Major moment for assistant superintendent

Chris Garrett feels right at home this week at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.

Garrett, 29, is one of nearly two dozen volunteers working on superintendent Steve Anderson's staff for the U.S. Senior Open that began yesterday. Garrett, assistant superintendent and a seven-year member of GCSAA, arrived with a good sense of what the expectations would be at Inverness. After all, he's helped prepare a course for a major in the past.

And his current job is at a historic layout well known for welcoming the best golfers on the planet. Garrett (pictured to the left), who helped prepare Oak Tree National in Edmond, Okla., for the 2006 Senior PGA Championship when he was employed there, took a job within the last year at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla., where three U.S. Opens and four PGA Championships have been held.

"I think I am prepared when I come to a place like this," Garrett said at Inverness, a legendary course that has been the host to multiple major championships, including the 1986 PGA Championship, when Bob Tway holed out of a bunker to stun Greg Norman.

"When you come to a place like this, it's all about taking care of the details, and having a staff that can handle the details. You can't make things happen without a great staff around you."

Garrett, who has been awakening at 4:15 a.m. this week for his duties, has one goal in mind as he goes about his business.

"It probably sounds cliche, but seeing people out there enjoying the product we supply is what I really like," Garrett said.

Garrett attended Oklahoma State to study horticulture, knowing exactly what he wanted to do with his life. He played golf as a youngster and enjoyed working outdoors. No wonder his current position is a perfect fit.

"And I knew I didn't want a desk job," Garrett said with a laugh.