It was at the recent U.S. Amateur at The Olympic Club that Tyler Tharpe got one of the assignments a Rules official dreams of.
The 66-year-old Tharpe, who’s a member of the NCGA Board of Directors, was Referee for the 36-hole final match between teenagers Jackson Herrington and eventual champion Mason Howell.
Tharpe was no random pick to do the job. A member at Riverside Golf Course in Fresno, Tharpe has been a Tournament Official for the NCGA since 2003. He also has worked over 65 USGA championships, including 13 different championships in 26 different states. Just a few weeks after the U.S. Amateur, he also acted as an observer for a Saturday Singles match at the Walker Cup at Cypress Point Club.
When he’s not out on the course, he serves as a Superior Court Judge in Fresno County.
We caught up with Tharpe following the conclusion of the historic 125th U.S. Amateur and 50th Walker Cup championships.
Q: How did you start volunteering?
TT: A good friend of mine (Frank Parr) was a former board member of the NCGA, a member of my golf club and a renowned Rules official for the USGA. I had officiated basketball and football with Frank’s son. Frank knew I loved golf and sports officiating. When I retired from playing competitive golf and officiating other sports, Frank encouraged me to put the two together and become a golf official. I became an NCGA Tournament official in 2003, and a USGA Rules official in 2006.
Q: What is your background as a Referee?
TT: I officiated high school basketball, high school and Division I NCAA softball, high school baseball and high school and college football for many years. Until golf, most of my referee experience was with football - 20 years and about 550 games. I was the head referee for many San Joaquin Valley Championships.
Q: Do you have a specific Refereeing career highlight?
TT: I have now refereed matches at two Walker Cups—2017 at Los Angeles CC and now most recently at Cypress Point. Those are definitely highlights. Other memorable occasions were walking with a group for two days at the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open at Oakmont that included the World No.1 AI Miyazato, World No.2 Jiyai Shin and Michelle Wie. I also refereed matches at the 2023 LPGA International Crown at TPC Harding Park and the Arnold Palmer Cup in Ireland.
Q: Did you have to make any rulings during the U.S. Amateur 36-hole final?
TT: I did, four times. One was who’s turn it was to play, one was relief from interference with sprinkler heads and twice I had to determine if a ball was embedded (it wasn’t).
Q: Anything interesting happen at the Walker Cup while being an official Observer? How were the views?
A GB&I player's ball came to rest on a spectator's jacket laying on the ground. He got free relief, but after a lot of spectator laughs. Walking the course, there were jaw-dropping views at every turn.