Paul Kloss remembers waking up in the wee hours of the morning to cut the fairways at his local golf course back in high school.

Now a U.S. Department of Defense retiree, Kloss has returned back to his putting roots as a course adviser at Penn State Golf Courses, 1523 W. Col-lege Ave. He started his position in April, after being a member at the course for five years.

Kloss plays golf with his wife a few times a week, often shooting a 90 on the par 72 courses.

"I wish I could beat my wife, but I can't," he said. "I guess that's why I took this job so I can beat her."

On this day though, Kloss is not improving his game. He's managing the course by golf cart.

It's about 1 p.m. on a Friday afternoon, the day before a big football weekend. Both of the Blue and White courses are about 80 percent filled -- the tee sheet can have up to 674 golfers.

The September sun reflects its warmth off the rolling greens. Couples and groups of students clad in golf shirts and hats carry their clubs to their next destinations.

A long golf cart, dubbed the "Lion Limo" arrives, transporting students from Rec Hall.

In the midst of all the activity, Kloss pulls up in a green and white golf cart. He's been making his rounds on the courses since 9 a.m.

"He's on that buggy for eight hours a day," Joe Hughes, the course's PGA Head Golf Professional, says later about Kloss.

As Kloss drives around the Blue course, he says his main responsibility is maintaining the pace of play on the courses -- making sure golfers play at a reasonable distance between each other and play the courses at an adequate time.

On each of the 18-hole courses, Kloss explains it should take between four to four-and-half hours to play. So, at hole 9, the time mark is two hours, and at hole 14, it is three hours.

Kloss says he also checks the water coolers around the courses, fixes divots -- indents in the grass left by golfers' swings -- and provides assistance to golfers when their balls go astray.

Kloss helps transport students from Rec Hall to the courses and helps his co-workers in the bag drop area with getting the golfers out at the correct tee time.

Kloss says he's unsure how long it takes to make a full round around both of the courses because he often has to slow down whenever someone is hitting a ball off of the tee box at the start of a hole.

If the pace of play slows down, and there is a single person playing on one hole and a two people playing ahead, Kloss says he sometimes combines the group together.

"Just so you keep the course moving as best as you can," he says.

He just has to remember to be professional and cordial when he makes such decisions, he says.

Hughes, also a Penn State alumnus, described Kloss' job as "a customer service."

"Now that you have their money, the worst thing you can do is ignore them, " Hughes said.

Kloss stops at a hole and pulls out a long stick used to smooth out the putting green.

After a few minutes he returns back to his cart.

"I actually had to do a couple now that my boss is with me," Kloss says with a laugh, while looking back at Hughes sitting in the cart behind him.

As Kloss continues around the course, he even stops to provide some advice for a threesome on hole 6 on the Blue course.

"Long and straight," Kloss says, with a reassuring smile.

The smell of fresh cut grass fills the air as the afternoon wanes.

While groups of golfers manage to keep the pace of play, Kloss moves to the side of the road as a large septic truck passes by on the course. He stops and waves.

"I'll take my job over his," Kloss says with a laugh and steers his cart on the trail headed back to the clubhouse.