Jackson Suber keeps eyes off leaderboard, focuses on John Deere Classic title

Within striking distance through two rounds at the John Deere Classic, Jackson Suber will try to stay as far away from the leaderboard as possible.

Not literally, of course. He wants to be on it – he just doesn’t want to look at it.

Looking at the leaderboard is what Suber believes cost him the RBC Canadian Open, potentially his first PGA TOUR win. He let a one-shot 54-hole lead slip through his fingers at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley.

“I definitely peeked up at the board a few times, which I've been doing a good job of not looking at the leaderboard this week, and maybe let that get to me a little bit today,” Suber said Sunday following the RBC Canadian Open.

If the 26-year-old glanced at the leaderboard on Friday, he would not have had to look too far. Seven birdies and a clean scorecard helped Suber vault 33 spots, and he sits four strokes behind the leader heading into the weekend.

Since May, Suber has collected three top-25 finishes, including a pair of top fives. At THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson second-round 61 propelled Suber up the leaderboard, helping him to a fourth-place finish. Two weeks later, he followed up with a finished T4 in Canada.

The former Ole Miss Rebel has consistently flirted with victory, but his breakthrough moment has remained elusive.

Suber followed up his Friday 61 at THE CJ CUP with a 69 on Saturday, taking him out of contention. He recorded a 70 on Sunday of the RBC Canadian Open that erased his first PGA TOUR lead after any round through 42 career starts.

Even last weekend at the Travelers Championship, a 70 on Sunday, six shots more than the previous day, caused Suber to slip from T14 to T30.

It’s been a handful of costly swings late in tournaments that have stood in the way of a significant breakthrough for Suber. Instead of playing Chutes and Ladders, the question entering the weekend is: Can Suber cement himself at the top of the leaderboard come Sunday evening?

He certainly is trending in the right direction.

Although he carded a respectable 68 on Thursday, his day-to-day adjustments at TPC Deere Run jump off the page.

During Friday’s 65, Suber sank over 100 feet of putts after totaling roughly 62 feet on Thursday. He was just 2-for-4 scrambling Thursday before going a perfect 4-for-4 Friday. On a course with thick rough around perched greens, around-the-green ability becomes even more valuable.

It’s been a year of change for Suber. He entered the season with conditional status and has since qualified for the U.S. Open and The Open Championship, while also hanging with the world’s best on TOUR along the way. Riding the best stretch of his PGA TOUR career thus far, Suber has another chance to do just that at John Deere.

The challenge for him will not be playing well enough to reside atop the leaderboard. It will be resisting the urge to look.