‘It was an offer I couldn’t ignore’: Smith, Leishman join LIV Golf

British Open champion Cameron Smith has pulled no punches in announcing his defection to LIV Golf, describing it as a “business decision” and an offer he “couldn’t ignore”.

Greg Norman’s Saudi-backed circuit landed its biggest blow with world No.2 Smith joining fellow Australian Marc Leishman in signing with the rebel tour on Tuesday.

Smith told Golf Digest that money was “definitely a factor”.

“I won’t ignore that or say that wasn’t a reason,” Smith said. “It was obviously a business decision for one and an offer I couldn’t ignore.”

The Queenslander, who last week was unveiled as the headline act for the Australian Open and Australian PGA tournaments later this year, also said the chance to spend more time at home contributed to his decision.

Leishman will also play Australia’s two biggest events in November and December.

Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman.Credit: Getty

“The biggest thing for me joining is [LIV’s] schedule is really appealing,” Smith said. “I’ll be able to spend more time at home in Australia and maybe have an event down there as well. I haven’t been able to do that, and to get that part of my life back was really appealing.

“I’ve lived over here seven years now, and I love living in the US, but just little things like missing friends’ weddings, birthday parties and seeing your mates having a great time at rugby league games has been tough.”

The signings of Smith and Leishman are sure to only add to Norman’s desire to expand into Australia in 2023. LIV has sent employees to Australia in recent weeks to scout potential venues for a tournament down under next year.

Their jump to LIV Golf won’t prevent them from playing the traditional tournaments, which are co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour, but they will be indefinitely banned from the PGA Tour, which includes September’s Presidents Cup.

Cameron Smith will bring the claret jug to Australia when he returns home later this year.Credit: AP

Smith, who has been linked with the mega riches of the rival tour for months, will be the highest-ranked player to join LIV Golf before the $35 million event in Boston this week.

Norman’s LIV Golf officially confirmed the signings of the Australian pair on Tuesday night, alongside Chile’s Presidents Cup qualifier and world No.19 Joaquin Niemann, Harold Varner III, Cameron Tringale and Anirban Lahiri.

Smith and Leishman will join two-time Australian Open winner Matt Jones in defecting to LIV Golf.

While Norman has taken a host of high-profile players from the United States’ PGA Tour such as Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau, he’d yet to prise away a player from the world’s top 10 until the Smith scalp. And he’s also got a player at the peak of his powers.

Speculation about the 29-year-old linking with Norman had been rife since his historic The Open win at St Andrews, during which London’s The Telegraph reported he had agreed to a $140 million deal to join LIV.

Smith and Leishman’s pledge to play the 54-hole shotgun start events will mean both are likely to see their world rankings plummet given LIV has yet to be granted official world golf ranking status. Leishman is ranked 62 in the world.

“LIV Golf is showing the world that our truly global league is attracting the world’s best players and will grow the game into the future for the next generation,” Norman said.

“The best and the brightest continue to embrace the excitement and energy of LIV Golf and what we’re building: a tangible league for team golf that will connect with new audiences all over the globe.

“We can’t wait to tee off this week at The International and deliver another memorable event.”

Smith could have jumped to world No.1 if he had won the FedEx Cup, but couldn’t mount a challenge in the Tour Championship in Atlanta after starting six shots behind Scottie Scheffler. Rory McIlroy surged past the world No.1 on Sunday to lift the trophy for the third time, one shot ahead of the American and South Korea’s Sungjae Im.

Adam Scott, who expressed interest in LIV earlier this year, is expected to remain with the PGA Tour after being part of a players-only meeting led by Tiger Woods to discuss ways to counter Norman’s cash.

Australian PGA chairman Rodger Davis on Wednesday acknowledged the defection of two of the nation’s brightest stars, saying the organisation remains committed to young golfers and is focused on the summer ahead.

“Currently, world golf is in somewhat of a state of flux and the PGA of Australia is doing all it can to navigate through this disruptive period, whilst squarely maintaining our focus on our core constituents,” he said.

“The PGA of Australia is a member-based organisation and we exist to support golf and all the membership base. As such, we’re focused on providing career opportunities for our vocational members and pathways and playing opportunities for all of our tour members domestically and then onto some of the world’s biggest tours.

“As a collective Australian golf ecosystem, we will keep investing in supporting our young Aussie women and men touring pros as they work their way through their golfing journeys.

“These two major Australian events headline the upcoming summer of golf, one of the biggest for years, and there’s no doubt our fans are looking forward to our growing line-up of homegrown stars like Cam Smith, Marc Leishman, Hannah Green, Lucas Herbert and Min Woo Lee.”

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