Ralph Leonard Dichter

Ralph Dichter obituary

Gearhart

Feb. 12, 1925 — Sept. 13, 2014

Ralph L. Dichter, Gearhart, affectionately know as “King of the Coast” as a golfing legend, died peacefully Saturday, Sept. 13, with his family at his side.
Born in Seaside to Franklin “Ted” and Blanche Dichter, he graduated from Seaside High School. His entire 89 years were spent in Seaside and Gearhart, except for a stint in the army. He enlisted in World War II, and while in France, was wounded.
Ralph graduated from Oregon State University in forestry and returned to Gearhart, where he and his brothers Ted and Jack took over their father’s lumber yards in Seaside and Gearhart. They preceded him in death.
He married Shirley Sorenson in 1957, and they enjoyed camping, picnicking, hiking, birding and family vacations in the outdoors until her death in 2004. They focused on the family.
Ralph is survived by five children: Jill (Larry) Stryker of Camas,Wash.; Jody (Frank) Orrell of Warrenton; Ralph Dichter Jr. of Gearhart; Sue (Jerry) Olson of Warrenton; and Brent (Dotty) Dichter of Scotts Valley, Calif. He also has 14 grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren.
His father Ted was mayor of Seaside and Ralph followed in his footsteps. He was president, councilman and budget member in the city of Gearhart and served on the budget committee for Gearhart Grade School.
Ralph and Shirley were members of Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in Seaside for more than 50 years. He was on the church council and served as lay president. He was inducted into Seaside High School’s Hall of Fame. He was a member of Phi Gamma Delta at Oregon State and was one of the early founders of the Seaside Development Commission.
In addition to love of his family, Ralph was featured in books and magazines because of his golfing prowess. He was named “King of the Coast,” competing in 18 Oregon Coast Invitational Grand Championship finals, winning a phenomenal 10 Grand Championship titles. One of his losses was a 42-hole marathon with NW pro Bob Duden. He also won two junior senior titles and one senior title. He held the competitive course record at Astoria for many years.
Ralph competed in the 1955 U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in San Francisco in a tournament where unknown Jack Fleck beat Ben Hogan in one of golf’s greatest upsets. He also competed as an amateur in professional tournaments in Texas and Arizona. He played in the U.S. Amateur in 1954 and 1956 and played in the U.S. Senior Amateur in 1981. Ralph played in two Hudson Cup matches which featured the top ten amateurs in the Northwest against the top ten professionals.
Ralph loved to tell the story about playing in the 1955 Tucson Open. He was on the driving range alone with a young golfer who was hitting balls next to him. Someone remarked that this golfer had won the U.S. Amateur a year earlier, and after watching him struggle on the driving range Ralph said “I don’t think he will make it on the tour.” That player was Arnold Palmer. Palmer finished the Tuscon Open in 43rd place and Ralph was 63rd.
Ralph was also featured in Bob Robinson’s book “Golf in Oregon, Historic Tales from the Fairway,” where a chapter was devoted to the golfing highlight of his life.
In what was to be a record-setting golf moment, Ralph was playing in the Oregon Open at Waverly Country Club in Portland. During the final round on the 18th hole, professional Boots Porterfield had a hole in one on the final hole they were playing. He turned to Ralph and said, “Let’s see you top that. Dichter.”
Ralph knocked it in the hole for the first back to back holes in one in golf competition, and said, “Will that do, Boots?” They were featured on the cover of Golf World Magazine. The odds at that time of back to back holes in one was calculated at 1 in 17 million.
He also fondly remembers his caddie for some tournaments, a young Peter Jacobson, one of the top professional golfers the Northwest has ever produced.
Ralph was runner-up in the Oregon Open in 1954 and won the Oregon Golf Assn. Tournament of Champions in 1954 and 1955. He was a medalist in the OGA match play tournament, the OGA team championships three times, and led the Astoria Golf team to the OGA team championship.
In 1990, Ralph was named the winner of the Oregonian Banquet of Champion’s George Bertz award for his contributions to golf.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, Sept. 19, at 1:30 p.m. at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church at 320 First Avenue in Seaside. A graveside service will be at Ocean View Cemetery following the service, with a celebration of life at the Astoria Golf and Country Club at 4 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, or to Lower Columbia Hospice.