The John Deere Classic begins Thursday morning at TPC Deere Run. Who will hoist the bronze buck trophy and claim the top prize of $1,332,000 on Sunday evening?
Here is a look at 10 players (in alphabetical order) to keep an eye on this week, with tee times for their first two rounds in parentheses:
Ludvig Aberg (1:05 p.m. Thursday, No. 1; 7:40 a.m. Friday, No. 10): Aberg was in contention last week at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit for two rounds before faltering on the weekend. Even though it is the former Texas Tech University standout’s first time around Deere Run, the 23-year-old Swede already has a couple of top-25 finishes in three starts as a professional and has the length off the tee to have several wedges into the green on the par-4s.
Eric Cole (1:16 p.m. Thursday, No. 1; 7:51 a.m. Friday, No. 10): Cole played an eye-popping 10 straight PGA Tour events before taking last week off. Sort of. He still competed in the Frank B. Fuhrer Jr. Invitational for a purse of $20,000 and won by nine shots, donating his earnings to charity. Runner-up at the Honda Classic earlier this year, Cole is an exceptional putter and has a well-rounded game to make the JDC his first Tour win.
Lucas Glover (12:43 p.m. Thursday, No. 1; 7:18 a.m. Friday, No. 10): Glover has not had a terrific season on Tour, missing nine cuts and placing outside the top 50 in several others. However, he made a recent switch to a longer putter and saw the benefits in Detroit with rounds of 64-65 on the weekend to finish tied for fourth. He was fifth in the field in strokes gained putting. Glover missed the cut here last year, but he prevailed in 2021 and was 10th in 2019.
Adam Hadwin (7:18 a.m. Thursday, No. 10; 12:43 p.m. Friday, No. 1): It has been a banner season on the PGA Tour for Canadians with four winners in Mackenzie Hughes, Adam Svensson, Corey Conners and Nick Taylor. Could the 35-year-old Hadwin be the next? He has been in good form recently with a tie for second at last week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic. Hadwin has finished in the top 20 here in two of his previous three trips, including a T8 in 2016.
Russell Henley (7:29 a.m. Thursday, No. 10; 12:54 p.m. Friday, No. 1): This is only Henley’s fourth appearance at Deere Run, but he finished second here in 2019 and T11 in 2021. And he has pieced together four consecutive top-20 finishes on Tour, including T14 at the U.S. Open last month in Los Angeles. Henley ranks first on the Tour in driving accuracy at 73% and among the top 50 in greens in regulation. If the putter can get hot, the 34-year old should contend.
Denny McCarthy (7:40 a.m. Thursday, No. 10; 1:05 p.m. Friday, No. 1): McCarthy is a trendy pick this week … and for good reason. Ranked 34th in the Official World Golf Rankings — only behind Cameron Young and Henley among those in the field — McCarthy has played very well in the past month. He lost in a playoff at The Memorial in early June, tied for 20th at the U.S. Open in mid-June and was T7 at the Travelers Championship in late June. Considered one of the Tour’s top putters, McCarthy hopes to be the latest to earn his breakthrough win at the JDC.
Taylor Moore (7:29 a.m. Thursday, No. 10; 12:54 p.m. Friday, No. 1): It is all about going low at Deere Run and Moore proved he’s capable of that, shooting 21-under par to finish T4 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic last week. He won the Valspar Championship in March and fits the mold of players who have had success at the JDC. He’s ranked 15th in strokes gained putting, seventh in putting inside 10 feet and among the top 20 in scrambling. Moore was 24th in his JDC debut last year.
Chez Reavie (7:51 a.m. Thursday, No. 1; 1:16 p.m. Friday, No. 10): The 41-year-old Reavie has made six straight cuts and was T4 at the Travelers Championship in late June. He has shot 65 or better in four of his last eight competitive rounds. It has been a mixed bag at the JDC for Reavie, who has missed the cut in two of his last three appearances. He placed T18 in 2021 and was T5 in 2011. Reavie ranks among the top 20 on Tour in driving accuracy.
Patrick Rodgers (6:45 a.m. Thursday, No. 10; 12:10 p.m. Friday, No. 1): Rodgers had stardom written all over him following an illustrious college career at Stanford. But in 243 events on the PGA Tour, the 31-year-old is still searching for his first triumph. TPC Deere Run suits the Indiana native well, recording one of his three runner-up finishes on Tour here in 2017. Since April, Rodgers has made seven of nine cuts and posted top-10 performances at the Valero Texas Open and Mexico Open.
Adam Schenk (7:18 a.m. Thursday, No. 10; 12:43 p.m. Friday, No. 1): It has been feast or famine for Schenk at Deere Run. He missed the cut in 2018, was T6 in 2019 and T4 in 2021 and withdrew last year after an opening round 77. Schenk is making his 28th start on Tour and aims for his first win. He’s had a fairly strong 2023, with four top-10s and two runner-up finishes. This is almost considered a hometown event for the Indiana native, who ranks among the top 10 on Tour in putting and top 20 in birdies.
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