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With the calendar flipped to July, we're inching closer and closer to The Open Championship at Royal Portrush, which kicks off Thursday, July 17. With two weeks to go until that event, some golfers are opting out of PGA Tour events to focus on the last major of 2025. But many golfers are not taking that approach and will tee it up at this year's John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run in Illinois. Some notable names in the field include Jason Day, Ben Griffin, Jake Knapp and Si Woo Kim. Should you be targeting any of those stars in John Deere Classic bets? 

If you're interested in betting on golf, then before you make any 2025 John Deere Classic picks, you need to learn more about this event, the field and what the current odds look like at top betting sites. You can use sportsbook promos from those top sites to place John Deere Classic bets, and you can catch the final two rounds of this year's tournament on CBS and Paramount+ this Saturday and Sunday.

What to know about TPC Deere Run

After watching some of the game's best struggle mightily in the brutal conditions at Oakmont in last month's U.S. Open, the PGA schedule has had some low-scoring events of late, such as last week's Rocket Classic, which was won by Aldrich Potgieter in a playoff after he finished regulation at -22 alongside Max Greyserman and Chris Kirk. TPC Deere Run presents another opportunity for the pros to go low, as evidenced by last year's winner, Davis Thompson, winning with a final score of -28, which is a course and event record. 

TPC Deere Run is a Par 71 and will play at just under 7,300 yards. Hayden Springer, who finished tied for seventh at last year's event, tied the course record in the first round with a -12 59, and no one in the top 10 in last year's event shot over par in any of their four rounds.

Thompson won last year, Sepp Straka was the winner in 2023, J.T. Poston emerged victorious in 2022, and Lucas Glover got the win in 2021. There was no John Deere Classic in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Dylan Frittelli and Michael Kim were the winners in 2019 and 2018, respectively. 

The winner of the 2025 event will earn 500 FedEx Cup points as well as $1.44 million of the $8.4 million purse. 

The 2025 John Deere Classic field

As noted, some of the biggest names in golf will not be in action in Illinois this week. That includes Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele and others. 

Past winners Thompson, Poston, Glover, Frittelli, Kim and Zach Johnson are all in the field this week. Day, a former major champion, and Griffin, who has won twice on Tour this year, are two of the bigger names in the field. Potgieter, fresh off his first PGA Tour victory, is also playing this week.

Michael Thorbjornsen finished second last year and is back looking to win his first PGA event, and Si Woo Kim, one of the bigger names in the field, is seeking his first PGA win since 2023.

2025 John Deere Classic betting odds

Griffin and Day are perhaps the biggest names in the field this week, and they sit atop the 2025 John Deere Classic betting odds at DraftKings Sportsbook at +1600 and +2500, respectively. Here's how the top of the board looks entering Thursday:

  • Ben Griffin (+1600)
  • Jason Day (+2500)
  • Denny McCarthy (+2500)
  • Michael Thorbjornsen (+2800)
  • J.T. Poston (+3000)
  • Davos Thompson (+3000)
  • Si Woo Kim (+3000)
  • Aldrich Potgieter (+3500)
  • Luke Clanton (+3500)
  • Kevin Yu (+3500)
  • Jake Knapp (+3500)
  • Sungjae Im (+3500)
  • Chris Kirk (+3500)
  • Chris Gotterup (+3500)
  • Pierceson Coody (+3500)

2025 John Deere Classic best bets, longshots

It feels like Knapp is due for a win at some point soon. He's capable of going nuclear and shooting ridiculously low scores at any time, as we've seen already this year when he shot a 59 at the Cognizant Classic in February. He's coming off a fourth-place finish at last week's Rocket Classic. As one of many priced at +3500 entering the tournament, he's the one there who catches my eye the most. 

Alex Smalley at +4500 is also worth monitoring. He missed the cut here a year ago, but he was tied for second in 2023 and finished 16th in 2022. As for a true longshot play, Seamus Power finished 17th a year ago and 13th in 2023. He's at +10000, and if recent history is any indication, he figures to be in contention once again this weekend.