Two Colorado teenagers, both representing The First Tee of Denver, have been selected to participate in this year’s PURE Insurance Championship, where they’ll be paired with PGA Tour Champions players during the championship rounds of an official tour event being held at Pebble Beach Golf Links and Poppy Hill Golf Course in the Monterey Bay area of California.
Cole Drew of Centennial and Mateo Manzanares of Denver were among the 81 junior golfers from First Tee chapters across the U.S. that were chosen to compete in the pro-junior portion of the tournament. The First Tee and PGA Tour Champions announced the junior participants on Wednesday on the Golf Channel.
The PURE Insurance Championship is scheduled for Sept. 22-24, and it will be televised by the Golf Channel. This is the 14th year for the tournament — though there have been various title sponsors — and numerous Coloradans have been participants over that time.
The juniors — age 14-18 — who will compete were picked based on their playing ability and comprehension of the core values and life skills The First Tee teaches.