Patti Cole-Tindall says golf is a stress-reducer for her. She says she likes to walk while playing, get her steps in; likes to play with her two sons and with friends; and likes to relax at the 19th hole.

And then, during a recent trip to the driving range, she says this: “I don’t usually hit balls while wearing my gun.”

Cole-Tindall, you see, is the King County Sheriff. She oversees a staff of 800, which covers the largest geographical area in Washington state and includes 12 cities, all the unincorporated areas in the county, Boeing Field, two ports, and one Tribe.

“I’m on call all the time,” she says. “There is no down time.”

The daughter of an Air Force serviceman, Patti was born in France, and lived in North Dakota, California, and Germany, before her dad finished his career at JBLM south of Tacoma, transferring to the Puget Sound region when Patti was 16.

“And he loved to play golf,” Patti says. “I didn’t like it when I was young, but he challenged me in everything I did, in the best possible fatherly way, and I picked the game up later in life when my kids got older and they started to play. It turned out to be a great way to spend time with him in his later years.”

Despite not starting to play until she was 56, Patti went all in on it. She took lessons, got fitted for clubs, and joined the 9-hole Ladies League at Auburn (Wash.) Golf Course, where she tries to play twice a week.

“I’m competitive, and I like to do well at everything,” she says. “Last summer I went to watch the women play in the KPMG Women’s PGA at Sahalee.” Her two sons, Nathan, 34, and Austin, 26, are both avid golfers, and with her dad passing in December of 2023, Patti uses the game to be able to see her sons more often.

The plate has always been full for Patti. She’s been through the Police Academy twice, once at age 26, and again at age 58 after being appointed Sheriff in May of 2022. Prior to joining the King County Sheriff’s Office in October of 2015, she served as the director of the King County Office of Labor Relations for six years.

Her previous experiences include serving as an internal affairs investigator for the County’s Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention, and an assistant director of that department’s Community Corrections Division. At the state Employment Security Department, she was responsible for the regional investigative program that detected fraud and theft of unemployment benefits. She was also a special agent for the Washington State Gambling Commission.

More recently, she served as a key advisor to the King County Executive and County Council on strategic planning, labor policy development and employment law as the Director of Labor Relations. She concurrently served as the interim director of the Office of Law Enforcement Oversight, working with staff, the Sheriff’s Office, and the public to improve services and promote awareness of the role of civilian oversight in King County.

While she was Undersheriff, Patti was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Sheriff’s Office together with the team of three Division Chiefs. She oversaw the development and implementation of the King County Sheriff’s Office Strategic Plan and examination and strengthening of the Sheriff’s Office complaint and use of force review processes.

She participates in an annual fundraiser at Druids Glen Golf Club in Covington, Wash., conducted by the local Chamber of Commerce, called “Shop with a Cop.” The golf tournament raises money for Christmas gifts for the area’s youth.  

“The game is really a great way to connect with the community,” she says. “Golf is a great equalizer. Anyone who plays can identify with it.”