TARS Panama 2026
Early last month The R&A, alongside the Asociatión de Golf de Panamá, hosted a Level 3 Tournament Administrators and Referees School (TARS) at Santa Maria Hotel and Golf Resort from 5 – 7 March. Forty-two delegates from 12 countries in South America, Central America and the Caribbean attended the seminar and received education on a wider variety of topics relating to refereeing and tournament administration from instructors at The R&A and representatives from South American federations.
“TARS in Panama was a great success,” explains Magdalena Villar, who was an instructor from the Federación Peruana de Golf/GolfPeru. “It was the first time the course was full delivered in Spanish. We have been working hard in Latin America to run Level 2 programmes throughout the region so more people were in a position to attend and understand and receive the education on offer. Delivering the course in Panama was wonderful; they were wonderful hosts and the country of Panama is perfectly located to accommodate people from all over the region.”
Magdalena Villar, Ricard Ramirez Calvo of Argentina and Gustavo Morrero of Costa Rica delivered numerous elements of the seminar alongside Roger Bathurst and Jim Gough of The R&A.
“A key role of The R&A is to provide Rules education across our jurisdiction, and our team was delighted to have the opportunity to host a Level 3 TARS in Panama City,” said Roger Bathurst, Chairman of The R&A Rules Committee. “Provided in English and Spanish, classroom sessions included the Essentials of Refereeing, Course Set Up, Starting and Recording and Pace of Play, where the many and varied questions made the presentations truly interactive. These were interspersed by practical matters, where delegates worked in groups on Course Marking, learned how to deal with Temporary Immovable Obstructions and, of course, refereeing role play, where they had the chance to show off their excellent skills in a variety of challenging situations.”
Roger also expressed the importance of networking during the seminar. He added, “As well as the skills learned, it offered the opportunity for delegates to network with referees and tournament administrators across the region. Panama City proved to be an outstanding venue and we are extremely appreciative of the support provided by R&A Latin America representatives Ricardo, Magdalena and Gustavo who were key to making the event such a success.” Magdalena added, “It was a great honour to deliver TARS and for Ricardo, Gustavo and myself to share our experiences to the delegates alongside Roger and Jim.”
TARS Panama is one of four Level 3 seminars running during 2026 across the world, with Australia, Thailand and Wales to host their respective seminars later this year.
