A.B. Tyler - Inducted 2015

Polo is the sport of kings if you live in Europe, or the sport of cowboys if you come from Pierre, South Dakota, and belong to the Pierre Polo Team.

Bud, considered by many to be Mr. Polo in South Dakota, was part of a legendary family of horsemen. Bud, his father Pop Tyler, his brother Toby and his sons Ronnie and Lyle proved that polo could be a family sport. Bud started playing at age 12 and played until he was 84.

He traveled throughout the United States and Canada making polo friends. He once competed in Des Moines against an Army officer who became one of the country’s most famous generals: George S. Patton. Bud was a nationally known figure with a distinguished record and reputation in polo. He probably played polo in more states over more years than anyone else.

In his prime Bud had a 4-goal handicap and played professionally in California and Minneapolis. He was selected three times to play with the U.S. Polo Team, and was a member of teams that played in Hawaii, Canada and Kenya. He was one of the few polo players who could hit the ball from the middle of the field and score (a polo field is 160 yards wide and 300 yards long).

Bud was a truly unique person who touched the lives of young and old all across the country. He was a sportsman and a gentleman who mentored kids for over five decades. He thought nothing of taking teenagers with him on a 4,000-mile summer polo trip. His Midwestern, cowboy, storytelling personality fascinated everyone he met, everywhere he went.

Bud said: “The thing I am most proud of in my polo life is that I have never played any place that I have not been invited back. The most satisfying part of polo has been teaching horses to play the game. When I load my horses for a polo trip, I don’t call them ponies – they are my friends.’’

He had the Tyler Dairy in Pierre for years, raised registered Hereford bulls on the Tyler Ranch and was manager of the Federal Land Bank in Pierre.