John Deere Classic 2025 power rankings: Is Aldrich Potgieter a top pick?

John Deere Classic 2025 is set to tee off on Thursday, July 3 at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois. The event, following Rocket Classic on the PGA Tour calendar, will feature a 156-player field, headlined by the likes of Rickie Fowler, Ben Griffin, Jason Day and Sungjae Im. Interestingly, Griffin has been opted as the top pick for the weekend by PGA Tour.

According to the circuit, the 29-year-old ace golfer leads the power rankings. For the unversed, the two-time PGA Tour winner enters the event on the back of six back-to-back top-15 finishes, including a T13 finish at the Rocket Classic. Notably, he debuted in this competition last year and finished T5. He’ll be eyeing a better result this weekend.

Notably, last week’s Rocket Classic champion Aldrich Potgieter sits 15th on the circuit’s power rankings for the weekend. The 20-year-old South African had finished T6 at the Charles Schwab Challenge a week before registering his maiden win. The in-form rookie is a top pick for the TPC Deere Run contest.

Kevin Yu trails leader Griffin in the power rankings. The 26-year-old Taiwanese pro comes into the competition well rested after opting out of his commitment last week. For the unversed, he’d finished T25 at the Travelers Championship and has two top-5 finishes in his last four starts on the circuit. J.T. Poston, who won the John Deere Classic in 2022, trails him.

Apart from Poston, Lucas Glover (2021), Dylan Frittelli (2019), Michael Kim (2018) and Zach Johnson (2012) are some other past winners teeing up at the TPC Deere Run event this weekend. Event’s reigning champion Davis Thompson also returns to defend his title. He sits 14th above Potgieter in the PGA Tour power rankings.

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Listed below are the top-15 power rankings for the John Deere Classic in Illinois (As per PGA Tour):

• Ben Griffin
• Kevin Yu
• J.T. Poston
• Jake Knapp
• Denny McCarthy
• Michael Thorbjornsen
• Jason Day
• Lucas Glover
• Bud Cauley
• Thriston Lawrence
• Chris Kirk
• Sungjae Im
• Andrew Putnam
• Davis Thompson
• Aldrich Potgieter

It is pertinent to note that the event, owing to its position on the calendar ahead of the Scottish Open, will only have a limited number of top 50 World Ranked players competing for the winner’s paycheck from the $8,400,000 purse.

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John Deere Classic 2025 early odds

Much like PGA Tour power rankings, Ben Griffin also leads the odds list for the John Deere Classic. According to SportsLine, the World No.17 golfer starts with 16-1 odds. He is closely followed by Jason Day with 22-1 odds. Denny McCarthy completes the top three for the weekend with 28-1 odds.

Si Woo Kim (30-1), J.T. Poston (33-1), Sungjae Im (35-1), Luke Clanton, Michael Thorbjornsen, Jake Knapp and Chris Kirk are some other big names to watch. Defending champion Davis Thompson also comes in with 35-1 odds. Meanwhile, Aldrich Potgieter follows him with 40-1 odds.

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Listed below are the top odds (as per SportsLine):

• Ben Griffin +1600
• Jason Day +2200
• Denny McCarthy +2800
• Si Woo Kim +3000
• J.T. Poston +3300
• Sungjae Im +3500
• Luke Clanton +3500
• Davis Thompson +3500
• Michael Thorbjornsen +3500
• Jake Knapp +3500
• Chris Kirk +3500
• Aldrich Potgieter +4000
• Sam Stevens +4000
• Kevin Yu +4000
• Thorbjorn Olesen +4000
• Pierceson Coody +4000
• Chris Gotterup +4000
• Bud Cauley +4000
• Lucas Glover +4500
• Ryan Gerard +4500
• Alex Smalley +4500
• Michael Kim +4500
• Keith Mitchell +5000
• Mark Hubbard +5000
• Kurt Kitayama +5500
• Rickie Fowler +5500
• Nico Echavarria +6000
• Stephan Jaeger +6000
• Andrew Putnam +6500

More details on the PGA Tour's John Deere Classic will be updated as it progresses.