Patty Llaguno, The First Player to Win a WPT Tournament

Patty Llaguno is one of the legends! Patty Llaguno has one of the most fascinating tales. She has been a constant in Padel tournaments. If you want to know more about this exemplary athlete, read more. 

Who is Patty Llaguno?

Patricia Llaguno Zielinski, also known as Patty Llaguno, is a Spanish professional Padel player. As of January 2024, she is ranked 18^th by the WPT statistics. She has gathered 3450 points in the WPT circuit so far. Having played 438 games, won 296, and lost 142. Patty has elevated her win percentage to 67.58%. Notably, she has a streak of 9 consecutively won games.

Patty Llaguno has won the Spanish and World Championships in several youth categories. At 12 years old, she won her first title, becoming runner-up in Spain under-14 and World Under-12 Champion in Argentina in 1997.

In 2003, she went to Atlanta (USA) to study Marketing and Business at Berry University with a Tennis scholarship.

Ten years later, she was ranked the N.1 player of the WPT in 2013, as she was the first player to ever win a World Padel tour Tournament, alongside her then-partner Eli Amaritain.

Patty Llaguno’s Padel Chart

Patty Llaguno’s game has been known in the past for the clean-up. Playing in the backhand position, she has had the opportunity to show up for her partners and destroy her opponents with quick shots. She is a champion of communication and executes her shots in perfect harmony with her forehand partner.

Below is a technical tabulation to familiarize yourself with Patty.

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Patty LLaguno’s Debut in Padel

Patty started playing Padel at a very young age. She grew up right at the center of the Padel boom. She was barely three years old when her father built two Padel tennis courts at the Dos Mares Club in La Manga del Mar Menor.

Seeing as she was a very active child, her parents had her play different sports (ballet, taekwondo, swimming, sailing, skating…), but those that included a ball were the ones she was best at.

At ten years old, Patty began to invest more in Padel and compete in lower categories. At just 11 years old, she became a federated padel player, and just one year later, she won her first under-12 international title in Argentina in 1997.

Patty Llaguno’s Steady Progress to Professional Padel

1998 saw Patty win the International Minors championship in Buenos Aires, with Ceci Reiter (the under 14 category). This winning streak had snowballed and solidified Patty’s love and passion for the Padel competition.

A year later, in 1999, she set new goals and successfully won all the national championships she could, thus achieving victory in the under-14, under-16, and under-18 categories.

The junior championship awards culminated for Patty in 2003 when she won the national under-18 championship for the fifth consecutive time. Furthermore, as a result of her spectacular career, that same year, Patty was honored in her native Cartagena with the title of Best Athlete of the Year.

Patty Llaguno Stopped Playing Padel Early

Patty Llaguno was arguably at the height of her junior career in 2003. However, at that time, Patty had graduated high school and set her athletic goals aside to focus on academia. She moved to Atlanta (USA) to study Marketing and Business at Berry University with a tennis scholarship. Effectively cutting all ties with Padel and stopping her climb too soon. There, she changed the paddle for the racket and began a new stage in the world of tennis, participating in various university championships.

Patty Llaguno was a Football Player Before Professional Padel

After her three-year tennis scholarship ended, she continued her studies in America and made her first steps in women’s football, embracing a new direction. However, this time, she was chasing a childhood dream. She admits that she loved football back when she was a child. But in Spain, it was a boys’ sport, and after 14 years old, she could not find any sports teams near her to join. College football seemed like the best opportunity to follow her childhood dreams.

Patty Llaguno’s Professional Padel Career

After graduating from university in January 2008, Patty Llaguno traveled back home and started playing Padel casually. She could not stay away from sports for very long. Nonetheless, after so many years away from the Padel courts, Patty did not expect to become a professional Padel player, but her quick climb of the ranks made her consider her prospects and eventually shift all of her focus to building a career within this profession.

Being proclaimed Spanish Absolute Padel Champion in 2008, together with Eva Gayoso, had shifted her gears.

In 2009, Patty Llaguno won the Spanish University Championship and the San Sebastián Pro Tour. She was also proclaimed the Best Athlete of the Year in the city of Cartagena. She ended the year with her partner Cecilia Reiter as the number 3 best pair of the Padel Pro Tour professional circuit.

In the 2010 season, she was proclaimed Champion of Spain and won three tournaments of the Padel Pro Tour (PPT), consolidating her name in Padel as one of the best players on the courts.

In 2010, she became the world champion in pairs in Cancun, Mexico, by beating Carolina Navarro and Alejandra Salazar with her partner Icíar Montes.

Winning the first-ever WPT title in 2013, simultaneously her very first World Padel Tour title kickstarted Llaguno’s professional career.

Patty’s Achievements as a Professional Padel Player

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Patty Llaguno advises padel players of all proficiencies to dare, have fun, and have confidence in what you do!

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