Tour Guide 2026: PURE Insurance Championship

On Aug. 16, 2026, Pebble Beach Golf Links will be hosting its 75th annual Concours d’Elegance. As one of the world’s most prestigious car shows, it will attract thousands of automobile fans, along with hundreds of iconic cars.

During the show, each car, collector and attendant will gather on Pebble Beach’s world-renowned 18th fairway to see who will win the “Best of Show” award. Considered a highly respected award in the automotive industry, the “Best of Show” enables Pebble Beach Golf Links to showcase its stunning fairways and greens to yet another audience — as some attendants aren’t avid golf fans.

Due to the event’s high attendance, Pebble Beach Golf Links’ turf has an unusual amount of strain throughout the day-long celebration. And, as a further challenge to Director of Agronomy and Superintendent Peter Bachman and his team, the turf must be recovered very quickly.

After all, the course will open for business right after the Concours d’Elegance concludes. A resort business, Pebble Beach Golf Links attracts roughly 60,000 to 65,000 golfers every year. Therefore, Bachman must ensure the course is ready for play on a nearly 365-day basis. Not to mention, it will host the PGA Tour Champions’ PURE Insurance Championship in mid-September, too.

“We work diligently before the Concours d’Elegance to ensure the turf is in prime condition to withstand this strain,” Bachman says. “And then (we’ll work) quickly on the back end to manage any areas that need additional attention. We’ll also keep the fairways in pristine condition for play the next day.” 

Optimizing playing conditions

A key component of Bachman’s success is his past experience at Pebble Beach Golf Links. An employee of the Pebble Beach Company since 2008, his career with the organization began as an intern with the agronomy crew. From there, he worked his way up through the company, while serving in various capacities until 2024, when he was named the director of agronomy and superintendent of Pebble Beach Golf Links.

Furthermore, Bachman and his team have rapidly adopted autonomous technologies. For example, they’ve been using autonomous mowers. Since Pebble Beach welcomes so many golfers each day, Bachman and his team have a narrow window of time to mow fairways and greens. Typically, they’ll mow them in the morning before any guest tees off.

To mow more efficiently and have more time to focus on other tasks in the morning instead, Bachman is striving to eventually utilize his team’s autonomous mowers at night. For further assistance — regarding their overall agronomy operations — Bachman and his team are also consistently using two USGA technologies.

“We’re avid users of the GS3 ‘smart ball’ and moisture meters, both of which feed data into the Deacon app,” Bachman says. “(They) analyze our programs and optimize playing conditions in the most efficient way possible.”

Preparing for future tournaments

As PGA Tour Champions members prepare to compete at Pebble Beach Golf Links for the 22nd straight year this fall, they’ll be playing the 10th hole as it was initially envisioned. 

“During the summer of 2025, the 10th green was restored to its original size and design intent,” Bachman says.

In turn, it will be similar to the green that Jack Neville and Douglas Grant first designed in 1919. Some PGA Tour Champions competitors will likely recognize this original green layout, as it featured in U.S. Opens in the 1980s and 1990s.

Aside from the 10th green restoration, some tee boxes were recently moved. For instance, the sixth hole’s championship tee was moved back 21 yards. Additionally, two of the 15th hole’s back tees were realigned. 

Along with hosting the PURE Insurance Championship — and the PGA Tour’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am every February — the entire Pebble Beach team is focused on each of its 60,000-plus guests throughout these types of projects. To ensure guests’ experiences are constantly top notch, the greens always remain a focal point for Bachman.

With this in mind, the greens’ conditions are consistently maintained, leading to once-in-a-lifetime experiences for every guest. Through Bachman and his team’s efforts, guests personally witness the awe-inspiring beauty they may have only previously seen on television. From its immaculate, 100-percent annual bluegrass greens to its gorgeous Pacific Ocean backdrop, Pebble Beach Golf Links continues to stun guests every day.

Likewise, it will consistently host the game’s best players, year after year. While reflecting on previous professional tournaments and preparing for the future, Bachman can’t stress the importance of teams enough — his own, as well as others.

“Lean on the resources of the host organization,” Bachman says. “We have terrific relationships with the agronomic leads at both the PGA Tour and the USGA.”

He adds, “It is truly a team effort putting on a great professional tournament together.”