John Deere Classic Format

The John Deere Classic is a half-century-old golf tournament known for being a part of the Open Championship Qualifying Series and a way to earn a spot at the golf major. It takes place a week prior to the Open Championship in July. The 53rd iteration of the event in 2024 will be held from July 1 to 7 at TPC Deere Run in Silvis. The purse for the event is $8 million.

Initially known as the Quad Cities Open Invitational in 1971, it was held at the Crow Valley Country Club in Davenport, Iowa and was won by Deane Beman, a former PGA Commissioner. The venue has always been in the Quad Cities, and since 1999 it has been at the TPC Deere Run.

What is the format of the John Deere Classic?

The John Deere Classic follows a 72-hole stroke play format in which the golfer with the lowest number of strokes wins.

The John Deere Classic has a field of 156 golfers who meet the eligibility requirements. The field is split into threesomes for the first two rounds of the 72-hole round, and the golfers will stick together, though there is one pair and another individual.

Each pair has a designated time slot in the morning and afternoon, called tee times. The field will be divided equally between the morning and afternoon sessions of each playing day, with each pair being permitted to begin either round on the 1st tee and the other on the 10th tee.

Following the second round of the event, or 36 holes, a cut line based on a certain finish rank and par will be determined, and the top golfers, along with those who tied, will be entitled to advance to the third and fourth rounds, while the others will be eliminated.

Each player's cumulative score during the first two rounds determines the pairings and tee times for the third and fourth rounds. Presumably, the top scorers go first, with the remaining golfers following, until the final group consists of the two lowest scorers. Following 72 holes, the player with the lowest cumulative score wins the winner's share of the money, around 33.5 Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points and 500 FedEx Cup points.

Further, in the event of a tie of scores after the final round, a playoff will be played under PGA Tour rules to determine the winner. The sudden-death playoff format consists of eight holes from 16 to 18 being played again and again and hole by hole until the player with the lowest score remaining is declared the winner.