Here's everything you need to know about 2024 John Deere Classic PrizePicks plays for Thursday in this week's PGA Tour event in Silvis, Illinois.
With the Rocket Mortgage Classic in the rear-view mirror, we now look forward to this week's 2024 John Deere Classic. TPC Deere Run hosts once again, which it has done annually since 2000.
TPC Deere Run is a par-71, 7,289-yard track designed by D.A. Weibring. It is a relatively easy course that rewards aggressive players by being a birdie-fest every year.
Therefore, I am looking for golfers who can make a plethora of birdies and shoot in the 20-under range this week.
Find my 2024 John Deere Classic PrizePicks plays for Thursday below.
2024 John Deere Classic PrizePicks
Keith Mitchell More Than 5 Birdies or Better
Putting remains a concern for Keith Mitchell, but TPC Deere Run is such an easy course that it's possible to get away with a poor performance on the greens. This exact scenario played out for Mitchell here in 2018 when he finished seventh despite losing strokes with his putter.
The rest of his game, however, has been awesome this season. Mitchell has eight top-20 finishes in his past 16 tournaments.
He also ranks third among the field in Birdie Average this year, so he can absolutely thrive in the low-scoring golf that this tournament produces. Mitchell has recorded seven or more birdies in two of his past three rounds at TPC Deere Run.
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Davis Thompson Less Than 68 Strokes
I wrote about Davis Thompson in my first-round-leader article this week, and if I like him to lead after the first round, then I obviously also like him to shoot 68 or lower in the process.
Thompson will carry tons of momentum following Sunday's 68 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, which was the second-best round of the day. He has now made the weekend in nine of his past 11 tournaments, finishing inside the top-27 in eight of those nine made cuts.
Thompson finished ninth at Pinehurst No. 2 against a U.S. Open field, so the sky's the limit for him this week considering how much easier this course is. He is also a birdie machine, ranking 29th on Tour in Birdie Average this season, which will bode well at the birdie-fest this week.
Nick Dunlap More Than 5 Birdies or Better
Nick Dunlap shocked the golf world by winning as an amateur at The American Express, but the question was whether or not that was a fluky result. The past couple of months suggest that it was not a fluky result and that Dunlap will be a legit golfer on Tour moving forward.
The 20-year-old has made the weekend in seven of his past 10 starts, posting four top-25 finishes over that stretch. Dunlap is coming off a 10th-place finish at last week's Rocket Mortgage Classic as his game continues to trend upward.
He is especially intriguing in this market considering that he ranks 15th on Tour this season in Birdie Average.
For a more in-depth analysis of the John Deere Classic, check out the Links + Locks Best Bets podcast.
