A big stretch of golf continues this week on the PGA Tour as players travel to Silvia, Illinois, to partake in the 2025 John Deere Classic. With vital FedEx Cup points and spots in The Open at Royal Portrush on the line, competitors have plenty to play for during the Fourth of July weekend.
Someone who has emerged from the pack to spearhead the action amid what can only be described as a career year is tournament favorite Ben Griffin. Arguably a top-five player in the world, the former loan officer has parlayed a two-win season into more of the same at some of the biggest events on the calendar.
Griffin arrives at TPC Deere Run with plenty of confidence in tow; he has finished inside the top 10 at the PGA Championship and U.S. Open while taking Scottie Scheffler down to the wire at the Memorial. Riding a streak of six straight top-15 finishes, the 29-year-old will aim to become the third three-time winner this season alongside Scheffler and Rory McIlroy.
Others looking to capture the magic that Griffin has so far in 2025 include defending champion Davis Thompson. Hovering on the top-70 bubble that qualifies for the FedEx Cup Playoffs, the Georgia Bulldog needs to put it into gear with this week presenting a prime opportunity to do just that.
Thompson tacked on his first career victory at this tournament last season with Denny McCarthy, Michael Thorbjornsen and Luke Clanton all hoping to do the same this time around. Jason Day, Sungjae Im, Chris Kirk, Jake Knapp and Rickie Fowler round out the field that is sure to produce fireworks this holiday weekend.
2025 John Deere Classic schedule
Dates: July 3-6
Location: TPC Deere Run — Silvis, Illinois
Par: 71 | Yardage: 7,289
Purse: $8,400,000
2025 John Deere Classic field, odds
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
- Ben Griffin (16-1): It’s been a pretty impressive rise, and the consistency has been matched with some serious ceiling performances. Despite being locked in to qualify for the Tour Championship, Griffin continues to tee it up amid playing the best golf of his career. A win would not be the least bit shocking as he does not have a flaw in his game and he finished T5 last season in his tournament debut.
- Jason Day (25-1): Day hasn’t played a ton this season, but when he has, he has put his best foot forward. The Australian is narrowly inside the top 30 of the FedEx Cup thanks to strong performances at the Masters and most recently at the Travelers Championship where he finished T4. He played this event quite often in the early stages of his career and made his return last season after more than a decade away resulting in a T23 finish.
- Denny McCarthy (28-1)
- Michael Thorbjornsen (30-1)
- J.T. Poston (30-1)
- Si Woo Kim (30-1)
- Luke Clanton (35-1): He was thrown into the deep end at the Canadian Open in his professional debut and has returned to the surface. Clanton has flashed at both the Travelers Championship and the Rocket Classic thanks to his iron play, but his short game has held him back ever so slightly. The good news is TPC Deere Run has one of the highest greens in regulation percentages on the PGA Tour, meaning that approach prowess is more than capable of carrying the load as highlighted by his runner-up result last year as an amateur.
- Kevin Yu (35-1)
- Jake Knapp (35-1): He had his chances Sunday at the Rocket Classic but ultimately had to settle for a T4 finish — his best solo finish of the season. Knapp may be known for his silky smooth swing with the driver in hand, but it is his short game which is beginning to turn the corner. He has gained strokes around the green in four straight tournaments and is beginning to look confident with the putter in hand.
- Davis Thompson (35-1): The floodgates have yet to open for Thompson, who has experienced a frustrating season on the greens. Striking the ball as well as ever, the reigning champion enters his defense having lost strokes with the putter in six straight tournaments. He has been able to muster together a couple of top 25s despite this, but in a shootout like this, he will need to find something and fast if he is to factor again.
- Sungjae Im (35-1)
- Chris Kirk (35-1)
2025 John Deere Classic predictions
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