen helped guide the Vikings to a fifth place finish at the NSIC Championship. The team’s scoring average for the season was 306.39. Out of the nine meets during the season, Augustana earned six top-5 finishes as a team, including a second place finish at the 2015 Huskie Invite. At the Huskie Invite the Vikings were 16-over par. The Vikings competed in the Inaugural Cougar Cup Match Play Title which they eventually won after defeating the field with a score of 20.5. Sinksen coached two Academic All-NSIC selections in Clay Kopplin and Les Williams.
A native of Sioux Falls, Sinksen is the PGA Professional at Elmwood Golf Course. Sinksen is a graduate of Roosevelt High School where he was a member of the golf team for five seasons before playing collegiately at Missouri Southern State University.
Sinksen was a four-year letter winner at MSSU and earned all-conference and academic all-conference honors all four years of his career. He received the Lion-Backer award his junior and seasons at MSSU for his academic and athletic excellence.
After earning his degree in business from Missouri Southern, Sinksen returned to Sioux Falls to pursue his professional golf career. While working at the Elmwood Golf Course pro shop he participated in the Pinnacle Exceptional Drive Contest and qualified for a national event in Laughlin, Nevada. He spent the next three summers playing on the Dakotas Tour where he had several top 10 finishes and a tie for first at the Westward Ho Pro Am.
In 2008, Sinksen became an assistant professional at Prairie Green Golf Course and a graduate assistant coach at the University of South Dakota. After one season as a graduate assistant at USD, Sinksen was named the head coach for the Coyotes and coached the men’s and women’s programs as they transitioned to Division I from 2009 to 2011.
Sinksen has spent 14 years working for Dakota Golf, including eight as a professional. He resides in Sioux Falls with his wife Kelli and their daughter Allyson.
