Cam Smith ready to ride Aussie secret skills to more LIV success in Adelaide

There’s things Australian golfers can do others just can’t and that could mean something special happens at LIV Adelaide again.

Cameron Smith with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the CEO of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund in Adelaide. Picture: Kelly Barnes

A perfect course tailored to Australian skills and Cameron Smith shots which “just blow your mind” only add to a building buzz among the home team that the LIV Adelaide event is theirs for the taking, again.

Memories of last year’s epic team playoff victory and once again seeing the sharp-edged bunkers and “shiny” greens at The Grange Golf Club moved most of the all-Australian team’s rivals to hand over favouritism to Smith and company.

It’s a fact not lost on the quartet who honed skills unique to them on similar layouts which to a man they conceded gave them a competitive advantage, maybe more so this year than in last year’s triumph.

“I’ve watched Leishy hit some 4-irons off the back foot around the greens in the practice rounds that a lot of people would struggle to hit,” Lucas Herbert, who shot back-to-back rounds of seven-under 65 across the weekend last year, said.

Cameron Smith during the Pro-AM at The Grange Golf Club. (Photo by Sarah Reed/Getty Images)

“I mean, I think I see Cam hit short game shots every week that no one can hit, but particularly this week, he’s hitting shots that just blow your mind.

“I look to my left with Jonesy (Matt Jones) , as well ... he’s hitting some phenomenal short game shots around the greens that if you just haven’t grown up around these surfaces, you don’t think to play them like that.

“I just think it’s a massive advantage for us if the course is going to play firm and fast like we hope it does.”

No-one was more disappointed with the soft and slow set-up for last year’s Australia Open at Kingston Heath than Smith who this week couldn’t be happier with a layout he called “perfect”.

“This is what we want. This is probably what the rest of the players want,” he said.

“But this is so unique to Australia, this style of golf, having to hit shots that you don’t hit around the world. This is what we want when we come home. It’s perfect.”

The defending LIV champs ready for Adelaide. (Photo by Sarah Reed/Getty Images)

But while Herbert predicted a possible individual winner among his teammates, Smith said the feeling he got from last year’s team win, declaring “nothing has felt like that before” left him almost preferring another team victory.

“It was so fun to do that. If we could replicate that again this week, I would 100 per cent take it over an individual,” he said.

“That was just so much fun to be in front of that home crowd, not only screaming your name but chanting “Ripper” and “you little Ripper,” whatever else you get around the course. It was epic.”

It was one of three team wins for Ripper GC in 2024, a year which failed to yield an individual win.

But back in the spotlight, Smith said the boys had been able to “tick a lot of boxes” and couldn’t be more ready to defend.

“I feel like we’ve had pressure on us in the past. We’ve dealt with it pretty good,” he said.

Across the 12 LIV Golf events Cam played last year he was only bettered 112 times out of 648 rounds in strokes gained putting stats 🤯

Or to summarise, Cam Smith is very good at putting 🙌#RipperGC#LIVGolfpic.twitter.com/QDAEDV2YdE

— Ripper GC (@rippergc_) January 31, 2025

“And to be honest, all we’ve tried to do the last four or five weeks is really just prepare as good as we can and get in and get our work done and tick a lot of boxes and get here on Friday and just let it all go.

“We know we’re going to have the support of the home crowd. We love the golf course. I think this is the best I’ve ever seen it. “Hopefully it gets firmer and faster, and like I said, we can all just free up. We know we’ve done the work, so why not two in a row.”