The First Look: 2018 John Deere Classic

Bryson DeChambeau makes his first PGA TOUR title defense, while Francesco Molinari seeks victory in back-to-back starts as the Quad Cities hosts its annual Open Championship prelude with one berth at Carnoustie still to be handed out. Steve Stricker, still the last man to execute a PGA TOUR three-peat when he prevailed in 2009-11, is back for his 17th appearance at TPC Deere Run. That’s the same as 2012 champion and JDC board member Zach Johnson. FIELD NOTES: Molinari, who breezed to victory at the Quicken Loans National, and DeChambeau (the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide) are among seven of this season’s tournament winners set to compete. … The lineup also includes six of the top 25 in the FedExCup standings. … Davis Love III makes his first PGA TOUR start since May, though he recently tied for 10th at the U.S. Senior Open. Son Dru Love also got an invite to Deere Run. … Dylan Meyer, who tied for 20th at the U.S. Open in his professional debut, and Chilean teen Joaquin Niemann highlight a strong collection of rising talent. … The field also features two of college golf’s top award winners in 2018, now playing as pros. U.S. Amateur runner-up Doug Ghim (Texas) captured the Hogan Award, while Oregon’s Norman Xiong took home the Nicklaus and Haskins awards. FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 points. STORYLINES: DeChambeau, who owns five top-5 finishes this season and two more top-10s, has a chance to take over the FedExCup points lead if he can repeat as champion. He arrives at Deere Run 435 points behind Dustin Johnson. … Molinari hopes a week off didn’t diminish the form that sparked his runaway at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm. His eight-shot margin of victory tied the largest on TOUR this season. … Johnson, a Cedar Rapids native, owns seven top-five finishes in his past nine appearances, with three runner-up slots go to with his 2012 win. He’s a combined 148-under par in that stretch; he’s carded even-par or better in 41 of his past 42 Deere Run rounds. … Stricker, twice a winner on the PGA TOUR Champions, seeks again to become the Classic’s first four-time winner. He owns three top-25 finishes in seven TOUR starts, including a share of 20th at the U.S. Open. … The final berth at Carnoustie awaits the highest top-5 finisher who hasn’t already punched his ticket to Scotland. … A total of 14 entrants at Deere Run already are in next week’s Open lineup, including DeChambeau and 2015 champion Johnson. COURSE: TPC Deere Run, 7,268 yards, par 71. Once the site of a long-ago tribal village and later housed an Arabian horse-breeding operation, D.A. Weibring’s 1999 design offers a risk/reward challenge as it winds along the nearby Rock River. Dramatic elevation changes frame several holes, notably the downhill 14th that measures 361 yards but can be set up as a drivable par-4. Typically a place where birdies come in bunches, Deere Run was the locale in 2010 when Paul Goydos carded what was then just the fourth 59 recorded on the PGA TOUR. Eventual winner Steve Stricker shot 60 that day. 72-HOLE RECORD: 258, Steve Stricker (2010). 18-HOLE RECORD: 59, Paul Goydos (1st round, 2010). LAST YEAR: DeChambeau birdied four of his final six holes to claim his first PGA TOUR victory, punctuated by a 14-footer on the 72nd hole that eventually left him one shot ahead of Patrick Rodgers. DeChambeau’s final birdie capped a 6-under-par 65 and initially pulled him alongside Rodgers, who soon saw a par putt lip out at No.17. He then flew the green with his approach at No.18 – though he nearly chipped in from 50 feet that would have forced a playoff. Victory came in DeChambeau’s 40th career start and flipped the tables on a rough spring that saw the former NCAA and U.S. Amateur champion miss eight consecutive cuts. He also became the 19th player to make the Deere his first TOUR victory, a list that includes his boyhood idol Payne Stewart. HOW TO FOLLOW TELEVISION: Thursday-Friday, 4-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday-Sunday, 1-2:45 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (CBS). PGA TOUR LIVE: Thursday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. (featured groups), 4-7 p.m. (featured holes). RADIO: Thursday-Friday, 1-7 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com).

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