Cameron Smith, who joined LIV Golf shortly after winning the 150th British Open at St. Andrews, called it the “best decision” he had ever made.
He made the following comment: herald sunan outlet from Smith's native Australia.
“This was the best decision of my life,” Smith said.
“It’s not just where you come from; [LIV Golf] From a life perspective, where it goes and where it ends up. It means a lot to me to be able to spend more time in Australia than before. I feel like I'm a much happier person now than I was before. ”
Smith remains one of the best players in the world, even though the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) says otherwise. The Australian dropped out of the top 100 not because Smith played poorly, but because OWGR did not award points at the LIV event.
Since that win at St. Andrews, Smith has only missed the cut in one major, at Royal Troon in July of this year. Conversely, he tied for sixth at Augusta National in April of this year. Smith also posted top-10 finishes at Oak Hill and Los Angeles Country Club in 2023. Despite playing primarily in LIV Golf and winning three times, he remains one of the top players in the sport.
His LIV schedule also allows him to return to his hometown towards the end of the calendar year, and Smith is scheduled to perform in front of his hometown fans at a number of events between now and January.
Smith will play in the Queensland PGA Championship next week at Nudgee Golf Club, just outside Smith's hometown of Brisbane.
And in November, Smith played three more events, the New South Wales Open, the BMW Australian PGA Championship and the ISPS Handa Australian, which Jack Nicklaus once called “the fifth major.” He plans to participate in the Open. The PGA Tour has long neglected Australia, choosing to hold most tournaments in the United States or other regions, such as this week's ZOZO Championship in Japan. As a result, the once-proud Australian Open has lost its notoriety in professional golf circles. Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer competed in the tournament every year, and the “Big Three” combined to win the Australian Open 14 times. Recent winners include Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, and Rory McIlroy.
LIV Golf's annual tournament in Adelaide shows just how hungry Australians are for golf and how passionate they are about the sport. This event has become the biggest tournament on the circuit's calendar. Thousands of Australians flock there every day, but the one who flocks the most is Smith and his all-Australian Rippers GC LIV golf team. It has become one of the biggest sporting events in all of Australia.
“We had an event in Adelaide this year and I think we'll be there again next year. It was a lot of fun,” Ms Smith said in November 2023. LIV is scheduled to return to Adelaide for a third time in February 2025.
“It was fun playing in front of my home crowd and it's really great to be able to spend the off-season at home in Australia as well. It's something I haven't been able to do for a long time, so there are no complaints here.”
Smith seems pretty satisfied with his life now that he's played two full seasons with LIV Golf. He certainly has no regrets.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation's Playing Through. Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.
