Dan and Lorabeth Catterson both work in golf course maintenance. Dan, an eight-year GCSAA Class A member, is a superintendent at the Los Angeles Country Club. Lorabeth, a six-year member, is the assistant director of agronomy at Hillcrest Country Club. Photo by Howard Richman.
Lorabeth Catterson knew.
As she reached the 16th hole green at The Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course nine years ago, the then assistant-in-training in grounds maintenance saw the possibilities. She also got a preview of her future. Catterson took one look at the man
with a mustache and wearing red sunglasses with reflective lenses and it was one of those love at first sight moments.
“I said, ‘This is my husband,’” says Catterson, whose last name at that time was West.
Turns out she was right.
Seven years later, she married LACC North Course superintendent Dan Catterson. Although she no longer works at LACC, Catterson wouldn’t miss being there this week for anything. Now assistant director of agronomy at Hillcrest Country Club, Catterson
is taking some time off at her facility less than two miles away from LACC to be near him during the 123rd U.S. Open that begins today on the North Course.
How these two ended up together is a story in itself. They are East Coast natives who pursued careers on the opposite end of the country. Dan is from Cranston, R.I.; Lorabeth is from Long Beach Island, N.J. Dan studied horticulture and turfgrass at the
University of Rhode Island and worked at Lake of Isles in North Stonington, Conn., before heading west in 2013 to LACC. His goal? Overseeing a U.S. Open. Mission accomplished. “I’m a kid from Rhode Island hosting a U.S. Open. It is awesome
and makes me work that much harder,” he says.
Dan, an eight-year GCSAA Class A member, never considered his move across multiple time zones necessarily would include meeting his future wife. “I went all the way to California and met a girl from New Jersey. Go figure,” he says.
Lorabeth attended Rutgers University and pursued horticultural and turf grass management. “I joined the turf club. I went to what was then the Golf Industry Show (now the GCSAA Conference and Trade Show). I was hooked,” says the six-year association
member. The day after graduation, she flew to LA to begin working for then-LACC superintendent Russ Myers.
In time, the Lorabeth-Dan relationship blossomed.
“He was easy to talk to. So nice. Intelligent. We both understand each other’s humor,” she says. “It (being a couple) seemed effortless. I didn’t feel like I had anything to prove to him.”
Dan, who like Lorabeth also launched his time at LACC as an AIT, says, “Her personality is amazing. Also, she’s absolutely beautiful. I got lucky.”
Their wedding in Nov. 2021 in Foxboro, Mass., was interesting. It was an unseasonably warm Northeastern day, perfect for the outdoor event. Perhaps the only blip was the noise you would expect to hear at their place of work. “In the middle of our
vows you could hear a backpack blower in the distance. It was kind of funny,” he says.
Before they go to work, the Cattersons start their morning with coffee and enjoy their cats named Puccinia (Pux for short) and Daconil (Dac). In the evening when they get home, shop chat isn’t a priority, but unwinding is. “I wouldn’t
say a lot,” Dan says about work conversation. “I think separating work and home is essential.”
They share cooking duties. Dan likes to whip up Chicken Marsala. Often, though, he defers to Lorabeth. “Baking is her forte. And she makes this Asian/Thai dish. She’s as talented on the golf course as she is in the kitchen. She hits it out
of the park every time,” he says.
Dan is the one stepping up to the plate this week. As superintendent on the course that will host its first major championship in history, he’s proud of what he, director of golf courses and grounds Chris Wilson and their team that oversees the
North and South courses achieve, whether it is an event of this magnitude or not. For Lorabeth, being at his side will be perfect.
“I’m very proud of him for sticking with his goal. It hasn’t been easy for him. This is everything he worked for, and I get to hang out with Dan and enjoy everything he’s done,” she says. “To share it with someone you
love is unbelievable.”
Howard Richman is GCM's associate editor