Max Homa bounced back from opening up about the negative impacts of Twitter after a solid 8-under 63 in the first round of the John Deere Classic. The six-time PGA TOUR winner shared second place with Austin Eckroat, one shot behind Doug Ghim. Homa attributed his success to solid putting, iron play, and wedge play.
Homa’s driver improved significantly, hitting 10 of 14 fairways and averaging 328.9 yards off the tee. He also benefited from playing partners Rickie Fowler and Jake Knapp, who both made several birdies in their rounds. Homa expressed his luck in having close friends like Fowler and Knapp in the same group.
The improvement in Homa’s driving statistics marked a positive change for the 11-year TOUR veteran, who had struggled with it this season. He attributed his sequencing issues to finding a solution on Wednesday afternoon.
Homa will start Friday’s second round one shot ahead of Michael Kim, who also made a strong opening round of 7-under 64. Kim highlighted the importance of taking breaks from social media to maintain mental health. The two golfers showed different approaches to dealing with online negativity, with Homa choosing not to engage and Kim avoiding it altogether.
Source: https://www.pgatour.com/article/news/latest/2025/07/03/max-homa-round-1-leaderboard-john-deere-classic-tpc-deere-run-63-fedexcup