As the second round of the 2025 John Deere Classic unfolded on Friday, TPC Deere Run witnessed the rise of a new star. Doug Ghim, the 28-year-old from Illinois, delivered one of the tournament’s most electrifying performances. After an already impressive first round, Ghim pulled off the improbable for a second consecutive day by holing out from the fairway.
His shot landed softly, bounced once, and disappeared into the cup, igniting roars from the gallery. This moment pushed him to twelve-under par and secured him the 36-hole lead heading into the weekend.
While Ghim commanded much of the spotlight, defending champion Davis Thompson quietly mounted his own charge. Thompson carded a sizzling eight-under 63 on Friday, bringing him within a single stroke of Ghim. His aggressive iron play and unflappable putting allowed him to claw back into contention after a modest opening round.
Meanwhile, Max Homa showed flashes of brilliance as well, building on his opening-round 63 with another solid effort, despite stumbling with a bogey at the 18th that kept him one stroke off Ghim’s pace. The story of the second round wasn’t just about the leaders; a host of notable names, including Jason Day, Tom Kim, and Sungjae Im, failed to make the five-under cut line, clearing the path for a new crop of challengers.
Moving Day Brings Chaos and a Champion Emerges
Saturday, commonly known as “Moving Day,” lived up to its billing at the John Deere Classic, delivering wild swings atop the leaderboard and intense drama as players jockeyed for position. In the early stages of the third round, the leaderboard turned into a carousel.
At one point, as many as eight players were tied at twelve-under, with every hole seemingly birthing a new leader. Kevin Roy and Cameron Champ thrilled spectators with blistering starts, vaulting into a brief share of the lead at thirteen-under. Yet the relentless winds and firming greens made sustaining momentum difficult, and both faded as the round wore on.
Into this turbulent scene stepped Davis Thompson, who seized control of the tournament with nerves of steel. The defending champion began Saturday with an even-par front nine, but roared home with four birdies on the back nine, including two in his closing holes.
His third-round 67 lifted him to fifteen-under, handing him a slender one-shot advantage heading into Sunday’s final round. Thompson’s composure in the face of swirling winds and shifting leaderboard dynamics underscored why he remains one of the PGA Tour’s most promising young players and a potential back-to-back champion at TPC Deere Run.
The Chasing Pack Keeps the Pressure On
Though Thompson claimed the solo lead after 54 holes, the tournament was anything but decided. Homa, sitting at fourteen-under, loomed large as a formidable threat. Homa’s prodigious power off the tee continued to shine, ranking him among the leaders in strokes gained off the tee for the week.
Yet his putter remained somewhat streaky on Saturday, costing him several chances to seize or share the lead. Nevertheless, Homa’s presence alone injected star power into the proceedings, and his narrative, seeking his first Tour win in over two years, provided the perfect subplot heading into Sunday.
“Yeah, it was more just mental. If you space these two bad swings out on 10 and 11 I really don’t think I had missed golf shot prior to that. Kind of shocked the system a little bit,” Homa said.
“It was nice to stand over the shot on 12 and not think much of it and just get back to work, because they came out of left field. I told myself if I played 18 holes and made two bad swings for a whole day I think I would be happy. That was the mindset I was trying to use.”
Alongside Homa were David Lipsky, Emiliano Grillo, and Brian Campbell, all tied at fourteen-under. Each produced solid, composed golf to stay within striking distance. Lipsky even held a share of the lead midway through Saturday’s round before a couple of late misses cost him momentum.
Grillo and Campbell both birdied the final hole to maintain their place in the chase. Further down the board, players like Kevin Roy, Cameron Champ, and Kurt Kitayama remained only a handful of shots back, reminding everyone that one low round on Sunday could catapult them into contention.
Sunday Set for Fireworks
As the tournament heads into its final day, the storyline is dripping with anticipation. Davis Thompson stands on the brink of history, hoping to become the first player since Steve Stricker to win consecutive John Deere Classic titles. His steady temperament and back-nine brilliance make him a formidable frontrunner, but the margin for error is razor thin. The forecast calls for softer conditions following overnight rain, potentially turning TPC Deere Run into a birdie-fest and keeping the door wide open for any player within a few shots of the lead.
Max Homa will be desperate to end his winless drought, a narrative intensified by his highly publicized social media hiatus that he credits for rejuvenating his mental approach to the game. Meanwhile, the quartet sitting just a shot behind Thompson is primed to make their move, each with enough firepower to overtake the leader if he falters. The missed cuts of several big names have shifted the spotlight to these rising stars and hungry veterans, ensuring that Sunday’s finale promises both high drama and low scores.
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