Fire up the tractors! It’s time for the PGA TOUR’s annual trip to the Quad Cities for this year’s John Deere Classic. The land for this week’s course, TPC Deere Run, was donated by the descendants of John Deere, and the company that bears his name has been the title sponsor since 1999. The players will take on the course on Thursday as they look to claim a huge win and earn valuable FedExCup points before the PGA TOUR heads to the U.K. for two tournaments, including the final major of the season. The deep field of 144 players offers many great options across a variety of markets available on DraftKings Sportsbook. Let’s pinpoint a few of my best bets for Round 1 of the John Deere Classic this year.
The field will play in groups of three for Round 1, starting from both the first tee and the tenth tee. The first wave has 24 groups that start from 7:40 a.m. ET before the afternoon wave begins at 12:50 p.m. ET with the other 24 groups. Thursday is expected to be extremely hot with a heat index over 100 degrees. There could be some thunderstorms, but the winds will be fairly consistent and should be just enough to cool the player off more than actually impacting play. There isn’t an apparent wave advantage, but always be ready to read and react to how scores are trending if you are live-betting the event.
In this post, we’ll focus on my three best bets for Round 1 of the John Deere Classic on Thursday, July 2.
Eric Cole Round Score under 68.5 (-120)
I backed Cole last week in one of the first groups off the tee at the Tavelers Championship and he delivered the plus-money win by hitting the over on his birdies or better. For this week, I’m taking his score to be 68 or better on the par-71 TPC Deere Run.
He started last week with a sizzling 63 and held the solo lead after the first round before fading to a T38, mostly from struggles with his putter. Cole also got off to a fast start with a 64 at the RBC Canadian Open before a tough second round made him miss the cut.
He was in the mix before that with top-10 finishes at the Memorial and the Charles Schwab Challenge, where he lost in a playoff to Russell Henley.
Cole’s game is built on accuracy and a strong short game, which should make him a great fit for TPC Deere Run. He ranks third in the field in Total Strokes Gained and in Strokes Gained: Putting, while also ranking No. 6 in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green. He finished T7 at TPC Deere Run in 2024 and has made the cut in three straight appearances over the last three years. Again this week, Cole has an early tee time at 8:13 a.m. ET and should be set up for another fast start.
Max Homa (+154) over Davis Thompson and Brian Campbell – 3 Ball – Round 1
Whenever the PGA TOUR plays in groups of three, it sets up some awesome 3 Ball chances that come with juicy odds as three players go head-to-head. In this morning group, Max Homa takes on the winners from the last two seasons at TPC Deere Run, and he gets great odds for the matchup.
Homa was in the mix last year at the event but finished T5 just two strokes out of the playoff between Campbell and Emiliano Grillo. He comes in with the best current form of the three players, by far, and he should have the advantage in this 8:24 a.m. ET tee time.
Homa finished T22 at the Charles Schwab Challenge and T20 at the RBC Canadian Open in his last two events and had a nice T9 at the Masters as part of his six made cuts in his last seven events. He ranks 11th in the field in Strokes Gained: Putting over the last three months and 12th in Total Strokes Gained over the last 30 days.
Thompson finished T35 at the Schwab and T45 at the RBC Canadian Open before missing the cut at the U.S. Open. He did post four top-20 finishes this season, but mostly in alternate-field events. He has been especially struggling with his flat stick, losing strokes putting in three of his last four. Last year in his title defense, he finished T18.
Campbell won last year, claiming his second PGA TOUR win of the season at that point. He has struggled since then, though, missing the cut at the RBC Canadian, the Memorial and the Charles Schwab Challenge before finishing T47 out of 72 players in last week’s no-cut Travelers Championship. His best finish of the season was a T24 at the Masters, but other than that, he has not had any high finishes this season. He could definitely bounce back, but he hasn’t shown any signs of it yet.
Of the three players, Homa is the most accomplished and has the best form, so getting him at +154 is a great value.
Tom Kim over Sungjae Im: Matchup (3 Way) – Round 1 (+100)
I highlighted Kim in my top cash game plays for this week, and it looks like the 24-year-old is rediscovering his form that was missing for the early part of the season. He missed the cut in his only appearance at this course, but he has five straight made cuts and is coming off a T15 at the RBC Canadian Open and a solo third at the U.S. Open.
Sungjae Im also missed the cut at this event last year, but he finished T12 in 2024. While he has spiked for three top-10 finishes since returning from injury in March, he has finished outside the top 25 in four straight and 10 of his last 12 events.
Im has boom or bust upside, but Kim’s better recent form and more consistent performance make him a good play in this 3-way matchup at even money.
