John Deere Classic: Notes, Odds & Best Bets
The John Deere Classic returns after a one-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic. The 50th edition of the event begins Thursday at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Ill.
Dylan Frittelli is the defending champion from 2019. With most players already in Europe ahead of The Open Championship, Daniel Berger is the only top-20 player in the field.
Tournament notes, betting odds and best bets:
JOHN DEERE CLASSIC
Course: Detroit Golf Club (Par 71, 7,286 yards)
Purse: $6.2M (Winner: $1.116M)
Defending Champion: Dylan Frittelli (2019)
FedEx Cup leader: Patrick Cantlay
HOW TO WATCH
TV: Thursday-Friday, 3-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS)
PGA Tour Live: Thursday-Friday, 7:45 a.m.-6 p.m. ET (Featured Groups); Saturday-Sunday, 7:45 a.m.-3 p.m. (Featured Groups), 3-6 p.m. (Featured Holes)
BEST BETS
--Berger (+1100 at PointsBet) is the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 16. He tied for seventh in his most recent start at the U.S. Open and has four top-20s in his past five starts to go with a win at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February. He is being backed by 4.1 percent of the bets at the sportsbook, second-most in the field.
--Brian Harman (+1400) has three consecutive top-20s and eight in his past nine starts, including at T5 at the Travelers Championship.
--Sungjae Im (+1600) has been wildly inconsistent in 2021 but is coming off a T8 last week and posted a solid T26 here two years ago.
--Kevin Streelman (+2500) had a run of four consecutive top-20s snapped by a MC at the Travelers. He's still seeking his first win since 2014 but leads the field with 4.97 percent of the total bets at PointsBet. Streelman is also being backed by 4.74 percent of the money.
--Si Woo Kim (+3500) won the American Express earlier this year and has a pair of T9s since among his highly inconsistent results that includes two missed cuts and a withdrawal among his past six starts.
--Three-time champion Steve Stricker (2009-11) is skipping the U.S. Senior Open to compete in Quad Cities this week. He is the last person to successfully defend a John Deere title and the 54-year-old is being offered at +4000. He is being backed by 3.98 percent of the bets and leads the way with 6.33 percent of the handle, making him the book's second-biggest liability.
NOTES
--Fifteen players in the field have also qualified for The Open Championship. The final spot will go to a player in the top five this week who is not already qualified.
--Iowa native Zach Johnson (+4000) is a member of the tournament's board of directors and will compete in the event for the 19th time. He is being backed by 4.1 percent of the bets and 4.68 percent of the handle.
--The biggest liability in the field for PointsBet is Satoshi Kodaira at +12500. The Japanese star has one PGA Tour victory at the RBC Heritage in 2018. After a string of four missed cuts, Kodaira went T11, T13, T19 and T36 before missing the weekend at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
--Sponsor exemptions include regional college graduates Michael Feagles (University of Illinois; +50000), David Perkins (Illinois State, +50000), Alex Schaake (University of Iowa, +40000) and Tripp Kinney (Iowa State, +50000).
--Paul Goydos holds the 18-hole scoring record with a 59 in the first round in 2010, while Michael Kim set the 72-hole record of 257 in 2018.
--Field Level Media
