Cameron Smith opens up about the Presidents Cup, taking on Tiger and his big summer of golf
Some golfers go to water at the thought of taking on Tiger Woods. But not Aussie Cameron Smith. In fact, he is hoping Internationals skipper Ernie Els lets the two go head-to-head at the Presidents Cup.
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Golfer Cameron Smith has some big weekend ambitions this month.
He wants to challenge for the Australian Open, fight for the Presidents Cup and win his third Australian PGA at Royal Pines on the Gold Coast.
He’s also giving back because he wants to help another knockabout Queensland kid reach the US PGA Tour.
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Smith spoke to Jim Tucker about all things Aussie golf.
How pumped are you for next week when all eyes will be on Royal Melbourne and whether an underdog Internationals team can upset Tiger Woods and Team USA at the Presidents Cup?
One of my goals as soon as I turned pro (in 2013) was to be on a Presidents Cup team and I’d love to now make a difference in turning the ship around. (Captain) Ernie Els has held team meetings at all the big events since the start of the year with players in contention for the Internationals team. I think Ernie’s done really well in creating good bonds between everyone, like getting to know each other better at the Korean barbecue we had with KJ (Choi) in South Korea in October.
I’ve played a fair bit with (Mexican) Abraham Ancer through the year and the Presidents Cup is always a topic, so doing well has been in our heads for a long time. We don’t really know what we are in for at Royal Melbourne with Ernie’s pairings (for foursomes and four-ball play), but he’s put in a lot of work. He’s big into his stats and I reckon he’s going to mix it up with a few experiments.
The Tiger Show is going to be huge with him as captain and player. Do you want a crack at the world’s greatest golfer?
Definitely. I hope I play with him and I hope I beat him. Everyone wants that one, so there’s a bit of a queue. It would be very cool to play against him because I’ve yet to do so on tour.
What is the different sense when Tiger is in the field at an event?
I’ve played three or four times either side of his group in tournaments, including the Masters, and it’s been a nightmare. It’s just the people going everywhere. You always know where Tiger is on the golf course. It was cool, at the Masters, to see how emotional he got with that win on the final green because it still meant so much to someone who has done everything in the game.
All golfers of a certain age have a Tiger memory. What’s yours?
It was pretty much watching him winning the (2001) Masters on TV from the couch with my dad when I was about seven. Adam Scott was my idol growing up but I just wanted to be like Tiger. He made golf cool. Tiger was the one you watched and headed to the backyard straight away to chip some balls around and pretend you were Tiger Woods.
Can a home crowd make a difference at the Presidents Cup, because you and Marc Leishman rode it brilliantly at the World Cup on Melbourne’s sandbelt a year ago when you roared home with that 65 in the alternate shot format (foursomes)?
The energy does help your golf because you know everyone is behind you. When you are a little down over a shot or a hole, hearing a sly joke or something Australian in the gallery brings a smile to your face and you get on with it.
Will Els pair you and Leishman together as a key partnership?
I’m unsure but I’d love to play some matches with Leish because we do have good chemistry. Every one of the 12 on the Internationals team is a very good player but sometimes you’ve got to expect your partner is going to hit you in the shit at some stage. You’ve got to get on with it, which is why Leish and I had a rule last year, “no saying sorry” after a bad shot.
What do feel about your strong commitment to play the full swing of Australian tournaments again?
I love coming home for starters. Winning the Australian Open is a real goal in my career and being able to play a tournament in my home state at the Australian PGA is a week I look forward to every year. For me, I feel that home support most of all at the PGA at Royal Pines, with friends and family in the crowd who don’t often get to see me play. I deliberately make that a very relaxed week and it has paid off (with back-to-back titles in 2017-18). I’m sure I’ll be asked about “three-in-a-row” 1000 times before I tee off, but I’ll try to go in there with the same mindset I’ve had the last few years … a good time and some good golf. The trophy has only had XXXX Gold in it the last two years and I’ll try to keep it that way.
How important is giving back to golf, because letting two young amateurs stay-and-play with you in Florida under Cameron Smith Scholarships every year is a great commitment?
It’s really important to me. When I first came over to the US it was almost like I had no one to talk to, but over a very short period Aussie guys like Leish, Jase (Jason Day) and Rod (Pampling) were all really good to lean on. What I wanted to get across to Elvis (Smylie) and Tyler (Duncan) in September was that they’ll always have a mate over here and they can always talk to me. We just hung out for a very chilled week, played TPC Sawgrass and some great courses and they’d pick my brain on any little thing they wanted when the hurricane wasn’t getting in the way. Where I grew up at Wantima Country Club there was never a big junior tournament to play, which is why I started the Cameron Smith Junior Classic. I hope I’m encouraging boys and girls in golf and it would be cool if one day a young guy reached the PGA Tour who said he played in my junior classic.
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QUICK OFF THE MARK
First car? A Toyota HiLux at 17
Coffee order? Long black
Your idol growing up? Adam Scott
Who plays you in a movie? Adam Sandler
Best advice you’ve been given? My dad’s words – “Some days are diamonds, some days are duck shit.”
Favourite TV show? Breaking Bad
Originally published as Cameron Smith opens up about the Presidents Cup, taking on Tiger and his big summer of golf