![\"Garrett](\"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/gar1k-1.jpg\" "\\"Garrett")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. \u2014 Garrett Rank is trading skates for spikes on a stage far larger than anything he has experienced. <\/p>\n
No one plays Shinnecock Hills on ice. <\/p>\n
This week is not about blue lines and high-sticking. It\u2019s about green fairways and lag putting. <\/p>\n
Rank\u2019s day job ended two months ago when he finished working the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. That left Rank, an NHL referee for the last three years, enough time to qualify for his first U.S. Open. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe reaction from the hockey community has been huge,\u201d Rank said Monday. \u201cI think every official on our staff sent me a text and congratulated me and said they\u2019d be following along and are really proud of me. I even had a few phone calls asking if it was me, like if that was the same Garrett Rank. I don\u2019t know too many other people with the same name. But yeah, that\u2019s me. I\u2019m going to the U.S. Open.\u201d <\/p>\n
The fairway isn\u2019t really an escape for the 30-year-old Canadian. Sure, it\u2019s quieter. There is less surrounding chaos. There are no whistles \u2014 any penalties typically are called by the players themselves. <\/p>\n
Rank is simply here to play. The intensity is no different. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to deal with the pressure of making a call \u2014 or I guess the pressure of making a wrong call \u2014 (and) you deal with the pressure of making a bad shot in golf,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd you have to be really decisive as well. Decisive in the decisions you make about what shot you want to hit, and then obviously you have to make a decision in about a split second if you\u2019re going to call a penalty or not.\u201d <\/p>\n
Rank made it to Shinnecock with a pair of 71s at Ansley Golf Club in Georgia, with fellow NHL referee Dan O\u2019Rourke as his caddie. He earned one of three spots. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat a dream come true,\u201d Rank said. <\/p>\n
Rank\u2019s older brother, Kyle Rank, will be on the bag at the U.S. Open. Kyle caddied for Garrett two years ago at the Canadian Open and plays leisurely himself. <\/p>\n
Their father, Rich Rank, was also a hockey referee. <\/p>\n
So, Garrett Rank has been a mix of hockey and golf since he was a kid. He even played both at the University of Waterloo in Ontario. <\/p>\n
But then Rank was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2011, putting his athletic plans on hold at 22 years old. He caught it early and was declared cancer-free that same year. Ultimately, he trained as a referee to remain involved in hockey, and that became his career. Golf became something he enjoyed during free time. <\/p>\n
\u201cCancer for me was kind of a blessing in disguise,\u201d Rank said. \u201cIt gave me a way better approach to hockey and golf and kind of changed my attitude that, hey, maybe that bad shot isn\u2019t really that bad or, hey, maybe this missed call really isn\u2019t that bad at the end of the day.\u201d <\/p>\n
Perspective in pressure. <\/p>\n
Or just perspective in general. <\/p>\n
Golf doesn\u2019t move as quickly as hockey, although Rank kept that in context. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019ve ever seen any referee skate out there, I don\u2019t know how fast we\u2019re really going,\u201d Rank said. \u201cThe players are moving fast, but we\u2019re fairly stationary, moving in a small area.\u201d <\/p>\n
A golf course is anything but small. The shortest hole at Shinnecock, the par-3 17th, is 180 yards. That\u2019s 540 feet. <\/p>\n
A hockey rink is 200 feet long. <\/p>\n
But zoom into the player and size is irrelevant. The strokes can translate no matter area of play. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe slap shot is a very similar move,\u201d Rank said. \u201cIf you watch my action, I kind of laterally slide through it a little bit. I think the hand-eye co-ordination in playing hockey, it just bodes well to the game of golf.\u201d <\/p>\n
On the ice, Rank has officiated 187 career NHL games. He made his debut in 2015 and was promoted to full-time in 2016. <\/p>\n
Inside the ropes, Rank has competed in 15 USGA events. His best result was in 2012 when he lost in the final U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, one match away from making it to the Masters. Rank is, however, a three-time winner of the Canadian Mid-Amateur title. <\/p>\n
\u201cI got a question the other day about whether I would want to finish in the top 10 in the U.S. Open or work Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals,\u201d Rank said, \u201cand I answered with the top 10 at the U.S. Open. <\/p>\n
\u201cI said I\u2019d save the Stanley Cup Finals for 15 years down the road when my golf game wasn\u2019t as strong.\u201d <\/p>\n
Check out our sports section<\/a> for the latest news and analysis. Care for a wager? Head to our sports betting section<\/a> for news and odds.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"