A team of European Tour Group referees are the first officials to complete The R&A’s new Advanced Referee Qualification.
Both DP World and Challenge Tour referees came through the Level 4 qualification, having been assessed from August to December last year across a number of competencies.
The qualification – which aims to add to the extensive knowledge required to referee at the top level by having the practical skills to referee and administer a tournament – is part of a four-level Rules Education programme run by The R&A in collaboration with national governing bodies.
In consultation with The R&A, all referees were assessed on their performance in seven areas of competency while working on Tour by the European Tour Group’s Director of Rules and Deputy Director of Tour Operations.
The seven competency areas are: refereeing, course marking, course set-up, pace of play management, course notes for referees, local rules and managing suspension/resumption of play.
Grant Moir, Executive Director – Governance at The R&A, said, “We are delighted that a team of European Tour Group referees have been approved as the first R&A Level 4 Advanced Referees. In their work as referees at the top level across the world, these individuals excel in the various competencies week in, week out. They have set an extremely high bar as to the standard required for other referees to follow.”
David Garland, Director of Tour Operations at the DP World Tour, is among those to have achieved the Level 4 qualification, having refereed and worked for the Tour since the beginning of 1988.
He said: “For our group to be the first to attain the Level 4 qualification shows the respect The R&A has for DP World Tour referees and the close working relationship we’ve had over a large number of years. We’ve always worked collaboratively with The R&A and I’m just very proud of our team in achieving this qualification.
“To be the first group to do so means other organisations, national federations and golf bodies that we work with will aspire to reach the same advanced level. We will be very much a part of delivering this message across the world to drive others to get to R&A Level 4.”
For the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic, 80 delegates from across the world will gather to enhance their own refereeing knowledge in Scotland this week (7–10 February). The Level 3 Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar (TARS) is run by The R&A in St Andrews and periodically around the world.
On completion of the Level 3 Seminar, delegates will have the opportunity to become a Level 3 Certified Referee further to obtaining sufficient practical experience in refereeing at events. Other Level 3 Seminars are planned by The R&A for Chile, Kenya and South Africa in 2023.
Level 1 and Level 2 of the Rules Education programme is run in collaboration with national governing bodies using presentation and exam materials supplied by The R&A.