Brian Campbell is your basic throwback player on the PGA Tour, a golfer who relies on accuracy and short game in an era when just about everyone else is swinging out of their shoes with a driver to obliterate the game’s sense of scale. We’re not talking pre-Tiger era here. We’re talking pre-Jack. Maybe pre-World War II.

A guy who loses more than a stroke per round off the tee and ranks 171st on tour in driving distance isn’t supposed to have much chance of winning. And he doesn’t. Only twice has Campbell been in contention this year and has missed the weekend more than half of his 17 starts. Fortunately, he’s turned those rare opportunities into top-10 finishes.

Both wins. In playoffs.

A career that got stalled by injuries is now one of ingenuity amid today’s style of bomb and growl. On Sunday, Campbell captured the John Deere Classic by defeating Emiliano Grillo with a two-putt par on the first sudden-death playoff hole at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Ill. The former University of Illinois golfer, who 10 years ago made his pro debut in this same event, is now a two-time winner in his second year on tour.

It makes no sense. Or so it seems.

“Right now, it’s surreal. I don’t know what’s going on,” said Campbell, 32, who earned $1.512 million and added a third year to his exemption status while rising 60 spots to 55th in the world. The Korn Ferry Tour graduate began the year 196th. “I have no words. I mean, to be let alone in a playoff and to finish it off this way, it’s just been amazing.”

RELATED: Here are the clubs Brian Campbell used to win the John Deere Classic

Campbell became the sixth player to win multiple titles this year. He joins Ben Griffin and Ryan Fox as first-time winners who have added a second victory this season.

“I guess that’s how I approach most weeks,” Campbell said of his outlook on his rare chances for success. “There are things I can control and things I can’t control. The best thing I can do is give myself as many looks as I can; I was doing that.

“So I think there were definitely moments in the week where I was thinking about, ‘Hey, you know, this could be a special week.’ I don’t know if I like to let myself get ahead of myself and think about winning all that much, but I know if we stick around and keep doing the right things, that we’re going to be there in the end.”

Campbell and Grillo, who each closed with four-under 67s to finish at 18-under 266, emerged from a leaderboard so congested that at one point midway through the final round 19 players were within two strokes of one another. Nine players held at least a share of the lead at some point, not including 54-hole leader Davis Thompson, the defending champion, whose closing 72 was the only round over par among the top 32 finishers.

The players who enjoyed some time at the top included not only Campbell and Grillo, but also a rejuvenated Max Homa—who forged an early two-stroke advantage—Nick Dunlap, Beau Hossler, Carson Young, Kevin Roy, Jacob Bridgeman and David Lipsky. It might well have been a three-man playoff after Lipsky climbed into a tie with an eight-foot eagle putt at the par-5 17th, but his duck-hook off the tee at 18 led to a bogey after he missed a 15-footer. He tied for third with Roy at 267 after a 68, while Roy shot 65.

Grillo, relegated to his seventh runner-up finish, nearly ended it in regulation, but his 38-foot birdie try for the win on the tough par-4 18th missed left of the hole by inches.

“I got myself there. I gave myself a chance. You know, I made some good putts,” said Grillo, 32, who started the week 105th in the FedEx Cup standings—outside the new magic number for keeping a card—and moved to a safe 64th. “Hit a good putt on the 72nd, and that’s all I can do. We’re one short, but we’ll keep working.”

In the playoff, Campbell, deciding to rest for 40 minutes to conserve energy rather than keep loose on the range, drove the ball 286 yards safely into the fairway and then parked his 7-iron approach from 188 yards 16 feet below the hole. Grillo, after finding the right rough off the tee, then nuked a wedge over the green. His high lob came up short of the putting surface,e and he was not close on a par save from 23 feet. Campbell safely two-putted to prove that his playoff win at the Vidanta Mexican Open in February over the tour’s longest hitter, Aldrich Potgieter, was no fluke.

Brian Campbell. Image by David Berding

Enjoying support from the crowd who were aware of his Illini ties, Campbell confesses to being a grinder who prides himself on course management. “I love having the moment to figure out any shot.”

He has figured out how not to worry about the one shot that is a handicap against the bombers. He averages 276.6 yards off the tee. That isn’t just short in today’s terms. Ten years ago, when he turned pro, that would have ranked 173rd on tour, tied with Colt Knost, who was on the grounds Sunday as part of the CBS broadcast team.

He was asked about the message he was sending to the tour’s long hitters, who are many. “I’m not going to tell them to hit it any shorter, that’s for sure,” he replied. “I think they’ll be just fine doing what they do. It just goes to show that there is so many different games out here and so many different ways to play the game. There is not one way to get it done, and that was something that I proved to myself earlier this season, and it’s paid off.”

His perseverance has paid off, too. He lost two years to injury, in 2021-22, and thought about finding a different line of work. Now he finds himself vying for a potential spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Surreal indeed.

“I’ve worked my entire life to be in this position, and unfortunately, we had a couple of years there where it wasn’t looking so good,” Campbell said. “You have to start thinking about am I going to do something else. Maybe pro golf or this route is not going to work out. But it all … it really was all second-stage Q-School about two, three years ago. I made like a quintuple bogey on a par-3, and I thought my career was over in that moment. That night just kind of had a self-talk with myself. Said, ‘you know what, whatever happens is OK. Trust yourself.’ The next round, I went out there and shot eight under and got myself right back in there. I guess I was like, ‘Maybe golf is not over for me.’ That moment was when everything changed.”

Has it ever.

Main image: Brian Campbell and his girlfriend Kelsi McKee celebrate with the trophy after Campbell won the John Deere Classic in a playoff. David Berding

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The post Throwback Brian Campbell uses accuracy and short game to win John Deere, becomes tour’s sixth multiple winner appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

It wasn’t always this way, of course, and Day was reminded of that on Wednesday in his return to the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run, where, in 2006, he made his first start as an 18-year-old professional. He’d only recently married his wife of now 18 years, Ellie.

“I think we might have stayed down at the Super 8 hotel somewhere,” Day recalled.

RELATED: Golfer known for tragedy shoots 59 in John Deere Classic

Sitting next to him during the interview was longtime PGA Tour media official Doug Milne, who happened to be working that same Deere week of Day’s debut. Milne also was staying in the hotel, and the two ended up having this entertaining exchange:

Day: “I think back then your AC unit fell out the wall.”

Milne: “I had the dog come into my room on my bed. I literally woke up with a dog on my bed.”

Day: “Then my caddie at the time, Colin [Swatton], you walk into his room, and it had a heart-shaped bathtub right next to the bed. It was like high-rent stuff back then. … I walked in there [my room] and tried to close my curtains. My curtain fell off—it broke off, and I’m like, ‘well, I guess I’m waking up at butt crack of dawn now.’ Good memories, man.”

Day is indeed staying in the RV this week with Ellie and their five kids—the most recent to be born, daughter Winnie, last September.

“You got room?” Milne joked.

“I do,” Day said, “but you’re going to be sleeping next to my kids.”

From that week in Silvis, Ill., it would take Day four years to earn his maiden victory in the 2010 Byron Nelson. His best season has been 2015, when the Aussie notched five victories, including the PGA Championship. Injuries have slowed Day during his career, and he went through a five-year victory drought that he fixed with a win in last year’s AT&T Byron Nelson. At No. 36 in the world, he’s getting the opportunity to play in his first Olympics after skipping a chance for 2016 in Rio.

“Looking back on it, I probably should have gone to Rio and played,” Day said. “I think it’s something bigger than yourself. You’re actually representing your country and your sport. As an Australian, the Olympics is a big thing because we’re a big sporting nation.

“To get another turn at it I feel very grateful for it.”

Interestingly, Day is playing in his first John Deere in 13 years despite never having missed the cut while notching two top-15 finishes.

This week, he’s noticed there are fewer trees at Deere Run while marvelling at the pretty views of the river. The Super 8? It’s long been in the rearview mirror.

Main image: Stacy Revere

The post Jason Day shares hilarious memories of long-ago stay in Super 8 motel appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Yet that is what J.T. Poston did at TPC Deere Run, a tour-de-force performance that leaves him as the new John Deere Classic champ and now a two-time tour winner.

“It is hard,” Poston said afterwards, his 21-under 263 total in Silvis, Ill., good enough for a three-shot win. “Wire to wire, having the lead for so long, it’s just hard not to think about that fine line all week. I tried to stick to the game plan. Got off to a great start and then kind of started to try and give some back. Hit a lot of good shots down the stretch. [Caddie Aaron] Flener did a great job keeping my head in it and focused on the next one.”

Poston is not known for painting leaderboards red, beginning the month 160th in birdie average on tour. Frankly, the 29-year-old North Carolina native hasn’t been known for much as of late; two weeks ago, he was ranked 112th in the FedEx Cup standings, needing a good summer just to avoid demotion. If you’re wondering what changed in Illinois, the answer can be traced back to Connecticut at last week’s Travelers Championship, where—thanks to an opening 62 and closing 64—Poston finished T-2 at 17 under, his best finish in a full-points tour event since his 2019 victory at the Wyndham Championship.

“I feel like in years past I kind of fizzled out towards the end of the year and not played my best,” Poston said in Cromwell, Conn. “Hopefully this is a different year, and I can play better at the end of the year.”

Poston proved his words true and carried that momentum to the Quad Cities, starting with a 62 on Thursday and backing that up with a 65 Friday and 67 Saturday, giving him a three-shot lead. Sunday’s start featured much of the same: Poston rolled off three straight birdies to begin his final round. With a five-shot advantage, it felt like the proceedings could have been called to allow everyone an early start to backyard barbecues and sparklers.

Of course, golf has a way of icing even the hottest of heaters. After that birdie-birdie-birdie start, Poston made back-to-back bogeys on the fifth and sixth, with a third knocking on the door at the par-3 seventh after he flew the green by a good 20 yards. Suddenly, the issue seemed very much in doubt. Yet when things seemed like they were going south, Poston stayed level. After all, he is a cool customer. He’s a tough read when it comes to body language because he runs on aplomb that is consistent and unchanging no matter the score.

“I’ve always been pretty level, even keel,” Poston explained. “I think that’s a strength, not getting too excited, especially today after a great start.”

Stacy Revere

That nerve came in handy at the seventh, hitting a marvellous chip from a precarious spot and converting the 10 feet that remained for a par. “Flener, he said, ‘you know, just really stick to our game plan and talk through every shot and just to make sure that we’re fully committed,’ “ Poston said. “When you’ve got pressure like that and you’re in that position and you’re not 100 per cent committed, then you can’t really expect to hit a lot of good shots.”

It wasn’t the most dazzling of finishes. After providing plenty of pyrotechnics through three days, Poston decided he would wait for the Fourth of July for anymore fireworks. With 21 birdies and two eagles through his first 57 holes, Poston went on a 13-hole stretch without a red figure. Some of that can be chalked up to defensive play because that’s what the lead called for. It partially can be subscribed to the course finally firming up. Truth be told, sometimes one is merely holding on to the bull for dear life and doing whatever they can not to fly off.

“I was just trying to breathe,” Poston said. “I was really—I think there were a lot of nerves, a lot more than the first few days. I was just battling through them. I think after today, after this week, I feel like knowing I can play with those nerves and I can still win, still shoot a solid score considering the pressure and trying to win out here [means a lot].”

Poston’s lead granted enough latitude, although the birdie drought kept the door slightly open for his competitors. Emiliano Grillo, searching for his first win since 2015, got Poston’s lead down to one with a birdie at 10th. But the Argentinian bogeyed the 12th and made matters worse at the drivable par-4 14th. His tee shot found a greenside bunker, he flubbed his second and the third wasn’t much better. When his par attempt did not fall, Grillo gave a sarcastic fist pump, knowing whatever trophy aspirations held were no longer there.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout made a charge with birdies at the 14th, 15th and 17th, and his approach to 12 feet at the final hole had a chance to really apply pressure to Poston, who was facing a tricky eight feet for par at the 16th. Only Bezuidenhout missed the birdie attempt to settle for a 66, and Poston made the par save. Poston shooed away whatever drama remained by ending his birdie slump with an up-and-down at the par-5 17th, returning the lead to three shots that allowed him to enjoy the red-carpet treatment down the 18th fairway.

Though it was Poston’s tournament, the Sunday spotlight was shared with Chris Gotterup. The 22-year-old, who won the Haskins Award as the nation’s top collegiate golfer this season, made the most of a sponsor’s exemption, his final-round 66 liftings him to a T-4 finish. He did so in a way, with long drives (335.1 yards, third in distance) and pinpoint second shots (second in SG/approach), which is the formula for success on tour and portends more of the same. His solid display earned an invite to next week’s Barbasol Championship, and after making the cuts at the U.S. Open and Travelers (to go with a T-7 earlier in the year as an amateur at the Puerto Rico Open), the Oklahoma and Rutgers product has an outside chance at earning his tour card.

“Yeah, kind of I’ve been prepping all year kind of for this,” Gotterup said. “I knew it was going to happen. Not that I played really well, but I knew I had the opportunity, and to take advantage of it is amazing.”

Speaking of opportunities, despite not claiming the top prize Bezuidenhout and Grillo didn’t leave the JDC empty-handed, their T-2s earning them spots into The Open Championship via the Open Qualifying Series. “That’s very special,” Grillo said. “It’s top-three places to play golf in the world, and I’m definitely looking forward to it.”

Joining those two in Scotland will be Poston, who earned his first invite to the Open. Needless to say, the Old Course at St. Andrews for the championship’s 150th edition is not a bad place to make a debut. He also became the first player in 30 years to go wire-to-wire at the John Deere, and just the second individual to do it this season following Joaquin Niemann’s triumph at Riviera in February.

Now, this doesn’t qualify as a breakthrough win; that would be his aforementioned triumph at the Wyndham. It’s not an underdog story, either; with the Deere sandwiched between two New England events (the U.S. Open and Travelers Championship) followed by the Scottish Open and Open Championship overseas, many of the sport’s marquee attractions passed on playing, leaving Poston as one of the handfuls of players ranked inside the top 100 to tee it up.

Poston doesn’t need those sentiments because this win delivered something more cathartic. The list is deep of players who can run into four good rounds and win a tournament, or turn a decent stretch into a tour card. Poston knows because he’s been that guy. But this week was an affirmation of the belief that so many have but few come to find: That Poston doesn’t just belong out here, but truly, unequivocally and without doubt can be something more.

“You know, they don’t come easy out here, and I really wanted to get that second win to sort of validating Wyndham, so it feels good to get it out of the way,” Poston said. “I felt like this was coming, and it’s nice to get it done.”

Players spend a lifetime chasing that question. On this Sunday, Poston got his answer. It sounds easy. It is decidedly not.

The post J.T. Poston makes the difficult look easy in wire-to-wire win at the John Deere Classic appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Christopher Powers
The PGA Tour heads to the Quad Cities this week for the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run, a D.A. Weibring design in Silvis, Illinois. It’s the last event of the Open Championship Qualifying Series, with just one spot available at Carnoustie going to the leading player not otherwise exempt who finishes in the top five and ties. Last year, Bryson DeChambeau grabbed that spot by winning the event in thrilling fashion, carding a back-nine 30 to edge out Patrick Rodgers by one stroke. He’ll be back in the field this week to defend his title but won’t need to win as he’s already exempt for the Open.

Because of its tough spot on the schedule before the Open Championship, the John Deere Classic has one of the weaker fields of the year, but that hasn’t stopped the event from producing some incredible finishes. Since 1999 it’s been decided by one stroke or in a playoff 14 times, including Jordan Spieth’s maiden PGA Tour victory in 2013, when he holed out from a greenside bunker on the 72nd hole to force a playoff, eventually beating David Hearn and Zach Johnson in a playoff.

Thursday Tee Times (all times local)

No. 1 Tee
7:10 a.m. — Patrick Rodgers, Steve Wheatcroft, Keith Mitchell
7:20 a.m. — Cameron Tringale, J.T. Poston, Tyler Duncan
7:30 a.m. — Matt Jones, Carl Pettersson, Corey Conners
7:40 a.m. — Patton Kizzire, Fabian Gomez, Nick Watney
7:50 a.m. — Chris Stroud, Aaron Baddeley, William McGirt
8 a.m. — Peter Malnati, Matt Every, Chesson Hadley
8:10 a.m. — Jonathan Byrd, Chad Campbell, Dicky Pride
8:20 a.m. — Brendon Todd, Tommy Gainey, Tim Herron
8:30 a.m. — Charlie Beljan, Kevin Tway, Richy Werenski
8:40 a.m. — Harris English, Chris Couch, David Berganio, Jr.
8:50 a.m. — Brett Stegmaier, Zecheng Dou, Manav Shah
9:00 a.m. — Will Claxton, Nicholas Lindheim, Nick Hardy
9:10 a.m. — Bronson Burgoon, Conrad Shindler, Chad Proehl
12:20 p.m. — Hunter Mahan, John Merrick, Seamus Power
12:30 p.m. — Scott Stallings, Rory Sabbatini, Ricky Barnes
12:40 p.m. — Danny Lee, Ben Crane, Trey Mullinax
12:50 p.m. — Andrew Landry, Brice Garnett, Mackenzie Hughes
1:00 p.m. — Francesco Molinari, Scott Piercy, Austin Cook
1:10 p.m. — Bryson DeChambeau, Ryan Moore, Davis Love III
1:20 p.m. — Jason Bohn, D.J. Trahan, Dominic Bozzelli
1:30 p.m. — Robert Garrigus, Andres Romero, Robert Allenby
1:40 p.m. — Arjun Atwal, Daniel Chopra, Joel Dahmen
1:50 p.m. — Robert Streb, John Huh, Stuart Appleby
2:00 p.m. — Ben Silverman, Adam Schenk, Sean McCarty
2:10 p.m. — Omar Uresti, Jonathan Randolph, Vince India
2:20 p.m. — Lanto Griffin, Kyle Thompson, Brian Bullington

No. 10 Tee
7:10 a.m. — Daniel Summerhays, Kelly Kraft, C.T. Pan
7:20 a.m. — Johnson Wagner, Parker McLachlin, Ryan Blaum
7:30 a.m. — Nick Taylor, Martin Piller, Joaquin Niemann
7:40 a.m. — D.A. Points, Hudson Swafford, Cody Gribble
7:50 a.m. — Aaron Wise, Si Woo Kim, Harold Varner III
8:00 a.m. — Wesley Bryan, Zach Johnson, Steve Stricker
8:10 a.m. — Scott Brown, John Rollins, Brandon Harkins
8:20 a.m. — John Senden, Brendon de Jonge, Zac Blair
8:30 a.m. — Troy Merritt, Ken Duke, Michael Kim
8:40 a.m. — J.J. Henry, Ryan Palmer, Talor Gooch
8:50 a.m. — Roberto Diaz, Matt Akins, Doug Ghim
9:00 a.m. — Stephan Jaeger, Ethan Tracy, Broc Everett
9:10 a.m. — Cameron Beckman, Tom Lovelady, Xinjun Zhang
12:20 p.m. — Michael Thompson, Brian Davis, Derek Fathauer
12:30 p.m. — Mark Wilson, Jason Gore, Andrew Putnam
12:40 p.m. — Sean O’Hair, Sam Saunders, Blayne Barber
12:50 p.m. — Chris Kirk, Bill Haas, Brian Gay
1:00 p.m. — Billy Hurley III, Vaughn Taylor, David Lingmerth
1:10 p.m. — Kyle Stanley, Brian Stuard, Chez Reavie
1:20 p.m. — George McNeill, David Hearn, Cameron Percy
1:30 p.m. — Charlie Wi, Whee Kim, Tyrone Van Aswegen
1:40 p.m. — Shawn Stefani, Sung Kang, Martin Flores
1:50 p.m. — Steven Bowditch, Kevin Streelman, Kris Blanks
2:00 p.m. — Craig Barlow, Sam Ryder, Norman Xiong
2:10 p.m. — Troy Matteson, Rob Oppenheim, Dylan Meyer
2:20 p.m. — Denny McCarthy, Andrew Yun, Dru Love

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By Christopher Powers

Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Rodgers were two of the top amateur players in recent memory, both of whom brought lofty expectations to the PGA Tour. And while both have had some professional success, neither had had a breakthrough victory, and on the back nine of the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run on Sunday, it came down to the two of them, and DeChambeau prevailed.

Entering the final round, DeChambeau, 23, was four shots behind Rodgers, and that deficit had grown by the time he reached the 10th hole at even par for the day. The 2015 U.S. Amateur champion caught fire on the home nine, making birdies on four of his next five holes to get to 16-under. After a wayward drive on the 17th, DeChambeau pulled off a 270-yard recovery shot to reach the par-5 green in two and two-putt for birdie.

Rodgers was just a few groups behind, and sitting at 18-under. DeChambeau found the green in regulation on the 18th, with a 12-foot left-to-right putt to finish at 18-under. As it neared the cup, it looked as though it would just slide by on the right side of the hole, but it caught the lip, dropped in, and DeChambeau went wild. Rodgers would go on to bogey the par-5 17th and par the 18th, giving DeChambeau his first win in his 40th start on tour.

Afterwards, DeChambeau was emotional, and pointed to the fact that the John Deere Classic was where he played one of his first few events on tour as an amateur in 2015. Winning at TPC Deere Run just two years later was a special moment, and it gets him a spot in next week’s Open Championship.

For Rodgers, the solo second matched his career best T2 finish at the 2015 Wells Fargo Championship. It was his third top 10 this season, and second top-15 finish at the John Deere Classic in his career. His Open Championship debut will have to wait.

Wesley Bryan posted one of the low rounds of the day, a seven-under 64 that featured a six-under 30 on his back nine to finish at 16-under 268. The former trick shot artist continues to impress during his strong rookie season, already having picked up his first victory at the RBC Heritage and finishing in the top 10 four times. He’ll be making his first appearance at the Open Championship next week, and just his third start in a major in his career.

Tying Bryan for third was Rick Lamb, who shot a final-round five-under 66. Lamb, 26, has made just four cuts in 14 events this season, with just one top-25 finish. His rookie season hasn’t been nearly as successful as Bryan’s, but the T3 is his best result this year.

Three-time John Deere Classic winner Steve Stricker began three-over through eight holes on Thursday, but played the remaining 64 holes in 18-under to finish in a tie for fifth. His final-round seven-under 64 earned him his second top 10 this season. The President’s Cup captain will be making his 15th appearance at the Open Championship next week at Royal Birkdale.

Zach Johnson, Jonathan Byrd and Scott Stallings also finished at 15-under in a tie for fifth.

The post Bryson DeChambeau birdies 17th and 18th holes to earn first PGA Tour victory appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Charles Howell III and Ollie Schniederjans are each in very different spots in their careers, but both have had plenty of success in 2017. Howell III, 38, is in his 17th year on tour, with two wins and well over $30 million in career earnings. Schniederjans, 24, is making just his 32nd start on the PGA Tour, and has shown promise in his limited appearances. The young gun and the veteran are tied for the first-round lead at the John Deere Classic in Silvis, Ill., after posting eight-under 63s on Thursday.

Something about TPC Deere Run brings good vibes for certain players, and Howell III (pictured) is one of them. He’s finished in the top-25 six times in 10 tries at the John Deere, including a solo third in 2000 in just his third start on tour as a professional. His consistency during his career has been well-documented, and 2017 has been no exception. Howell III has made 16 of 17 cuts, the only miss coming at the Safeway Open, his first start of the season last October. His round on Thursday was bogey-free and the lowest of the year.

For Schniederjans, his 63 is the lowest round of his nascent career, featuring birdies on three of his last four holes, all coming inside 10 feet. Unlike Howell, the former Georgia Tech standout has no prior experience at the John Deere, making his first round in the event all the more impressive. He’s still in search of his first victory, but four top-10s and a T-3 at the RBC Heritage indicate that day might be coming soon.

Another veteran who has enjoyed success at the John Deere is Zach Johnson, who posted a six-under 65 and sits just two back. Johnson, 41, won the event in 2012 in a playoff and lost it in a playoff a year later. He now has 12 rounds of 65 or lower in his career at TPC Deere Run, the most of any player.

Also at six under are Rory Sabbatini, Patrick Rodgers and Chad Campbell.

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