Zina Garrison started playing tennis at age 10 at the MacGregor Park Tennis Program in Houston, Texas. There, she met her future coach, John Wilkerson. In 1978, Garrison began her career in junior tennis. She climbed the ranks of the junior tennis ladder, reaching No. 1 in 1981. Garrison was awarded the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Junior of the Year in 1981 and the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Most Impressive Newcomer in 1982.

In 1982, Garrison began her professional tennis career. She won 14 singles and 20 women’s doubles titles during her career. She reached her career-high doubles ranking of No. 5 in 1988. Throughout her career, Garrison won three Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. In 1987, Garrison and partner Sherwood Stewart claimed the Australian Open title after defeating Andrew Castle and Anne Hobbs. At Wimbledon in 1988, Garrison and Stewart won again after defeating Kelly Jones and Gretchen Magers in the final round. Garrison captured another title at Wimbledon in 1990 with partner Rick Leach, defeating John Fitzgerald and Elizabeth Smylie in the finals.

Garrison found success in professional singles tournaments as well. She reached her career-high singles ranking of No. 4 in 1989. At Wimbledon the following year, Garrison defeated Steffi Graf, ranked No. 1 at the time, to advance to the finals. Although she lost to Martina Navratilova in the final round, Garrison became the first Black woman since Althea Gibson in 1958 to reach a major final in singles.

Garrison competed on the U.S. Olympic Team in 1988 and 1992. Most notably in 1988 at Seoul, South Korea, she won a gold medal in doubles with partner Pam Shriver and a bronze medal in singles. Garrison was also on the United States Fed Cup Team in 1984-1987, 1989-1991, and 1994. She was on the Wightman Cup Team from 1987 to 1988.

Although Garrison retired from professional play in 1996, her legacy has continued. She has coached professional tennis since then, including for the Fed Cup from 1999 to 2004, where she also served as assistant-captain. Garrison rose to the rank of Fed Cup Captain in 2004 and held the position for four years. She was the first Black player to hold this position. Also in 2004, Garrison coached the U.S. Olympic team for the games in Athens, Greece. In 2009, Garrison was inducted into the Black Tennis Hall of Fame.

Garrison also continues to give back to her hometown. In 1988, she and coach John Wilkerson founded the Zina Garrison Foundation in Houston, Texas, to provide charitable aid to the youth and the homeless. In 1992, she extended the organization to include the Zina Garrison All-Court Tennis program to provide children in Houston with the opportunity to play tennis recreationally in a healthy, learning environment. Known today as the Zina Garrison Academy, the organization works to provide children in the Houston area with recreational programs that extend beyond tennis instruction. The children are offered college preparatory classes, nutrition lessons, and more.