A staple on the PGA Tour since 1972 when it was known as the Quad Cities Open, the John Deere Classic has been the maiden PGA Tour wins for the likes of Payne Stewart, David Toms, Jordan Spieth and Bryson DeChambeau while Steve Stricker has claimed the event three times.
See below for our expert 2025 John Deere Classic preview and golfing best bets for the tournament!
Key Stats/Skill Set Required
- Putting Average
- Strokes Gained: Putting
- Birdie or Better
- Strokes Gained: Approach
- GIR
- Proximity: 150-175 Yards
- Bogey Avoidance
- Scrambling
TPC Deere Run has hosted the John Deere Classic since 2000 and is renowned as one of the easiest courses on Tour where scoring will be low and a ton of birdies are required to win.
You cannot succeed here without a hot putter.
Fairways are 41 yards wide, the widest this side of the Plantation Course in Hawaii, while it has ranked in the 15th easiest courses in scoring in four of the last five years.
Key Correlation Courses/Tournaments
- Colonial Country Club
- Copperhead
BEST BET
MICHAEL THORBJORNSEN($31)
Exciting young prospect Michael Thorbjornsen, a former US Junior Amateur winner, looks a huge chance to break his PGA Tour duck on a course he has shown a fondness for.
He has played here twice with a runner-up last year and a T-17 the year prior and is in great form with three Top 4 finishes in his last six starts including in Detroit last week.
Ranks sixth in GIR and ninth in Birdie or Better.
BEST VALUE
KEVIN YU ($41)
Kevin Yu is one of the most underrated players on Tour and can absolutely feature this week in a highly winnable event.
He is in great form with three Top 25 finishes in his last five starts including a third-placed finish in Canada.
He has finished Top 20 here in each of his two starts at TPC Deere Run.
Ranks Top 15 in Proximity: 150-175 Yards and Birdie or Better.
Huge player this week.
CHRIS GOTTERUP ($34)
Gotterup won the Myrtle Beach Classic and comes into this off a super T-23 in the US Open, where he played superbly and finished T-4 on debut here three years back.
He ranks seventh in GIR, 12th in Proximity: 150-175 Yards and 15th in Bogey Avoidance.
He has finished Top 30 in seven of his last eight starts.
BEST ROUGHIES
ANDREW PUTNAM ($51)
We are riding Andrew Putnam for the third straight week after he has given us Top 10 finishes in each of the last two weeks at huge triple figure odds.
He again profiles well with the best profile of any player.
He ranks first in Bogey Avoidance, second in Scrambling, fourth in Proximity 150-175 Yards, 11th in GIR and 13th in Strokes Gained: Putting.
Models beautifully.
STEVEN FISK ($101)
Georgia Southern product who won his PGA Tour card this year and has played well with four Top 25 finishes including a best finish of T-4 in the Puerto Rico Open.
He ranks second in GIR and 10th in Proximity: 150-175 Yards.
This is a great event to win your maiden Tour victory at so looks a good bet at big odds.
TOP SOUTH KOREAN
SUNGJAE IM
Three South Koreans tee it up in Illinois this week and the pick of the classy trio is Sungjae Im.
Im ranks Top 10 in Putting Average and he did finish T-5 at Augusta earlier in the year.
TOP SOUTH AMERICAN
NICO ECHAVARRIA
Echavarria comes into this off a super T-6 last week in the Rocket Classic.
His putting is superb ranking Top 10 in Putting Average a Strokes Gained: Putting.