Hayden Springer made an astounding 12 3s on Thursday in his first round at the John Deere Classic and finished with four of them to shoot the first 59 of his career and record just the 14th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history.
After going out in 27 — Springer said he was thinking he was going to make everything he looked at following a 16-foot birdie at No. 6 — the bid for 59 stalled a bit on the back as he opened with five consecutive pars. It picked back up over the final four holes, however. Another birdie at No. 15 followed before the shot of the day on No. 17, where he chipped in for 55 yards for his second eagle of the round.
“When it went in on 17 I immediately knew, ‘Okay, now I have a chance,'” said Springer. “I mean, I didn’t ever think I would make that shot really, but it kind of changed the momentum to actually be able to go shoot 59.”
Everything came down to the final hole for Springer where he had to get up and down from 160 yards for his eighth birdie of the day (to go with a pair of eagles). He hit a 308-yard drive and had 155 yards in on his approach shot. After hitting it to 12 feet, he nailed the putt for the historic round.
“I’m feeling good,” said Springer. “I don’t know, at loss for words in terms of being able to do that. I feel like that’s one the rare things in golf, so to kind of have that opportunity and pull it off, it feels pretty special.”
While Springer’s 59 is just the 14th time 60 has been cracked on the PGA Tour, it’s the second time it’s happened on this golf course and the second time it’s happened over the last three weeks. Cameron Young did it on Saturday at the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands.
Rounds on the PGA Tour under 60
| Golfer | Score | Round | Tournament | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hayden Springer | 59 | 1 | John Deere Classic | 2024 |
| Cameron Young | 59 | 3 | Travelers Championship | 2024 |
| Scottie Scheffler | 59 | 2 | The Northern Trust | 2020 |
| Kevin Chappell | 59 | 2 | A Military Tribute at the Greenbrier | 2019 |
| Brandt Snedeker | 59 | 1 | Wyndham Championship | 2018 |
| Adam Hadwin | 59 | 3 | The American Express | 2017 |
| Justin Thomas | 59 | 1 | Sony Open | 2017 |
| Jim Furyk | 58 | 4 | Travelers Championship | 2016 |
| Jim Furyk | 59 | 2 | BMW Championship | 2013 |
| Stuart Appleby | 59 | 4 | Greenbrier Classic | 2010 |
| Paul Goydos | 59 | 1 | John Deere Classic | 2010 |
| David Duval | 59 | 4 | CareerBuilder Challenge | 1999 |
| Chip Beck | 59 | 3 | Shriners Hospitals for Children Open | 1991 |
| Al Geiberger | 59 | 2 | St. Jude Classic | 1977 |
Though the 59 is impressive, it only gained Springer about nine shots on the field because the scoring average at TPC Deere Run is currently between 2.5-3.0. That would be good enough, though, for about the fifth best strokes gained round worldwide in 2024.
Springer leads the event by four shots over Harry Hall after the morning wave finished up. In the three previous times a 59 was shot in the first round of a PGA Tour event, two of those players went on to win (Justin Thomas, 2017 Sony Open and Brandt Snedeker, 2018 Wyndham Championship).
The only one who didn’t was Paul Goydos at the 2010 … John Deere Classic.
