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Round 1 | John Deere Classic tees off from TPC Deere Run for pro tournament

Thursday marks the first day of the pro tournament with tee times at 6:45 a.m.

SILVIS, Ill. β€” The John Deere Classic is back in full swing for 2023, and we're keeping an eye on the big news for Day 2. 

If you see something at the tournament, let us know! You can send your pictures and video to WQAD by texting 309-304-0888 or through our app.

Quick facts: 

  • Thursday marks the first day of the pro tournament with tee times at 6:45 a.m.
  • Caitlin Clark played on Wednesday, you can find our stories here
  • Country stars Blake Shelton and Darius Rucker are performing over the weekend.
  • Jonas Blixt sits in the lead after the first round. 

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Live Updates

News 8 will update this news story as more information is made available. Download our app and subscribe to our YouTube channel for updates.

A JDC fan shows off her autograph collection

Joel Dahmen rolls it in from more than 50 feet away, earning -4

Carl Yuan artfully hits into the hole for 2

Grayson Murray's scorecard is full of circles, representing below-par scores

Grayson Murray is creeping up on Jonas Blixt at -7

Byeong Hun An nearly hits it in with a score of 2 under

Ludvig Aberg hits a solid shot right up next to the hole

Joel Dahmen sinks his second birdie of the day

J.T. Poston hits a ball up to the green with almost no roll

"Whatever it is, it was saucy."

Jonas Blixt on a hot streak with 7-under 29 on the back nine

This is his first sub-30 nine-hole score on TOUR.

50/50 raffle tickets from Birdies for Charity are available online

Chris Kirk sends the ball flying with an effortless swing.

Reid Martin gets the ball inches from the flag

Monday qualifier Reid Martin nearly dunks it on No. 3.

Jonas Blixt signs a fan's shoe

Jonas Blixt is the early leader at -9

Last week, Blixt played in the Korn Ferry Tour Memorial Health Championship in Springfield, IL where he missed the cut.

Greyson Sigg moves on to T2 with a chip in for birdie

Chesson Hadley sinks a putt from 51 feet away

Saturday grounds passes are officially sold out

Some upgraded hospitality tickets remain.

Jonas Blixt makes a putt to put him at -6

This shot had a 4% chance of success.

Zach Johnson making this shot look easy

Zach Johnson saves par the hard way.

K.M. Mitchell gets up close and personal with the flag

JDC is loving the weather today

Their definition of the word "perfect."

Denny McCarthy takes a strong shot from the tall grass

Current leaders

John Deere Classic tweeted that current leaders are -5 through 9 and -5 through 7 as of 9:10 a.m.

Chris Kirk cards a 2 on the drivable par-4 14th

Up and down from 360 yards! 

Denny McCarthy's fast start

212 yards to 2 feet! Check out this shot from the PGA TOUR Twitter account: 

1973 champ Sam Adams celebrates first PGA TOUR win 

The legend won his first tour 50 years ago. He celebrated Thursday morning with a ceremonial tee shot.

Pairings for Thursday

PGA Tour Communications tweeted that Justin Lower withdrew from the John Deere Classic Thursday morning due to an illness. He will be replaced in the field by Arjun Atwal.

Round 1: 

Round 2: 

You can watch all of News 8's JDC coverage on our YouTube channel

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