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 EAST MOLINE, Illinois - Twenty-nine of them have won tournaments in the last two years. Nine have major championships on their resumes, including Cedar Rapids' own Zach Johnson, winner of the 2007 Masters Tournament.
Fifty-one rank among the Top 100 money winners this year on the PGA Tour.
These players are among the sparkling group of pros who will compete this week at the 2008 John Deere Classic at Tournament Players Club Deere Run in Silvis, Ill.
"We couldn't be happier to welcome a group of contestants that runs the gamut from big-name major championship winners to up-and-coming young players, some of whom no doubt will be future major winners and Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup team members," said John Deere Classic tournament director Clair Peterson. "We are proud of our field."
The latest additions on Friday were Steve Lowery and Ryan Moore. Lowery won the AT&T Pro-Am earlier this year at Pebble Beach and Adam Scott edged Moore in a playoff at the EDS Byron Nelson in Dallas. Len Mattiace, runner up to Mike Weir in the 2003 Masters, was added as a sponsor exemption. Part of the draw for the pros this year was the new addition of a non-stop charter flight from the Quad City International Airport to Manchester, England, home of Royal Birkdale, site of this year's British Open, which follows the John Deere Classic on the tournament schedule.
"So far, we have 20 players on the jet along with their caddies and other traveling companions," Peterson said. "And we will have one more because the highest finisher in our field not already eligible for the British Open will receive an exemption to play there."
The field includes such names as Kenny Perry, a two-time winner and presumed Ryder Cup team member, long distance hitter J.B. Holmes, D.J. Trahan, Bart Bryant, Briny Baird and Sean O'Hair. All six are among the top 25 money winners on the PGA Tour this year and all a vying for a berth on the Ryder Cup team, as are Woody Austin, Chad Campbell, Bart Bryant, Jerry Kelly, Heath Slocum, Bubba Watson and others.
In addition, Aaron Baddeley, Carl Petterson, Camilo Villegas, are among a group in the Tour's top 50 on the money list who will be competing this year.
In addition to Johnson, past major champions include British Open winners Mark Calcavecchia, David Duval, Todd Hamilton, and Tom Lehman; PGA Championship winners Bob Tway and Rich Beem; former two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen, and a second former Masters winner, Larry Mize.
Past John Deere Classic champions John Senden (2006), Mark Hensby (2004), J.P. Hayes (2002), and J.L. Lewis (1999) will grace the field along with O'Hair (2005).
Withdrawing from the tournament on Friday were Steve Flesch, Matthew Goggin, Dudley Hart, Ryuji Imada, Jeff Quinney, and Kevin Streelman.
The PGA Tour began its run in the Quad Cities in 1971. John Deere, whose world headquarters is located in Moline, Ill., assumed title sponsorship of the tournament in 1998. The tournament moved to TPC Deere Run in 2000.
Information about tickets and corporate hospitality is available at www.johndeereclassic.com or by calling toll free 1-800-336-4655.
The John Deere Classic, which includes Birdies for Charity, is a 501(C)3 non-profit organization located in the John Deere Classic tournament offices at 15623 Coaltown Road, East Moline, Illinois. Since its founding in1971, the tournament has helped raise $24.6 million for charity.
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