Norm Jarvis Remembered For His Love Of The Game

Norm Jarvis Is Seen Here After His Win In The 2018 PGA of BC Srs. Championship - PGA of BC Photo

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

No one loved golf more than Norm Jarvis, the longtime Vancouver-area pro who died August 7th following a lengthy illness...

“I can tell you he lived for golf, more than anyone I know,” said fellow pro and close friend Muncie Booth. “You didn’t go anywhere with Norm without talking about golf.”

“He absolutely lived for his golf,” echoed former PGA TOUR regular Ray Stewart, another close friend. “His whole world was immersed in golf and his family. Norm was a fighter, he has been fighting for a long time.” Jarvis, who was 70, passed after suffering a major stroke a few months ago.

“He was in and out of hospital and never really got home much at all,” Stewart said. “He went through several bouts of pneumonia, so it was a tough time, a really tough time. He was just coming off throat cancer and he beat that. It’s sad.”

Jarvis loved to play golf and one of his career highlights was spending time playing on the PGA Champions Tour. He earned conditional status at the 2004 qualifying school and played in 13 events in the 2005 season. Jarvis had three top-25 finishes that year, with his best result being a tie for 20th at the Boeing Greater Seattle Classic.

His notable wins included the 2005 Payless Open in Victoria on the Canadian Tour, a PGA Head Professional Championship of Canada title and a pair of PGA of BC Senior championships. “I think a lot of people under-estimated his ability as a player,” said Booth, the longtime head pro at Langara Golf Course in Vancouver.

“He won several events and I didn’t think he got the respect that he deserved. He was a real student of the game. He did a lot of reading about the swing and was very knowledgable about the swing.” 

Vancouver Golf Tour commissioner Fraser Mulholland said Jarvis was always willing to help fellow golfers. “Norm always had time for people, whether mentoring a young pro like myself or coaching/cheering on his pro-am teammates to be the best they could be,” Mulholland posted on his Twitter account.

“Norm, you inspired so many and will be dearly missed. May the golf gods let all of your 10-footers fall.”

Jarvis is survived by his wife Diane, daughter Danielle and sons Chris and Matthew, his mom Eileen, six siblings and four granddaughters. Norm's obituary can be seen here.