Writing from Silvis, Illinois
Friday, July 3, 2026
There wasn’t a huge amount of movement atop the John Deere Classic leaderboard in the second round. Lucas Glover went from co-leader to sole leader by adding a 6-under 65 to his opening 63, Zac Blair went from co-leader to third place with a decent 68, Lee Hodges’ 66 moved him into second, and Jackson Suber, thanks to a 7-under 64, vaulted 33 places into a tie for fourth.
The real excitement came deeper in the field as players whose opening rounds were less than sterling maneuvered to make the cut. Foremost among the movers was Eric Cole, a 38-year-old who as been tilting at the pro golf windmill since graduating college, something that runs in the family. His father is Bobby Cole and is mother is Laura Baugh Cole. He’s still searching for his first victory on the big circuit, but when he teed off was just searching for a tee time this weekend.
The prospect looked bleak thanks to Thursday’s opening 76, an unspirited round. But opening Friday birdie-eagle – the latter via a brilliant approach to inside eight feet on the par-5 second – triggered a splendid round of 8-under 63, the best of the day. It was capped by a second eagle on the par-5 17th where he rolled in a 28-foot putt for the 3. The total of 3-under 139 was precisely the number needed to play on the weekend, and 80 players will.
This climb from solo 140th, his position at daybreak, was accomplished with a new set of irons, overnighted by PXG when he discovered his 8-iron shaft was bent.
“They were just kind of a little bit beat up,” Cole said. “I figured this was a nice opportunity to switch them all out.”
The move paid off. So did adding a 2-iron and dropping a 5-wood, mainly to get used to it in advance of next week’s Scottish Open. But guys in 140th don’t come back to earn a check. Now, Cole will.
“Maybe I was a little more aggressive just being in that spot, but yeah, no change in game plan,” Cole said. “I just played better. Getting off to that (birdie-eagle) start is almost what you need to shoot a low round here.”
Well, magic happens here, goes the saying.
Glover, who won at TPC Deere Run in 2021, isn’t saying that yet, but he might be feeling it after 36 holes, most of them in the lead.
“I hit some good shots and didn’t convert and hit some bad shots but got them up-and-down,” Glover said. “It’s just golf, so rest up and get ready for tomorrow. A lot of hungry kids out there (are) wanting to play well, so we’ll do our best.”
Glover was one of those guys when he was given a sponsor’s exemption in 2002. He tied for 40th, won $10,800. He grinds on.
“The pedal as to be down,” Glover said. “Stay aggressive. There’s not going to be any hanging on. There’s going to be birdies and eagles. It’s going to be fun.”
Around Deere Run
Among those besides Cole making the cut on the number: Jordan Spieth, Keegan Bradley, Rickie Fowler, Nick Dunlap and former Illinois notable Adrian Dumont de Chassart. Missing by a stroke at 2-under 140: Wheaton’s Kevin Streelman, Northbrook’s Nick Hardy, Webb Simpson and Daniel Berger. Streelman bogeyed his last hole, No. 9, to fall out of weekend play. … Former Deere winner J.T. Poston had the day’s strangest adventure, a pushed tee shot deep into the poison ivy-infested woods on the 18th. He found his ball and somehow managed to chop it out into sunlight and managed a double-bogey to cap his 2-under 69. … The field averaged 69.363 strokes, the ninth-lowest second round in Deere history. … With the 79-player field, the first tee time was set for 6:31 a.m., and threesomes after a pair of twosomes through the final group at 11:35 a.m. to ensure a 5 p.m. finish for our television peers at CBS.
– Tim Cronin