Final answer:
Garrett has $134. This was calculated by setting up an equation to represent their combined money and solving for Liz's amount first, then using it to find Garrett's amount.
Step-by-step explanation:
To solve this problem, we need to set up an equation based on the information given. Let's let L represent the amount of money Liz has. According to the question, Garrett has one dollar less than three times as much money as Liz. This can be expressed as 3L - 1. Together, their total amount of money is $179, so the equation to represent this situation is:
L + (3L - 1) = 179
Then we combine like terms:
4L - 1 = 179
Now, we add 1 to both sides of the equation:
4L = 180
Next, we divide both sides by 4 to find the value of L:
L = 45
Now that we know Liz has $45, we can find out how much Garrett has:
3L - 1 = 3(45) - 1 = 135 - 1 = 134
So, Garrett has $134.