Lindale’s Kenzie McClenny has been selected to participate in the PGA Champions Tour’s 2023 PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee in September in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Kenzie McClenny and Jaxson Green will be representing First Tee — Greater Tyler at one of the most famous golf courses in the world come September.

McClenny, of Lindale, and Green, of Troup, will compete in the 2023 PURE Insurance Championship Impacting First Tee. The PGA Champions Tour event, in its 20th year, will bring teens from First Tee chapters to Pebble Beach, California.

The golfers will play the Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course for the PGA Tour Champions tournament, Sept. 19-24. The annual event, hosted by the Monterey Peninsula Foundation, is televised nationally on Golf Channel.

McClenny attends Lindale High School where she is on the high school golf team. She is a two-time state golf qualifier (2022, 2023). McClenny participates in Northern Texas PGA tournaments, All American Tour, PGA junior league and First Tee — Greater Tyler. She is a member of the National Honor Society, Student Council, and the Band Squad Leader Team.

She has been participating in First Tee — Greater Tyler for five years.

Green attends Troup High School where he is on the high school golf team. He is an athletic trainer and part of his church’s youth ministry. The 16-year-old has been playing golf and participating in First Tee — Greater Tyler for the last 10 years.

Throughout the week, the teens apply their character strengths and life skills learned from First Tee programs during the one-of-a-kind event where they are paired with a PGA Tour Champions player and amateurs from the business world.

McClenny and Green will compete for the Pro-Junior Team title. They will join 80 other teens from First Tee chapters across the country and — for the third year in a row — a participant from First Tee — Morocco. Participants were selected by a national panel of judges based on their personal growth and development through First Tee’s programs, as well as their playing ability.

The full junior field was revealed live on Golf Channel’s “Golf Today.”

A few players and legends of the game helped surprise several participants with the news of their selection, including PGA Tour player Joel Dahmen and PGA Tour Champions players Tim O’Neal, Rod Pampling and reigning PURE Insurance Championship winner Steve Flesch.

PGA Tour Canada player Quinn Riley — a First Tee alumnus who played at the PURE Insurance Championship as a junior — surprised his younger brother with an invitation to the tournament, and six First Tee participants were surprised by Golf Channel at women’s majors, including the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach.

“Earning the opportunity to play at the PURE Insurance Championship is a goal for many First Tee participants, and congratulations to Kenzie and Jaxson for achieving it,” Greg McLaughlin, First Tee CEO, said. “This marks the 20th anniversary of the tournament, and we are grateful to our partners at PURE Insurance, PGA Tour Champions, Pebble Beach Resorts, Monterey Peninsula Foundation and Golf Channel for their ongoing commitment to First Tee. Our alumni who have played at the PURE Insurance Championship have told us it is a life-changing opportunity, and we are so excited for the 80 First Tee teens who will get to experience it in September.”

This year’s field of PGA Tour Champions players are scheduled to feature legends including Ernie Els, Mark O’Meara, Vijay Singh, Steve Stricker, Fred Couples, Davis Love III and Jim Furyk, as well as three-time PURE Insurance Championship winner Kirk Triplett and Flesch, who will defend his title.

Academy Award winning actor, film director, and producer Clint Eastwood serves as chairman of the PURE Insurance Championship.

Play will be conducted on Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill Golf Course on Friday and 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.

“I’m so proud to continue our involvement with this incredible event,” said Martin Leitch, CEO of PURE Insurance. “Being selected to play in this tournament speaks volumes about the character of each of these 80 participants and I’m so excited to see this unforgettable experience play out for them.”

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.

For more information on the tournament, visit PUREInsuranceChampionship.com. To learn more about First Tee, visit FirstTee.org.

First Tee — Greater Tyler is one of 150 First Tee chapters across the U.S. and select international locations. Its mission is to impact the lives of young people by providing educational programs that build character and instill life-enhancing values through the game of golf. First Tee — Greater Tyler reaches kids and teens through programs delivered at five program locations and three school districts. Learn more at https://firstteegreatertyler.org/.