John Deere Classic 2026 PGA Tour golf odds: Betting favorite has not won tournament in 11 years
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- Ben Griffin is the +1500 pre-tournament favorite at FanDuel for the 2026 John Deere Classic, the first golfer to hold that role in consecutive years since Jordan Spieth in 2014-15, after missing the cut as the 2025 favorite following a T5 in his 2024 debut.
- The pre-tournament favorite has not won the John Deere Classic since Spieth in 2015 at +350, and has not finished better than T12 this decade — the 2020 event was cancelled due to COVID.
- Griffin has won three times on Tour, all in 2025, and has four Top 10s this season including a T10 at last week's Travelers Championship.
- At BetMGM, Tom Kim leads in handle at 13.3%, with his odds cut from an open of +4000 to +2500, while Eric Cole takes the most tickets at 6.7% ahead of Griffin's 5.3%.
- There has been no repeat winner at the John Deere Classic since Steve Stricker won three straight years through 2011 — the last time any player three-peated on Tour.
- Davis Thompson has held the 54-hole outright lead at the past two John Deere Classics, lapping the field in 2024 with a tournament-record 28-under 256 before shooting 1-over on Sunday and finishing T18 last year.
- Jackson Koivun makes his official PGA Tour debut this week at +2200, fresh off winning the Haskins Award twice and helping Auburn capture the NCAA championship; he finished T11 here as an amateur last year.
Why it matters: For bettors, the 11-year drought without a winning favorite — plus Griffin himself missing the cut as last year's chalk — argues against backing him at +1500. Sharp money is moving toward Tom Kim (handle 13.3%, odds cut from +4000 to +2500), making this a fade-the-favorite spot rather than a confident Griffin lean at Silvis.
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