With a lot of big names absent, opening odds suggest a wide open field when the PGA Tour assembles in the heartland of Illinois for this week’s John Deere Classic. With no more Signature Events on the schedule and players preparing for a trip overseas for the following two tournaments that include the season’s final major, most big names are absent. This event sits in a bad spot on the scheduled but does its best to annually attract a strong field. Opening as the betting favorite when the field was announced last week, Patrick Cantlay withdrew causing chaos on the odds board. Sungjae Im moved into the position of favorite with defending champion Sepp Straka next in line. They are the only two on the early line with odds shorter than 20/1. Visit BookMaker.eu for a complete list of betting odds when you’re ready to place a wager.
John Deere Classic Betting Odds
Sungjae Im +1230
Sepp Straka +1480
Aaron Rai +2100
Davis Thompson +2350
Jordan Spieth +2425
Denny McCarthy +2450
Maverick Mcnealy +2690
Keith Mitchell +2860
J.T. Poston +3560
Nick Dunlap +3750
Adam Svensson +4065
Lucas Glover +4365
Kevin Yu +4560
Eric Cole +4560
Beau Hossler +4665
Luke Clanton +4730
Jason Day +4060
Sam Stevens +4760
Seamus Power +4760
Patrick Rodgers +5020
Lee Hodges +5070
Mark Hubbard +5520
Ben Griffin +5520
Ryo Hisatsune +6020
Adam Schenk +6070
Doug Ghim +6525
Daniel Berger +6525
Jhonattan Vegas +7275
Jake Knapp +7575
Neal Shipley +7900
Odds Analysis
Lucas Glover +4365
This pick is more about what Glover has done at TPC Deere Run than on recent form, because his results coming in have stunk. And in the past it hasn’t mattered what he’s done since Glover has absolutely owned this course. He does have a T12 at the Schwab in May but since has two MCs and a T44 at the Travelers last time out. In his last five starts in this tournament he has a win in 2021, two additional top 10s and a T25, making him and the course a nice fit.
J.T. Poston +3560
His recent form is slightly better than that of Glover and his last two starts here have been spectacular, so I have no qualms about dropping some coin on Poston for the outright. The field evens things out so I’m not overly concerned that Poston hasn’t finished among the top 20 in his last three starts. However, he won by three swings here in 2022 and he entered last year’s defense in a rut yet still climbed to a T6 by going 68 or lower in every round.
Seamus Power +4760
It’s hard to ignore a player with a career scoring average at TPC Deere Run below 68. And we’re talking about a decent sample size since Power has five starts on his resume. The elevation shifts might remind him of his native Scotland, but whatever the reason he’s been really good here. Overall he has three top 20s in the last four events he made the cut, so that’s something. But Power also has MCs in half of his last eight starts, prompting the odds to spike.
Adam Schenk +6070
This is the ultimate risk/reward pick. Schenk hasn’t finished inside the top 50 in his last seven starts with four MCs. However, he’s been better than solid in his career at Deere Run placing among the top 6 in three of his last four starts. The fourth was a WD in the middle of the 2022 tournament. I’m hoping, as is Schenk, that course form overrides recent form and will give him the benefit of the doubt. The price for a guy with outstanding numbers on this course is worth it.
Jordan Spieth +2425
I’m giving Spieth the benefit of the doubt as well, though his price isn’t as nice. Maybe his recent issues were the impetus behind Spieth making a return to this event. He hasn’t competed in this one since winning here in 2015 and his title two years earlier was the first of his PGA career. In between those victories Spieth finished T7. It’s been a few years but the track hasn’t changed much and maybe Spieth can find his game.
Course: TPC Deere Run – 7,289 yards, Par 71
TPC Deere Run has hosted the tournament since 2000 with the winning score averaging right around 20-under. Michael Kim torched the layout in 2018 to a record 27-under topping the field by eight swings. Straka carded a final round 62 last year moving up 13 spots on the leaderboard to win by two swings at -21 despite making a double bogey on the 18th hole. Each of the past 14 winners finished 18-under or better with 11 of them at -20 or better, so we can expect low scores to dominate. Deere Run offers some of the widest fairways on Tour but it’s actually the short and accurate hitters that thrive on this track. As long as you are in the fairways, which the field hits over 70 percent of the time, you can attack the greens. Typically a layout that offers up plenty of birdies, the course hasn’t been altered to change that approach.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel, CBS
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