Denied a spot in the winner's circle two weeks ago, Charles Howell III is back at it this week at the John Deere Classic.
Howell missed nine weeks because of a rib injury, but he nearly won the Quicken Loans National in his first start back. A late rally got him into a playoff, where he eventually lost on the first extra hole. Howell is again atop the leaderboard after a bogey-free 63 to get things started at TPC Deere Run.
Howell holds the Deere in a high esteem, as this is the event where he finished third back in 2000 while playing on a sponsor exemption to jumpstart his pro career.