Ronnie Hayes grew up at the center of west coast polo, learning to ride from the age of 9 and playing polo at the Santa Barbara Polo Club, where his grandfather Jack Clymer was President.

His polo mentors were James Rice and Dr. Madison Richardson, who served him well and when he was 16, he was called up to play in the Pacific Coast Open. He also competed successfully in the Inter-Scholastics, taking runners up status with Valley Forge Military Academy after being awarded a scholarship there. He won it a year later with Santa Ynez, prompting a career in polo that saw a 10-year hiatus several years in, when family life came first. “I got out of polo completely,” he said. “And I just had regular jobs like a regular person.”

After his grandfather passed away almost 12 years ago, Ronnie decided to become a professional umpire. “I’ve exceeded every expectation that I’ve ever dreamt of as an umpire,” he said. There are few tournaments he has not umpired and he has the distinction of being the only umpire to hold AA ratings in both the Arena and on the grass.

“I believe that umpiring is a provided service. I think that it’s not our game - it’s their game,” he said. “Being an umpire is a thankless job and I like it that way. The best umpires are the ones where when the players wake up the next morning, they don’t remember who umpired the game.”