Just last week, in an incredible display of driving, 20-year-old Aldrich Potgieter beat the field and won his first PGA Tour title. He had the highest average driving distance of 337.20 yards in the Rocket Classic. This week, the fans were treated to something different from the winner. Brian Campbell won the 2025 John Deere Classic with an average driving distance of 281.50 yards. And with that, he proved that you don’t need to be a Potgieter, Rory McIlroy, or Bryson DeChambeau to win on the PGA Tour.

Sitting down in the post-win presser, Campbell was questioned about his inability to drive long by a reporter. “Statistically speaking, the shortest driver on the PGA TOUR. What’s the message to all the bombers out there who fell short?” They prompted him to send a message to his peers who regularly shoot 320-yard drives off the tee. And the 2-time winner had a simple message for them.

“You know, I’m not going to tell them to hit it any shorter, that’s for sure. I think they’ll be just fine doing what they do. It just goes to show that there are so many different games out here and so many different ways to play the game.” He believes that his inability to hit long drives doesn’t put him at a disadvantage. There are other ways that he can make up for the distance. Despite being ranked 64th in average driving distance, he had a driving accuracy of 75.44%. This helped him hit approach shots with far more convenience than some of his peers.

Campbell further added, “There is not one way to get it done, and that was something that I proved to myself earlier this season, and it’s paid off.” Earlier this season, the 32-year-old went head-to-head with Aldrich Potgieter in the Mexico Open. The two had an intense battle that went into the playoffs. It was Campbell who beat Potgieter on the 2nd playoff hole despite having the 73rd-worst average driving distance in the tournament. As the Californian admitted, his win against the 20-year-old at Vidanta Vallarta gave him the confidence to beat the field in the 2025 John Deere Classic as well, where he eventually pocketed $1.5 million.

Driving distance definitely didn’t play to his advantage. But there were other aspects of his strokeplay that helped him secure the title at TPC Deere Run. Let’s take a look at Brian Campbell’s stats in the 2025 John Deere Classic.

How did Brian Campbell win the 2025 John Deere Classic?

Brian Campbell may not have posed a threat from the tee. But he did have some outstanding numbers in other parts of the course. As we’ve already mentioned, his driving accuracy was outstanding, finding the fairway 75.44% of the time. But the most incredible strokes he hit were with his irons. He found the green in regulation 59 times out of 73 with an average of 80.82%. Even when he landed in the sand twice, Campbell escaped safely from them without conceding a stroke.

Alternatively, the 32-year-old was incredible at scrambling with an 85.71% success rate. He also had the 7th highest average putting distance, which showed his incredible efficiency on the green. That is reflected in the fact that Brian Campbell only had 2 bogeys and a double bogey across the 74 holes that he played in the 4 rounds and playoffs of the 2025 John Deere Classic. What do you think of his performance? Let us know in the comments.