The PURE Insurance Championship is a golf tournament that took place from September 20-22, 2024. This tournament has been held annually since 2004. The three day competition is hosted at Spyglass Hills and Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, California. Players compete the first two days at both of the courses, and the final day is played at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Stevenson’s very own Nikki Iniakov competed in the tournament this year and secured a first place win.
I had the opportunity to sit down with Iniakov and ask her some questions:
Can you explain the format of this tournament?
It’s a tournament where kids from many First Tee chapters, an organization that helps kickstart kids on their golf journey while also teaching them life lessons and core values, compete in the PURE Insurance Tournament. It is with the Champions Tour of the PGA, a lot of amateurs from the business world such as C.E.Os of companies, and the First Tee kids. The First Tee Kids play a best-ball format with the pro and there are also two amateurs in each tee time, so we play in a group of four. The tournament lasts for three days.
When did the tournament begin and how did you find out who you were paired with?
So Tuesday [September 17] was when PURE week started. There was a party at The Academy on Tuesday evening, and we did a meet and greet with all of the kids that were playing in the tournament. There was a mini concert, closest to the pin contest, long drive contest, and we walked across the stage where people announced us and our bio. There, we were handed an envelope and we stood by a flag with our name on it. When we were all at our flags, we opened our envelopes, which had the name of the professional golfer we would be playing with.
What did your group look like?
I had one pro who was Ernie Els. He was #1 in the world before Tiger Woods. Each day, I had a different set of amateurs. This is also a tournament for the professionals, so even though we play best ball, the professionals play out their ball.
I was 13 under in birdies and eagles and Ernie was 11 under for birdies and eagles. We made a good team.
How do you get selected to play in this tournament?
I have been with the first tee since I was 6. There is a chapter in Salinas, and I went to a summer camp there. Ever since then, I have been giving back by helping kids with homework, doing clinics, and representing the First Tee in tournaments.
When the opportunity came for this tournament, I filled out an application. Over the summer, I was surprised at my local chapter with a big release party [where I was told] that I was accepted. They want the best golfers from each chapter to represent in the tournament.
Were there any other locals competing?
I was the only local person that was driving; everyone else was staying in hotels. The tournament had people from all over the country, and somebody was even from Morocco.
How did you mentally and physically prepare for the tournament?
Mentally, September had been so hectic for me, that I took things day by day. I read a book titled How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie, and that book really helped me realize that all I can do is take my life one day at a time.
Tommy [Dayton] says that you can’t carry tomorrow’s problems with the strength you had today.
Physically, I had a pretty rough summer in terms of golf. I was not hitting the ball well, so I tried to clear that out of my head. I kept my workouts up and kept practicing, but I didn’t overwork myself, which I think allowed me to really showcase my game during the PURE tournament.
It was honestly such a good experience. My parents were able to come out, Coach McArthur came out, Tommy and his parents came out, and I had a lot of support. My personal coach also came out and I know the course well, so it was a sense of comfort on such a big stage. I was able to perform well because I knew the course well. It added to the overall experience of the week.
Can you tell us about your hole-in-one? When and how did that happen?
Super funny story about the hole-in-one. Starting the final day, I was in 3rd place overall, and I was on the driving range with my coach. I could not hit a 6-iron to save my life. I could barely get my 6-iron off the ground. I hit almost 30 balls at the range trying to fix it, and it was not working out. I went out on the course and just started playing. Going into hole 17, we were tied with the leader. It had been such a slow day. Both me and my pro, Ernie Els, were not playing spectacularly. On hole 17, I took out my 6 iron (which I was not able to hit all day), and the pin was where I had missed the ball the day before, so I told my coach that. She told me to just do it again and the ball will go in, and that’s exactly what happened.
Everyone started screaming and Ernie Els came up to me, hugged me, and gave me a high five. On hole 18, Ernie Els chipped in from the bunker to go eagle, so we finished eagle eagle to win the tournament.
What was it like having your personal coach with you at the tournament?
She did not coach me. She would give me a high five when I made a good shot, and tell me to remove a shot from my head if it was bad. She was just a great support. I have never had a coach like that who would come out and support me during a tournament and really pump me up in bad times.
All of the kids had their parents out, but having my coach there was a great help. She stuck with me on the driving range and told me to take my swing out of my head during the tournament.
What advice would you give to an aspiring golfer?
I see the girls on my team at Stevenson, and for them, it is almost scary to play bad and to not be okay with your swing. But the biggest piece of advice that also helped me is that golf is so much more than swing or how good you play. It is truly a process and one bad year, one bad round is not going to derail you. Don’t look at a bad round with fear, look at it as an opportunity to learn, grow, and continue playing golf.
Who was your biggest source of inspiration for this tournament?
I think my parents. My parents have never really watched a tournament like this with me in it. With me being paired with Ernie Els and being the “local girl,” seeing their faces when I made a good put, them clapping, and especially the hole in one and all the interviews after when they were crying, it made the whole week so worth it. They really kept me going when I felt like I wasn’t playing my best in the tournament.
What has the press been like since the tournament?
I had an interview before the tournament with Golf Channel. After the tournament, I had a couple interviews with the tour championship press and my hole in one video went around. A bunch of people congratulated me, and it was really cool to see how big of a support I have: the people at school, people in the golf world, my teachers, my coaches. Everyone is super proud of me and it really made the tough summer that I had all worth it.
What goals do you have both personally and golf-related? Short term and long term?
Personally, I want to continue my mental state. I am very happy with where I am at right now. I am very process driven, and I am so much better at seeing my life day by day rather than an accumulation of things I have to do, which has made me truly enjoy every single challenge.
Golf-wise short-term: continue my swing right now. It is the best it has been in a while. I think a big goal for me is to focus on my practice more, and to stick to a formulaic practice.
Long-term personally, I want to keep my relationships and stay in touch with the people I love. I want to stay true to myself and not get a big head.
Long-term golf-wise, I want to go to the LPGA tour. That is a big long-term goal that has been in my life for a long time. With the process driven practice, I hope I can get there.
How has Stevenson supported you as an athlete in addition to being a student?
Coach Clymo has been the best ever. I work out with him every morning, and he is always a great driver of inspiration and determination. If I am slacking on a workout, he’ll say “Nicole, lock in. Stop doing that.” Also, Yamashita, he helped me with my back issues, my knee issues, my legs issues during the tournament and throughout this year. All of my teachers have been so understanding and helpful of me missing classes.
At Stevenson, there is a great support system. Everyone is rooting for you here. I think that helps me flourish as both a student and an athlete.
Video Credit: PGA TOUR Champions
How did you feel after you won the tournament? Did you think you had a good chance of winning going into the tournament?
I was really surprised to win actually. Like I said, this summer I was basically last in everything. It was the biggest turnaround from the previous summer before where I was first in everything. I was kind of in a low state in how good of a golfer I thought I was. It was a big surprise. The first day of PURE week when they said what the prize was for winning, I was like “okay, there is no way it could be me.” In a sense, I thought that helped me during the tournament because I had no expectations. Up until hole 17, I thought I would be up there, but I did not think I would win. Hole 17 and 18 came and I locked it in.
What was the prize?
I got free Chipotle for a year. I got a trophy. And I made lifelong friends.
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