The first day of the 2015 John Deere Classic came to a close on Thursday, with Nicholas Thompson and Justin Thomas grabbing a share of the lead.

Chris Howell III and Luke Guthrie sit one-stroke behind, while Steve Stricker, Steve Alker and three others remain within distance. Below is a recap of the first day's events (via PGA Tour).

What They're Saying

Justin Thomas: "As much as it sucks to finish like I did, it's probably better for me in the long run. I'm going to learn more from a week like that, where I have been in contention, than I would being 40th to start the last day and shooting 6-under to finish 10th. Yeah, I'm just going to keep sticking to my game plan and hopefully be there again on the back nine on Sunday."

Steve Stricker: "Yeah, this is a nice place for me and if I can get into contention here, it will be a good momentum boost for the rest of the year. I go around here with such good feelings."

Robert Garrigus: "It's another round where I've been confident swinging my irons and putting some good strokes on some putts and thinking positive, that's the most important thing. I tell you what, this game will drive you into the ground sometimes. After a full year of playing horrible, it was wearing on me. We've got it figured out."

Ongoing Leaderboard

R1

R2

R3

R4

Total

T1

Nicholas Thompson

-8

-

-

-

-8

T1

Justin Thomas

-8

-

-

-

-8

T3

Charles Howell III

-7

-

-

-

-7

T3

Luke Guthrie

-7

-

-

-

-7

T5

Steve Stricker

-6

-

-

-

-6

T5

Steve Alker

-6

-

-

-

-6

T5

Robert Garrigus

-6

-

-

-

-6

T5

Daniel Summerhays

-6

-

-

-

-6

T5

Shawn Stefani

-6

-

-

-

-6

T10

Tom Gillis

-5

-

-

-

-5