The PGA Tour heads to Silvis, Illinois this week for the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run, featuring a 144-player field with a traditional 36-hole cut. First-round action begins Thursday, July 2 at 7:00 AM local time. The total purse is $8.8 million with $1.58 million going to the winner, along with 500 FedEx Cup points. The tournament marks the final PGA Tour event in the United States before the Tour heads overseas for the Genesis Scottish Open and The Open Championship, and represents one of the final opportunities for players still chasing a spot in the year's final major through the Open Qualifying Series.
There are eight OWGR top-50 players in the field this week, up from just five in 2025, making this one of the stronger editions in recent memory.
The Course: Where Birdies Come in Bunches
TPC Deere Run is a par 71 measuring 7,257 yards. It is one of the easier courses on the PGA Tour, with the tournament record winning score of 257 set by Michael Kim in 2018. The course was established in 1999 and designed by former PGA Tour professional D.A. Weibring. The course is set along the Rock River, offering picturesque views and a blend of natural landscapes, including wooded areas, rolling hills, and lush fairways.
Designed by DA Weibring, it features ponds, ravines and plenty of trees, but generous fairways and large, soft greens. Winning scores regularly eclipse the 18-under mark, and the 2025 scoring average was 69.4, more than a stroke and a half under par. Length off the tee is not a major separator here. The real test is precision with short irons and wedges into receptive bentgrass greens, and the ability to avoid the thick rough that heavily penalizes missed fairways.
Twelve holes at TPC Deere Run have a scoring average under par. The easiest scoring opportunities lie on the three par 5s and three par 4s which play under 400 yards. Players who can generate volume birdie opportunities and convert makeable putts typically rise to the top of the leaderboard. Around-the-green skill matters more than at typical birdie-fest venues, as greens feature runoff areas that demand precise scrambling.
Players to Watch
Eight of the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking are set to tee it up this week, headlined by World No. 14 Chris Gotterup. Gotterup, a two-time winner on Tour, is the only multiple champion from 2026 playing this week. The New Jersey native won the season-opening Sony Open in Hawaii and added his second victory three weeks later at the WM Phoenix Open. The 26-year-old has made the cut in 11 consecutive events and flashed last week at TPC River Highlands with rounds of 63 and 65. His best finish in the Quad Cities was T4 on his 2022 debut. He also cashed T21 in 2025 with four more rounds in the 60s. Gotterup's distance and recent form make him the class of this field.
Ben Griffin, who won three times in 2025, is searching for his first victory of 2026. Things haven't gone as smoothly for Griffin in 2026. He hasn't added another victory this year, though he has recorded three top-10 finishes, including a solo third at the Cadillac Championship and a T3 at the Charles Schwab Challenge. Griffin could do with a decent week. He had a dream season in 2025, winning the World Wide Technology Championship, Charles Schwab Challenge and Zurich Classic of New Orleans and finishing 10th in the FedExCup standings but this year has been a rather different story. Still, his ball-striking pedigree and 2024 T5 at this venue make him a credible threat.
J.T. Poston is a former John Deere Classic champion who won the Memorial Tournament in early June and followed it up with a fine performance at the US Open. Poston is fresh off his win at the 2026 Memorial Tournament in early June. Including the Memorial Tournament and the 2022 John Deere Classic, Poston has four career wins on the PGA Tour. His combination of elite ball-striking and hot putter makes him dangerous on courses that reward precision iron play from the fairway.
The John Deere Classic holds an unfortunate place in the PGA Tour calendar. With the Scottish Open and Open Championship just around the corner, most of the game's biggest names give TPC Deere Run a miss. That means it offers a great opportunity for some of the lesser lights to make a name for themselves, pick up a tasty cheque and secure their PGA Tour cards for the next couple of years. Jordan Spieth returns to the course where he won playoff battles in 2013 and 2015, while Rickie Fowler and Keegan Bradley bring veteran experience and recent solid form.
Strategy for Pool Picks
At TPC Deere Run, conservative course management loses ground quickly. Players who attack pins with short irons and convert birdie opportunities separate themselves from the pack by Thursday afternoon. Look for proven bentgrass putters and players with strong recent form (particularly those who posted multiple rounds in the 60s last week). Course history matters here. Guys who have finished inside the top 20 at this venue tend to find similar form in return visits. Stuck between players? Our player comparison tool uses real PGA Tour strokes-gained data and weights each category by what this course rewards, then names the pick with a probability score.
Make Your Picks Before Thursday
Defending Champion Brian Campbell returns to TPC Deere Run, aiming to defend his title. With an eight-deep group of top-50 OWGR players and multiple storylines in play, the 2026 John Deere Classic shapes up as one of the more compelling editions in years. Whether you're building a pool around proven winners like Gotterup and Poston or targeting value with sharp iron players who can pile up birdies, the window to set lineups closes Thursday morning.
Ready to run your own pool? Head to the John Deere Classic pool page to see scoring options and payout structures, or jump straight to creating your pool in under two minutes. Our platform handles scoring, leaderboards, and payouts automatically so you can focus on making picks and watching the action unfold in Silvis.