John Deere Classic 2024 Prediction and Betting Tips: Three best bets in Illinois

The PGA Tour heads to TPC Deere Run in Illinois this week for the John Deere Classic.

Read on for our three tips in Illinois...

This tends to be a tournament where strong putters come to the fore and another week of low-scoring is anticipated on the Silvis course, just as defending champion Sepp Straka achieved last year when he closed with an impressive Sunday round of 62.

Straka is back to try his luck again and while last week’s victor Cam Davis sits out, Aaron Rai and Davis Thompson, who were runners-up in Detroit at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, will be hoping to go one better.

Denny McCarthy (22/1 with BetMGM) continues to climb the world rankings, and a first PGA Tour victory may not be far away, especially as this is a course he has proved suits his skill set.

He has finished sixth at TPC Deere Run in each of the last two years and, as officially the second strongest putter on the tour this year, he should have nothing to fear from another visit to Silvis.

McCarthy’s ability to find fairways is another big plus this week for the player who was second at the Texas Open earlier this year and also posted a morale-boosting sixth spot at the Wells Fargo Championship in May.

A week’s break while missing the Rocket Mortgage Classic should mean he arrives in Illinois fresh and it was not that long ago that he showed he could shine in elite company when he posted a second-round 67 at the US Open.

All the ingredients appear to be there for another bold show this week.

One player who has been lighting up the leaderboards recently is Sungjae Im (14/1), and there seems to be no reason why he cannot continue his blistering form at the John Deere.

The South Korean missed the cut at both the US PGA Championship and the US Open, but his other recent performances have been excellent.

His last five form figures in regulation PGA Tour events have been 12-4-9-8-3, and during that rich vein of form, he also posted a victory in the Woori Financial Group Championship in his homeland.

The Stateside performances have all come in events with stronger fields than this one, so he should improve markedly on the 41st spot he posted on his last visit three years ago.

Davis Thompson (28/1) came close to posting his first PGA Tour victory in Detroit last week, and it seems only a matter of time before he gets into the winners’ circle.

Thompson was also second in last year’s American Express Championship and bagged another runner-up spot in the Myrtle Beach Classic in May, so the 25-year-old could be geared up for a bold bid this week, having finished a creditable 31st at the Illinois track on his debut 12 months ago.