ORLANDO, Fla.— The Arnold Palmer Invitational attracts thousand of golf fans every year, all gathering to admire their favorite golfers in action. But little do they know the true beauty of the tournament starts in a garage full of mowers. 

“You definitely have to have a real passion for this job to succeed at it,” said Chris Flynn, the director of grounds at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge.

Flynn and his crew of 40 full-time groundskeepers stay hard at work. 

“Right now, it's sunup to sundown seven days a week. This is the mad dash to the finish” to make sure the course is in tip-top shape, Flynn said.

“We mow greens at around a 10th of an inch, so very very low. If you go to the other extreme, which would be our rough where right now for a PGA tournament... our rough mowers are set at 3 inches,” Flynn said.

But “on greens we do a lot more," said John Owens, the assistant superintendent at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge. "On greens we are grooming, we are verticutting, we are top dressing, trying to smooth it out as much as possible.”  

It's a job that's truly impressive if you think about the scope of work involved. 

“Think about other sporting events and think about what it takes to make a football field look nice. That’s 100 yards long, maybe 50 yards wide. We are talking about 18 holes. We are talking about over 7,000 yards, so it’s an amazing accomplishment with the team here to make sure everything builds so it’s perfect these four days in March,” said Joie Chitwood, the tournament director.

Even when the tournament is over, their work isn't.

“When you’re dealing with a living, breathing thing like plants and trees and grass, it requires constant attention,” Flynn said.

So whether you’re a part of limited in-person crowd who gets to go to this year’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, or you’re watching from home, remember that the beauty you're looking at didn't happen overnight.

The tournament is limiting spectators to 25% capacity. It runs from March 4-7 at the Bay Hill Club and Lodge.