Cameron Smith was forced to prepare effectively for this week’s Open Championship at Royal Birkdale on his Pat Malone. And he might have to get used to it.
While his rivals and a couple of LIV colleagues were playing last weekend at the Scottish Open, which is fast becoming a pre-Open must-win, Smith was already in Birkdale.
Cameron Smith hasn’t played a competitive round since missing the US Open. Getty Images
The former world number two would be right if he said that playing on a course that will host the tournament itself is the best way to prepare, and in some ways it is.
But it’s also his only option.
Smith is not a member of the European PGA Tour and therefore was not eligible to play at the Renaissance Club or any other tournament for that matter. He’s clearly not a PGA Tour member.
This is a sad reminder of what he did, taking BIG money and running away.
This means that when the almost inevitable happens next season and LIV disappears from the golf landscape entirely, Smith will only be able to compete in four majors outside of the Australian swing, with singles training his only way to prepare.
While single rounds are enough for a player to gain momentum, the mental toughness that comes from competing week after week cannot be replicated.
At a major, despite everyone saying it’s “just another tournament”, the pressure is turned up to 11.
For Australian superstar Smith, that pressure is even greater given that the five-year tax exemption received after he was crowned the 2022 St Andrews Golf Champion of the Year expires after next year’s tournament.
Uphill battle LIV for $430 million
Much has been written about Smith’s demise at No. 2 in the world and what might have been had he decided to stay on the PGA Tour.
But with the 2026 primary season coming to an end, this may be Smith’s best chance to win another one for a while, if at all.
While he will still be allowed to play in the British Open until his 60th birthday, the same courtesy is not given at the US Open, Masters or PGA Championship.
In the weeks since LIV’s last event in Andalusia, CEO Scott O’Neill has been running around like the proverbial chicken, trying to raise a reported US$430 million ($300 million) in investment by September 1.
Golf Digest reported that the “LIV 2.0” O’Neal was selling to investors was that instead of their monstrous contracts, players would get equity in their teams and brands.
Smith’s future in golf is uncertain. Getty Images
“The majority of individual commercial rights will be returned to players, giving them greater control over their brands, partnerships and future revenue potential,” the investment firm said in a statement.
“LIV 2.0 is focused on player ownership, equity participation and long-term value creation, giving players a direct stake in the success of the league.”
Smith and fellow Australian star Marc Leishman took ownership and control of Ripper GC when they joined the 2023 tour.
But since May, LIV has been quietly “laying the groundwork” for a bankruptcy filing at the end of the season, according to Bloomberg.
The breakaway tour is also still facing two major lawsuits in the UK, with potential damages approaching $900 million.
Exactly what LIV 2.0 tournaments will look like and whether the popular Adelaide event will return remains unknown.
The day hell broke loose
News of LIV’s possible closure broke in April in the middle of an Am appearance before a LIV event in Mexico.
Smith’s Ripper GC teammate Lucas Herbert told The Sydney Morning Herald he has had “a lot of existential crises” since the day “all hell broke loose” and even considered quitting golf altogether.
“I don’t have touring status (except in Australia). I know how hard it was the first time. Do you still want to do it and do you want to do it? I’ve thought about it a lot and I don’t have a lot of other qualifications, which doesn’t help me with any other job,” Herbert said.
“We’ve probably had four months (of it). You pretty much go to bed (wondering) will I have a job tomorrow. I don’t know if I’ll have a job next week. This house that I’m building, the employees that I have, can I afford to pay them a salary? I don’t know what my life looks like, well, sometimes a week. It’s been a couple of months at times. It’s been nerve-wracking.
“That’s the world we live in now. There’s not a lot of loyalty in business anymore. People are always in it for themselves, to get the best deal they can for themselves. Sometimes it can mess with your view of the world. Then you see kids there and you think, ‘Oh, the world is a wonderful place.’
Smith is in a similar situation, and this uncertainty may have contributed to his improved results on the track. He also began working with renowned swing coach Claude Harmon III.
A few weeks after the LIV tournament in Mexico, Smith snapped a terrible streak of six straight misses in majors.
He finished seventh at the PGA Championship at Aronimink, just five shots behind winner Aaron Rye, who was three shots over the field. This moved him from 239th in the world back to 145th.
Another top 10 at the last LIV tournament in Adalusia brought him back to 132nd place in the rankings.
He missed out on the US Open at Shinnecock Hills, but the 32-year-old found himself on the wrong side of the draw. The morning and afternoon players had the worst weather in the first two rounds. Those on the afternoon and morning side made up the majority of those who stayed over the weekend.
But no matter how well he plays, if LIV fails, Smith will have little opportunity to play.
Smith had already withdrawn from the PGA Tour and that offer has since expired.
His best bet to return to the top-level tour is to win a European PGA Tour event, which would automatically grant him a card.
He could play the tournament with a sponsor exemption, or he could simply win the Australian Open or the Australian PGA Championship later this year, both of which are sanctioned by the European Tour.
Smith with The Claret Jug after winning the 2022 tournament. Getty
Or he could return to the start and either play on the second-tier tours – Korn Ferry in the US or Challenger in Europe.
Smith has previously stated that he has no plans to retire, but he did earn enough coins on LIV that he no longer needs to work/play.
But that said, Aussie golf fans should make the most of watching the mullet-clad Queensland player while he’s still playing.
The first round of the Open Championship begins on Thursday evening (AEST).