John Deere Classic: Golf One and Done Picks Strategy (2026)

The John Deere Classic provides one last chance before the tour heads over to Scotland, as some new One and Done names will lead the way.

by Jason Lisk - Jun 29, 2026

The PGA Tour spends Fourth of July week in the Quad Cities area, for the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run.

Sandwiched between the U.S. Open and Travelers Championship on one end, and the trip across the Atlantic for the Scottish Open and The Open Championship on the other, this event typically draws a very different field than the premium stops surrounding it.

Many of the top players in the world take this week off to rest and prepare for the trip to Scotland, making the John Deere Classic an event where you can get a little creative with your One and Done pick, and where past history with the event, as well as players needing to push for FedEx points, become the main draw.

Here’s what you need to know for your Golf One and Done picks this week.

John Deere Classic One and Done Picks: Purse Info

The John Deere Classic carries an $8,800,000 purse, with $1,512,000 going to the winner.

That is the lowest purse of any event we have covered since the early part of the season, and well below the $20,000,000 Signature Events and the majors.

With The Open Championship still ahead as a premium event, most pool players should treat this as a week to deploy course specialists, young emerging picks, and players who have shown positive recent form.

If you want to see where this tournament’s purse ranks in your specific PGA One and Done pool, you can set up your pool entry in our Golf One and Done Picks product.

John Deere Classic Overview for One and Done Pools

This analysis is a complement to the data in our product, which provides customized weekly pick grades that account for factors like:

• The total number of picks you need to make this season.
• The specific tournaments included in your pool.
• The golfers you’ve already used so far.

Here are a few notable highlights for the 2026 John Deere Classic field:

• 144 golfers in the field, with a standard cut. A full field despite the holiday week, though notably thinner at the top than most events on the calendar.
• The highest-ranked golfers here tend to have played recently at this event: The highest-ranked players in the field include some who have had Signature Event eligibility, like Ben Griffin, Chris Gotterup, and Jacob Bridgeman. All of these players have played the John Deere multiple times the last few years as their careers have progressed from fighting to make it on the tour to getting wins. Each of those three have a top 5 finish some time in the last four years here.
• Keegan Bradley and Jordan Spieth push for FedEx points: Keegan Bradley is one veteran who hasn’t played here recently, but is near the cut line of playing in the FedEx Playoffs (currently No. 69). Jordan Spieth (No. 52 in FedEx points) is another, who also has some history here, having won here twice, including as a teenager back in 2013.
• Winners have mostly come from One and Done value spots (before Campbell’s long shot): Last year, Brian Campbell was one of the more improbable winners in recent seasons (+40000). The previous four tournaments prior to that were mostly won by value types who would be relevant for One and Done: Davis Thompson (+2200 in 2024),
• Denny McCarthy has been Mr. Consistency at the John Deere: McCarthy has finished in the Top 11 in four straight years here, while 2024 winner Davis Thompson leads in Strokes Gained here among golfers with more than one appearance.

John Deere Classic One and Done Picks: Video

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You can also listen to these episodes on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

John Deere Classic One and Done Picks: Advice

Below, we’ll break down the top John Deere Classic One and Done picks by looking at tournament odds, future value rankings, pick popularity, and the strategy behind when to use each golfer.

Top Recommended One and Done Picks for the John Deere Classic

Grades can differ from entry to entry depending on who has been used, so check your individual entries. Here are some of the golfers appearing near the top in pools:

• Ben Griffin
• Chris Gotterup
• Keegan Bradley
• Keith Mitchell
• Jacob Bridgeman
• Eric Cole
• J.T. Poston
• Jordan Spieth

The grades this week largely follow using the best available golfer by odds for your entry, but you will want to adjust based on your standings and popularity.

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How Our Golf OAD Expert Is Playing It

I am going to spray-and-pray this week, hitting several golfers, and only doubling up on a few. That said, I am playing golfers who have shown positive recent form and then adjusting for my pool standings on where I use specific golfers. I’m also mixing some golfers in my lower-rated entries who rank higher but will have more limited pick rates on availability.

Here are how I am picking based on my top half of entries and bottom half:

Top half

• Eric Cole (2)
• Tom Kim
• Ben Griffin
• Keith Mitchell
• Doug Ghim
• J.T. Poston

Bottom half

• Doug Ghim
• Tom Kim
• Chris Gotterup
• Jacob Bridgeman
• Aldrich Potgieter
• Emiliano Grillo
• Ben Kohles