Cam Smith: ‘St Andrews Open champion needs more than a cool number plate’
Smith spoke about his breakaway tour ahead of the 2023 Masters, his first major as a LIV player, admitting: “I’ll be the first to say the fields aren’t that strong.”
LIV has gone from strength to strength since those early days. Indeed, one of their players, Spaniard David Puig, scored a superb win in Brisbane last Sunday.
But two years ago at Augusta, Smith also talked about the importance of LIV members competing well in the majors and a few properly submitting. The following month Brooks Koepka won the US PGA Championship.
Then in June 2024, Bryson DeChambeau broke McIlroy’s heart by winning the US Open. But it is worth noting that both of these Americans are extraordinary characters.
While Koepka has always been flashily producing his best stuff in the majors, he has seemed almost uninterested in weekday events on the PGA Tour.
And DeChambeau is very different in everything he does. It is far from a reliable case study when looking for trends.
Smith’s decline and the fact that Jon Rahm hasn’t finished higher than seventh in any major since moving to LIV in 2024 arguably provide more compelling clues.
Rahm failed to finish in the top five in eight majors, including two wins before leaving the PGA Tour. Despite winning LIV’s individual rankings this year, the Spaniard has failed to achieve a single tournament victory.
He was a strong advocate for LIV to move to 72-hole tournaments starting next year. Although this change will help the league’s quest for official ranking points, it is of greater importance than that.
The longer format means better golfers are more likely to succeed and will better prepare them for the demands of the majors. Smith hasn’t performed well at this level since finishing sixth at the 2024 Masters.
Another Australian, Min Woo Lee, made it clear last month that he would not be moving to LIV, despite rumors.
The Perth star has expressed his desire to remain in the world’s top 50 to retain his Masters status but has also observed Smith’s decline.
“Cam was one of the best players in the world before going to LIV and hopefully he can step up,” Lee said.
“Great golfers, over time, if there are more holes, they’ll probably come out on top. So we’re hoping he can have a good golf performance.”
This week’s match at home at Melbourne’s spectacular Sand Belt Open could be a great starting point for Smith.
He remains a popular figure, but he badly needs more than a cool license plate to remind him of his past glories.
