Janzen, Stiles Share Lead at John Deere
July 9, 2009 by Jeff Greenwell
Filed under Golf
With the first round of the John Deere Classic in the books, a surprising name can be found atop the leaderboard. Two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen fired an opening round 7-under 64 to share the lead with Darron Stiles. The 44-year-old Janzen hasn’t won on tour since since 1998, when he captured his second U.S. Open. But after doing some major retooling to his swing, Janzen finds himself in the catbird seat, hoping to recapture past glory.
Lee Janzen has the early lead at the John Deere Classic. (Image: Zuma Press)
Other notable scores from the day include defending champ Kenny Perry shooting a 3-under 68, current U.S. Open winner Lucas Glover and former Masters champion Zach Johnson carding identical scores of 69, and David Duval, one of the feel good stories of the U.S. Open, starting his tournament with a horrendous 4+over 75.
With the tournament taking place the week before the British Open, many of the top players chose to skip the John Deere in order to focus on next week’s major. Even with a field lacking big name talent, based on the first round of play, the John Deere Classic is shaping up to be a very entertaining golf tournament.
