John Deere Classic 2025 Betting Tips: Six against the field in Illinois

In the wake of big-hitting South African youngster, Aldrich Potgieter gaining his first PGA Tour title via a playoff in last week’s Rocket Classic, the tour now moves on to TPC Deere Run in Illinois for the John Deere Classic.

Our resident golf tipster Jamie Worsley is back with his comprehensive preview. Six players stand out to him as each-way value this week, so let's check out his John Deere Classic 2025 Betting Tips here at Betfred Insights...

*You can bet on the tournament and check out the latest John Deere Classic Odds over on betfred.com

TOURNAMENT HISTORY 

The John Deere Classic was first held in 1971 – then called the Quad Cities Open – and has remained an ever-present on the PGA Tour calendar. It has been played exclusively at TPC Deere run since 2000.

D.A. Weibring – the designer of TPC Deere Run – is one of two players to win this event on three occasions, recording victories in 1979, 1991 and 1995. He is joined on this tally by Steve Stricker, who won three straight editions in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

They are closely followed by a quartet of two-time winners: Deane Beman (1971, 1972), Scott Hoch (1980, 1984), David Frost (1992, 1993) and most recently, Jordan Spieth (2013, 2015).

Last five winners:

• 2024

Winner: Davis Thompson (-28)

Runners-up: Luke Clanton, C.T. Pan, Michael Thorbjornsen (-24)

• 2023

Winner: Sepp Straka (-21)

Runners-up: Alex Smalley, Brendon Todd (-19)

• 2022

Winner: JT Poston (-21)

Runners-up: Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Emiliano Grillo (-18)

• 2021

Winner: Lucas Glover (-19)

Runners-up: Ryan Moore, Kevin Na (-17)

• 2019

Winner: Dylan Frittelli (-21)

Runner-up: Russell Henley (-19)

Davis Thompson broke the tournament scoring record at TPC Deere Run last year, shooting an incredible 28-under-par to win his maiden PGA Tour title. He returns to defend this week.

THE COURSE

The D.A. Weibring-designed TPC Deere Run opened for play in 2000 and immediately took up hosting duties for this event. It underwent a renovation courtesy of the PGA Tour Design Service in 2021 – with input from Weibring – during which all bunkers were rebuilt, and some fairways were tightened.

This course plays as a par 71, measuring 7289yds, and possesses 4x par 3s (158-226 yards), 11x par 4s (361-503 yards) and 3x par 5s (561-596 yards). It consistently produces one of the lowest-scoring events on the PGA Tour, averaging a winning score of -21.9 across the last 10 renewals.

TPC Deere Run is a hilly, tree-lined course, featuring moderate changes in elevation throughout. It is strongly bunkered, and water comes into play on just three holes – No. 2, No. 10 and No. 18.

The largely doglegged, sloping fairways are generous and easy to find. Although there are some thick patches of fescue/bluegrass rough and strategic bunkering, the course lacks punishment for missed fairways, ranking among the easiest and least penal driving tests on the PGA Tour.

The challenge in approach is similarly simple, with the small bentgrass greens typically receptive and easy to find. They're subtly undulating, but pin positions are comfortably accessible, and they rate as some of the easiest to putt. However, the challenge around the putting surfaces is difficult, with a combination of deep greenside bunkers, rough and tightly-mown chipping areas protecting the elevated greens.

This is a course littered with scoring chances. Each of the par 5s are gettable in two, while the players are a decent drive and a wedge away from giving themselves a great birdie look on the majority of the par 4s. Unless adverse weather arrives, it's going to again take low numbers to walk away with the title at TPC Deere Run.

THE WEATHER

The weather is hot and humid in this area and thunderstorms are forecast to be a threat from beginning to end. It does look relatively calm for most of the event, but for Saturday, when we could see gusting winds of 35mph+.

KEY STATS

• SG: Approach/Greens-in-Regulation/Proximity from 100-150yds

Iron play is always an important asset in birdie-fests, and this event is no different. It's especially important to bring a strong wedge/mid-iron game, with approaches from 100-150yds commonplace.

Davis Thompson ranked 10^th in greens-in-regulation and 28^th in approach when winning last year. Among his nearest challengers, runner-up Luke Clanton ranked 2^nd in approach and 14^th in GIR.

Sepp Straka ranked 1^st in GIR when he won in 2023, as runner-up Alex Smalley ranked 1^st in approach and 7^th in GIR.

J.T. Poston ranked 4^th in GIR and 10^th for approach on his way to victory in 2022; Lucas Glover ranked 3^rd in approach when he won the 2021 edition; 2018 winner Michael Kim ranked 3^rd in GIR and 14^th in approach; and Ryan Moore ranked 2^nd in approach and 3^rd in GIR when recording his 2016 success.

• SG: Putting (bentgrass)

The putter is another vital club in this type of contest and there are few players able to contend at TPC Deere Run without at least a solid week on the greens.

Davis Thompson was 5^th with the putter last year, as 10 of the top 11 players ranked inside the top 25 on the greens.

Sepp Straka complemented his solid iron play with an excellent week on the greens in 2023, ranking 4^th; five of the top 10 in 2021 ranked inside the top 10 in putting; Dylan Frittelli ranked 2^nd with the club when he won in 2019; Michael Kim led the field on the greens in 2018; and 2017 winner Bryson DeChambeau ranked 4^th.

• Birdie or better %

Lastly, it makes sense to look at players in strong birdie-making form in this continually low-scoring contest.

CORRELATING EVENTS (COURSES)

Shriners Open (TPC Summerlin)

TPC Summerlin is a scoreable par-71 course that plays to a similar length as TPC Deere Run. The ball-striking test compares closely, with the wide fairways and lack of punishment resulting in one of the easiest driving tests on tour, while players need to be dialled with their wedges into the bentgrass greens.

Notable correlating form:

Bryson DeChambeau:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (1^st)

Ryan Moore:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (1^st)

Jonathan Byrd:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (1^st)

JT Poston:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (1^st, 3^rd, 4^th)

Lucas Glover:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (3^rd)

Davis Thompson:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (5^th)

Michael Kim:

John Deere (1^st) / Shriners (5^th)

Kevin Na:

John Deere (2^nd) / Shriners (1^st, 1^st)

Ben Martin:

John Deere (2^nd) / Shriners (1^st)

Troy Matteson:

John Deere (2^nd, 3^rd) / Shriners (1^st, 5^th)

Sam Ryder:

John Deere (2^nd) / Shriners (3^rd)

David Hearn:

John Deere (2^nd) / Shriners (5^th, 7^th)

Joel Dahmen:

John Deere (2^nd) / Shriners (7^th, 9^th)

Adam Schenk:

John Deere (4^th, 4^th) / Shriners (3^rd)

ISCO Championship (Keene Trace Golf Club)

Keene Trace Golf Club is a course with bentgrass greens, low scoring and a comparable ball-striking challenge to TPC Deere Run. Greens-in-regulation percentages are some of the highest on the PGA Tour and there are lots of approaches between 100-150yds.

Notable correlating form:

JT Poston:

John Deere (1^st) / ISCO (2^nd, 5^th)

Sepp Straka:

John Deere (1^st) / ISCO (3^rd)

Lucas Glover:

John Deere (1^st) / ISCO (5^th)

Sam Ryder:

John Deere (2^nd) / ISCO (3^rd)

Patrick Rodgers:

John Deere (2^nd) / ISCO (5^th)

Luke List:

John Deere (4^th) / ISCO (5^th)

Mark Hubbard:

John Deere (6^th) / ISCO (3^rd)

Travelers Championship (TPC River Highlands)

TPC River Highlands is a tree-lined course built on moderately hilly terrain with small bentgrass greens. Its fairways are wide and with the wedges/mid-irons carrying the most importance, it should act as a strong comp for this week.

Notable correlating form:

Jordan Spieth:

John Deere (1^st, 1^st) / Travelers (1^st)

Kenny Perry:

John Deere (1^st) / Travelers (1^st)

Ryan Moore:

John Deere (1^st, 2^nd) / Travelers (2^nd, 2^nd)

Brian Harman:

John Deere (1^st) / Travelers (2^nd, 3^rd, 5^th)

JT Poston:

John Deere (1^st) / Travelers (2^nd)

Russell Henley:

John Deere (2^nd) / Travelers (2^nd)

Patrick Rodgers:

John Deere (2^nd) / Travelers (3^rd)

Michael Thorbjornsen:

John Deere (2^nd) / Travelers (4^th)

Jerry Kelly:

John Deere (3^rd, 4^th) / Travelers (2^nd)

Danny Lee:

John Deere (3^rd) / Travelers (3^rd)

Chris Stroud:

John Deere (4^th, 5^th) / Travelers (2^nd)

Chez Reavie:

John Deere (5^th) / Travelers (1^st)

Kevin Streelman:

John Deere (7^th, 8^th, 8^th) / Travelers (1^st)

3M Open (TPC Twin Cities)

Due to the similar level of difficulty in approach and putting into/on its bentgrass greens, the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities is another event that is worth checking out for clues this week.

Notable correlating form:

JT Poston:

John Deere (1^st) / 3M Open (2^nd)

Emiliano Grillo:

John Deere (2^nd) / 3M Open (2^nd, 3^rd)

Sam Ryder:

John Deere (2^nd) / 3M Open (7^th)

Jhonattan Vegas:

John Deere (3^rd) / 3M Open (1^st, 2^nd)

Keith Mitchell:

John Deere (7^th) / 3M Open (5^th, 5^th)

Rocket Classic (Detroit Golf Club)

Detroit Golf Club ranks almost identically to TPC Deere Run from a ball-striking perspective, with the fairways easy to find and the small bentgrass/poa greens best attacked with quality wedge play. Scoring is always low, making it a worthy comp for the demands of this week.

Notable correlating form:

Bryson DeChambeau:

John Deere (1^st) / Rocket Classic (1^st)

Davis Thompson:

John Deere (1^st) / Rocket Classic (2^nd)

Lucas Glover:

John Deere (1^st) / Rocket Classic (4^th)

Sepp Straka:

John Deere (1^st) / Rocket Classic (8^th)

Michael Thorbjornsen:

John Deere (2^nd) / Rocket Classic (4^th)

Cameron Young:

John Deere (6^th) / Rocket Classic (2^nd, 6^th)

Hank Lebioda:

John Deere (8^th) / Rocket Classic (4^th)

Cameron Tringale:

John Deere (9^th) / Rocket Classic (5^th)

Wyndham Championship (Sedgefield Country Club)

We'll finish with the Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club. This is another classic, tree-lined course littered with birdie chances and requires players to lean on strong wedge play.

Notable correlating form:

Lucas Glover:

John Deere (1^st) / Wyndham (1^st)

JT Poston:

John Deere (1^st) / Wyndham (1^st)

Ryan Moore:

John Deere (1^st, 2^nd) / Wyndham (1^st)

Brian Harman:

John Deere (1^st) / Wyndham (3^rd)

Michael Kim:

John Deere (1^st) / Wyndham (5^th)

Kevin Na:

John Deere (2^nd) / Wyndham (2^nd, 4^th)

Russell Henley:

John Deere (2^nd) / Wyndham (2^nd, 5^th)

C.T. Pan:

John Deere (2^nd) / Wyndham (2^nd)

Luke Clanton:

John Deere (2^nd) / Wyndham (5^th)

David Hearn:

John Deere (2^nd) / Wyndham (8^th)

Scott Brown:

John Deere (4^th, 5^th) / Wyndham (3^rd)

Ben Griffin:

John Deere (5^th) / Wyndham (4^th, 7^th)

THE FIELD

World No. 17 Ben Griffin is the top-ranked player in this week's John Deere Classic field, which includes just seven of the world's top 50.

Davis Thompson returns to a PGA Tour event as the defending champion for the first time, and he is joined by a further five former winners: J.T. Poston (2022), Lucas Glover (2021), Dylan Frittelli (2019), Michael Kim (2018) and Zach Johnson (2012).

The field also includes former No. 1 amateurs, Luke Clanton and Gordon Sargent. Meanwhile, the current top three amateurs in the world have all received sponsors exemptions: Jackson Koivun (No. 1), Ben James (No. 2) and Michael La Sasso (No. 3).

SELECTIONS

Market leaders (1/4 5 places): Ben Griffin 16/1, Jason Day 22/1, Denny McCarthy 25/1, J.T. Poston 30/1, Si Woo Kim 30/1

1.5 pts Kevin Yu each-way (1/5 - 6 places) @ 33/1

Birdie-machine Kevin Yu is one of the strongest ball strikers on the PGA Tour but can be a frustrating follow on the greens. However, he's looked excellent with the putter across recent starts and possessing an encouraging record at TPC Deere Run, he can become a two-time winner on the tour this week.

Although Yu has been consistent throughout this season – picking up seven top-25 finishes in 18 starts – he's taken his form to another level over the last month and a half. He recorded his first top-five finish of the season five starts ago in the Myrtle Beach Classic, finishing 4^th and went one better two starts ago in Canada, before again looking sound on his latest start, finishing 25^th at the Travelers Championship.

His long game is in excellent shape, ranking 6^th off-the-tee, 18^th in greens-in-regulation and 28^th in approach. In addition, he's a fine wedge player, ranking 26^th from 100-125yds and 26^th from 125-150yds. Gaining strokes on the greens in four of his last five starts – including ranking 4^th in the PGA Championship and 6^th in the Canadian Open – he looks primed to make his mark this week.

Yu ranks 14^th on tour in birdie or better % and we saw his birdie-making ability serve him well when he won the Sanderson Farms Championship last season, shooting a 23-under-par winning score. He's also put it to good use in this event, finishing 6^th in 2023 and 20^th in 2024, firing seven rounds in the 60s across his two visits.

1 pt Nico Echavarria each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 50/1

Nico Echavarria is hitting his irons better than ever at present, helping him gain a second top 10 of the season last week. He’s been consistently impressive on the greens in 2025 and as a prolific scorer, he’s an appealing price to notch up a third PGA Tour win at TPC Deere Run.

Echavarria finished 2024 in excellent form and continued that into this season, finishing 2^nd in the Sony Open on his second start. His level did drop after that, but he arrives here after making eight of his last nine cuts – claiming two further top-25s and making the cut in the first two majors of the season – before returning to the top 10 with a 6^th-place finish in the Rocket Classic.

The putter has done the bulk of the work this season, ranking 5^th. That being said, his irons have also improved greatly of late – ranking 4^th in greens-in-regulation and 7^th in approach last week, top 20 in each area in the PGA Championship, and 6^th in approach in the CJ CUP Byron Nelson five starts ago.

Echavarria hasn’t quite got the hang of this place in two visits, missing the cut on debut in 2023 and finishing 52^nd last year, though he has never arrived with his game looking in such good shape. Furthermore, his performance in Detroit last week is extremely encouraging in relation to this challenge.

1 pt Jacob Bridgeman each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 55/1

Jacob Bridgeman is another player whose performances have been largely driven by the putter in 2025. He combined that with some improved approach play last week and if able to find a little more improvement in that regard at TPC Deere Run, he’d have the desired profile to be a feature in this event.

Bridgeman caught the eye with his consistency last year, recording 10 top-25 finishes in his rookie season. He’s stepped his performances up another level in 2025, hitting the top 10 (as an individual) on three occasions: 2^nd in the Cognizant Classic, 3^rd in the Valspar Championship, and 4^th in the Truist Championship.

He did suffer a slump in form, missing the cut in the PGA Championship and US Open – completely understandable considering they were the first major appearances of his career. This continued with an underwhelming 52^nd-place finish in the Travelers Championship, but he was much better last week, shooting four under-par rounds to finish 26^th in the Rocket Classic.

The putter has been the standout club in his bag, ranking 6^th this season. However, just four starts ago in the Memorial Tournament he produced his best approach display since arriving on the PGA Tour. He again looked solid in this area at the Rocket Classic and as a player who is more comfortable with wedge in hand, this course should suit.

Bridgeman missed the cut on his TPC Deere Run on debut in 2024 but did show promise in the first round, shooting a four-under 67. He also performed with credit on his first efforts in the Wyndham Championship and 3M Open, finishing 12^th and 19^th respectively, and having gone well on each start at Detroit Golf Club, his comp form indicates that he has the game to improve considerably on last year’s effort.

1 pt Lee Hodges each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 60/1

I put Lee Hodges up in the Rocket Classic and he looked like being a real contender at the halfway stage, sitting in 8^th place. He failed to keep it going there, shooting rounds of 72-70 over the weekend to slip to 34^th, but there was little to concern us with that performance and I’m happy to give him another shot on a course that looks an ideal fit.

Hodges returned from a six-week absence due to a rib injury in Houston at the end of March, finishing an encouraging 11^th. He wasn’t able to sustain that, missing each of his next five cuts, though he appears to have found consistency in recent starts, finishing 53^rd in the Charles Schwab Challenge, 9^th in the Canadian Open, and 34^th in the Rocket Classic on his last three.

He’s gaining strokes through the bag in 2025 but it’s the irons that have stood out, ranking 17^th in GIR, 29^th in approach and he has looked sound with his wedges, ranking 36^th from 100-125yds and 43^rd from 125-150yds. In addition, he’s put up positive numbers on each of his last two starts on the greens – another big plus for a player who is somewhat of a streaky putter.

Hodges finished 43^rd on debut in the John Deere Classic in 2022 and it seemed as if he’d improve on that last year – opening with rounds of 66 and 67 to sit in 27^th at the halfway stage, before a dreadful weekend saw him slip down to 77^th on the leaderboard. Although, he does have a very attractive piece of comp form to enhance his chances, as he shot -24 to destroy the field by seven shots in the 2023 3M Open.

1 pt Matt McCarty each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 70/1

Having endured a tricky start to his first full season on tour, top-20 finishes have come easily to Matt McCarty over the last three months. He’s a brilliant putter who seems to excel on bentgrass – as he showed when winning the Black Desert Championship last year – and displaying promise in approach last week, he should take to TPC Deere Run on his first try.

McCarty recorded three wins on the Korn Ferry Tour to earn automatic promotion to the PGA Tour last year, and took no time to settle in, winning the Black Desert Championship on just his second ever start on tour. He struggled at the start of 2025, missing three cuts and failing to record a single top-40 finish in his first seven starts, but that turned around at THE PLAYERS Championship, where he finished 20^th.

He’s collected a further five top-20 finishes across 10 starts since then, impressing on his Masters debut, finishing 14^th. A 4^th-place finish in the Canadian Open three starts ago was his best result of the season and he tees it up this week after a 19^th-place finish in the Rocket Classic.

The putter was the standout there, ranking 3^rd and it follows him ranking 1^st on the greens in Canada two starts previous – both on bentgrass/poa mix greens. Indeed, it’s with this club that he has excelled most this season, ranking 16^th. Producing largely solid displays in approach and ranking top 40 on tour in birdie or better %, he has the ability to score heavily at this course.

We have zero course form and little comp form to guide us, though McCarty is no stranger to winning low-scoring events on bentgrass greens. Not only due to that victory in the Black Desert Championship – where he shot 23-under-par – but his first win on the Korn Ferry Tour came on similar surfaces in the Price Cutter Charity Championship last year, with -25 the winning total.

1 pt Austin Eckroat each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 90/1

Austin Eckroat has shown signs that his game is beginning to come together in recent events. He’s a proven two-time winner on the PGA Tour and more than capable of going low, he looks great value in this weak field.

Eckroat’s season began well enough, as he recorded top-15 finishes in The Sentry and Pebble Beach Pro-Am over his first four starts. He failed to keep it going, particularly struggling with his irons and on the greens, but his approach play has been solid for several weeks now and with the putter now behaving, he’s been able to find some consistency, making seven of his last eight cuts.

His strength lies in the quality of his long game and after going through that rough patch in approach, he ranks 18^th over the last two months. He’s recorded his two single strongest rounds of the season with the clubs across his last five and was especially strong in round two last week, gaining 3.5 strokes to rank 1^st in the field in the Rocket Classic. He also produced his best putting performance since the end of March on the bentgrass greens in Detroit – something he threatened to do in the Memorial Tournament three starts previous – and I’m hoping he can find further improvements this week.

Despite making his debut here this week, Eckroat’s 6^th-place finish in last year’s Wyndham Championships bodes well. As does the decent record he’s amassed at the Travelers Championship – achieving finishes of 24^th, 27^th, and 25^th there in the last three years.

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