Cam Smith to headline $38m LIV tournament in Adelaide

Two of Australia’s biggest golfing exports are set to come back home as part as LIV Golf’s $38 million move was confirmed.

Team Captain Cameron Smith, of Punch GC, plays his shot during the 2022 LIV Golf Invitational Miami at Trump National Doral Miami golf club in Miami, Florida, on October 30, 2022. (Photo by Giorgio VIERA / AFP)

LIV Golf’s Australian arrival is official with confirmation of a tournament to be held in Adelaide in April 2023.

The South Australian capital has won the race to host LIV Golf’s Australian debut, edging out Sydney and Brisbane, which were previously rumoured as the frontrunners.

Grange Golf Club, whose east course is designed by LIV Golf chief Greg Norman, will host the event on April 21-23, two weeks after the US Masters. It is part of a four-year deal.

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The tournament will be part of the core 14-event schedule in next year’s LIV Golf league, bringing Australian superstar Cameron Smith and compatriot Marc Leishman back down under.

LIV Golf confirmed the international contingent will feature major winners including Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau and Sergio Garcia – making it the best men’s field seen on these shores since the 2019 Presidents Cup.

The prize money for the event will be about A$38 million with the winner taking home about A$6 million.

Norman said Australia is deserving of “the world’s top competition”, and hopes his home nation can play a big role for LIV Golf as part of a multi-year commitment.

“This is an opportunity to grow the game with generations of Australians while connecting them with star players like Cameron Smith who are building a new platform for golf around the globe,” Norman said.

“There is massive potential for Australia to play a bigger role in this great sport, and I couldn’t be more excited to showcase Adelaide for our league’s debut year.”

The British Open champ is coming home. Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Meanwhile, South Australia premier Peter Malinauskas said it was an “exciting coup” for the state.

“This is exactly what our economy needs as we emerge from the pandemic, in particular our hospitality sector which has done it tough over the past couple of years. LIV Golf will bring some of the world’s best golf players to SA for an event the likes of which our country has never seen before,” he said.

Grange Golf Club is where Norman claimed his first professional victory, the West Lakes Classic, in 1976.

The Adelaide sandbelt course has also hosted multiple PGA events, as well as the Women’s Australian Open in 2016 and 2019.

Originally published as Cam Smith to headline $38m LIV tournament in Adelaide