SILVIS, Ill. — Proclaimed a national treasure by no less an authority than Mrs. Holly Grace Thompson almost a year ago to the day, what else could Holly’s hubby, Davis, do but supply some Fourth of July fireworks Friday morning at the John Deere Classic.

With only a pair of top-10 finishes on his resume following a record-setting breakthrough victory at the 2024 holiday weekend party at TPC Deere Run, the John Deere Classic’s defending champion found a spark with a bogey-free 8-under round that vaulted him into a first-place mid-day tie with Brian Campbell and Taylor Montgomery at 11-under par.

The 26-year-old Georgian will head into the weekend of his first TOUR title defense looking to become only the fourth back-to-back champion at the Quad Cities event, and the first since Steve Stricker ran off three in succession from 2009-11.

“It was a pretty stress-free round today,” said Thompson, an outwardly unflappable sort who could make negotiating peace in the Middle East seem stress-free. “Just felt like I hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens.”

Following a first-round 68 on a sweltering Thursday where only one afternoon contestant played his way onto the leaderboard’s top 15, Thompson said he didn’t make any significant adjustments but instead sought momentum from a 27-foot, 6-inch eagle putt on his penultimate Thursday hole.

“I just tried to play, I guess, nonchalantly,’’ he said. “Just go about my business and give myself a lot of chances.”

Cool demeanor notwithstanding, Thompson played hot, quickly lighting his Friday fuse with an 8-foot, 8-inch birdie roll on his first hole, the par-5 10th. He turned in 32 with a string of three birdies in the middle stretch of his opening nine and took piece of the lead with a 335-yard drive, a 103-yard approach to 4 1/2 feet and an easy-does-it birdie roll at No. 8.

Through two rounds, he has hit 30 of 36 greens, and needed to hole just 96.6 yards of putts to reach 11-under.

Easy-does-it does seem to come easy for Thompson at a Deere Run course he cooked to the tune of a record-setting 28-under par en route to his initial TOUR win last year.

“I love tree-lined courses and there are a lot of trees out here. I love the bent grass greens and that is kind of a good recipe for me,” he said.

Comfort on the course is matched, perhaps, with a comfortable sleeping arrangement at "Trophy House". Remember, Thompson was the third straight John Deere winner playing out of an Airbnb not far from TPC Deere Run. He’ll try to make the joint four-for-four this weekend while joining Deane Beman, David Frost and the aforementioned Stricker in the John Deere back-to-back club.

For the record, Holly Grace is sharing accommodations with her husband, six fellow competitors and a few other spouses this week. Last year, she arrived on Sunday, after serving as a bridesmaid in a close friend’s wedding the night before. She followed Davis on the final nine holes and was green side at 18 for an emotional embrace in the immediate aftermath of his win. It was shortly after that she declared her quiet husband a national treasure.

“That's a big title I gave him,” she said, agreeing it could come with a bit of home-cooked pressure. “Yeah. ‘You didn't get the garbage this week. You're not a national treasure anymore,”’ she said with a laugh. “But that's why he's a national treasure. He's not your typical husband. He's so good at remembering to do stuff.”

She did concede her husband’s impervious nature has, perhaps, been challenged on the golf course this year, where success has not come easily. A T10 at THE PLAYERS Championship in March is Thompson’s best 2025 finish to date, and he returned to Silvis, ranked 70th in the FedExCup standings, on the bubble to make the Playoffs.

That can change in a hurry this weekend, of course, when the national treasure can become somewhat of a John Deere Classic legend.

“Just keep grinding,” Thompson said of his plan. “Keep chipping it close. Keep making pars. Then string a few shots together and kind of go from there.”