Aberdeen and Sioux Falls, SD (September 18th, 2024) [Press Release] – First Tee and PGA TOUR Champions have announced that Olivia Braun of Aberdeen, SD, will represent First Tee — South Dakota at the 2024 PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee. The event is bringing teens from First Tee chapters to Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course for the PGA TOUR Champions tournament, Sept. 17-22. The annual event, hosted by the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, is televised nationally on Golf Channel.
Olivia has been a participant of First Tee – South Dakota for the past 7 years, an outstanding Aberdeen Central High School golfer. Her accomplishments include: 2024 SDGA Sanford Golf Series Champion | 2024 runner-up in the Class AA High School Golf Championship| 2023 Runner -up in the SDGA Junior Girls Championship.
Julie Jansa, CEO, First Tee – South Dakota said “At First Tee – South Dakota, we are thrilled to have Olivia represent our organization at the PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee at Pebble Beach. Olivia is an exemplary golfer and an even better young lady. She embodies the values we teach our kids and serves as a mentor for up-and-coming young female golfers. We are confident she will have an amazing time at Pebble Beach and represent us with pride.”
Olivia Braun will showcase the skills and values she learned at First Tee during a week of competition and mentorship, during which they’ll be paired with a PGA TOUR Champions pro and amateurs from the business world. Olivia found out that she will be paired with Steve Flesch, was a four-time winner on the PGA Tour and a TV golf analyst, briefly, for FOX Sports and Golf Channel before joining the Champions Tour 6 years ago. Olivia will join 80 total teens from First Tee chapters across the country.
This year’s field of PGA TOUR Champions players will feature legends including Ernie Els and Vijay Singh, as well as three-time PURE Insurance Championship winner Kirk Triplett and Thongchai Jaidee, who will defend his title. Clint Eastwood serves as chairman of the PURE Insurance Championship.
Play will be conducted on Pebble Beach Golf Links (Olivia’s tee time is 1:01PST Friday) and Spyglass Hill Golf Course (Olivia’s tee time is 8:16am on Saturday). The final round will be contested solely at Pebble Beach Golf Links on Sunday, where 24 First Tee juniors will compete based on their 36-hole performance. The tournament will crown one male and one female First Tee junior champion on Sunday.
More than 1,000 teens from First Tee have played in the PURE Insurance Championship, experiencing the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet, play and be mentored by PGA TOUR Champions players and amateurs in the field.
First Tee is a youth development organization that teaches life skills and helps kids and teens build their strength of character through golf. The PURE Insurance Championship is one of several national opportunities provided by First Tee Headquarters to encourage and motivate participants as they progress through the program and toward higher education opportunities.