diff --git a/pyperf/_hooks.py b/pyperf/_hooks.py
index 36dd19e6..17f0c948 100644
--- a/pyperf/_hooks.py
+++ b/pyperf/_hooks.py
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ def __exit__(self, _exc_type, _exc_value, _traceback):
 
 class pystats(HookBase):
     def __init__(self):
-        if not hasattr(sys, "_pystats_on"):
+        if not hasattr(sys, "_stats_on"):
             raise HookError(
                 "Can not collect pystats because python was not built with --enable-pystats"
             )