Hadwin Enters John Deere Classic As Betting Favourite

Adam Hadwin tees off for Round 1 at the John Deere Classic on Thursday at 8:18 a.m. 

For the first time in awhile, the Abbotsford, B.C., native goes into a PGA event as a betting favourite.

Part of that has to do with the momentum he’s carrying, after being in the thick of it last weekend at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, where he finished tied for second, taking home $783,200. Rickie Fowler was the winner in a playoff.

‘Sign Of Good Things To Come’

The last time Canadians got much attention on the PGA Tour was a few weeks ago at the RBC Canadian Open at Oakdale Golf and Country Club in Toronto, where Nick Taylor won it all, the first Canadian to win the event since 1954. 

Hadwin made news at that event when he was being body slammed onto the 18^th green by a security guard after trying to spray champagne on Taylor. 

Hadwin later said it was all a misunderstanding. He played great golf that weekend, finishing tied for 12th, winning $178,650.

“Hopefully, this is a sign of good things to come,” he told reporters on Sunday, following the Rocket Mortgage Classic. “I’m stoked, through the roof right now. I got myself into a playoff at the end of the day. That’s what you want. You want a chance to win the golf tournament. I hit two of the best golf shots I hit all day in that playoff. I can take nothing but positives away from this.”

$7.4 Million Purse On The Line

Current BetMGM odds for Thursday’s start has Hadwin at 29.00. Denny McCarthy and Russell Henley have the shortest odds, at 15.00, followed by Cameron Young at 19.00, then Ludvig Aberg at 26.00.  

BetMGM also has Adam Schenk, Emiliano Grillo and Taylor Moore at 29.00. 

In addition, the sportsbook has Hadwin at 3.40 to finish in the Top 10, a safe play for bettors, considering how well Hadwin is performing and the field he’s up against. There are no Top 10 world-ranked opponents in this tournament. (Young is the highest ranked, at 19.)

Taylor, ranked 45^th in the world, missed the cut at the U.S. Open and hasn’t played since then. He returns to action on Thursday.

BetMGM has him at 41.00, while the other Canadians, Adam Svensson and Michael Gligic, are at 67.00 and 401.00, respectively.

The purse at the TPC Deere Run golf course in Silvis, Illinois, this weekend is $7.4 million.