The good, the bad and the unruly
I cannot quite put my finger on it, and it sort of makes no sense because he finished top ten at the Masters, but something about Cam Smith’s LIV career is a bit of a bummer.
Cam Smith seems a man in limbo. Posting moderate results in LIV Golf. Popping up at majors without adding to his British Open medallion. Hardly hacking it around and yet he hasn’t come close to replicating his pre-LIV craftsmanship. He should ditch his collared polo for one of Taylor Swift’s more famous T-shirts. The one saying, “Not A Lot Going On At The Moment”.
He could probably wear it for the final two rounds of LIV Adelaide. The dress code at The Grange seems relaxed. I have mountains of admiration for Anthony Kim’s life journey, for returning from his self-described “darkest demons” and addictions, but he might like to tuck his shirt in. LIV needs all the respectability it can get.
There was a lot going on at The Grange on Friday outside of Adelaide. Lots of noise, lots of people, 35,000 of them, lots of multi-millionaire players, lots of music, lots of manufactured hype, lots of amusing commentary – “it appears social media is lighting up!” – lots of easy pin placements, lots of birdies, 263 of them, lots of Greg Norman, lots of beers, lots more beers, one more beer, then a concert, lots of players you’ve never seen before in your life, including the leader. But real golf tournaments revolve around the numbers on scorecards at the close of play. And there wasn’t a lot going on when it came to Smith.
His four-under-par 68 on a layout set up for birdies, eagles and low figures was decent without being dazzling. Eighty per cent of the field broke par. The cumulative score across all 52 players was 141-under-par. Japan’s Jinichiro Kozuma led after a nine-under 63. Smith’s Ripper GC teammates Matt Jones and Marc Leishman carded 66 and 67 respectively, while the fourth Australian, Lucas Herbert, was down and out after a one-over 73.
Leishman is a big, barrelling sort of fella who’s in better physical nick than he’s been for a while. “I’ve actually been in the gym,” he said. “I wanted to get in somewhat decent shape. Not just for this week – yes, for this week, but for life.
“I’m playing a lot of basketball with my kids, my boys now, so they love that. I don’t want to get too slow and get beaten by too much. A little incentive there …
“I’m just feeling good. Just feeling better about yourself,” he added. “It’s not good when you look in the mirror and swear at yourself, which is what I did just after Christmas.”
It was that bad? “Yeah,” Leishman said. “It was pretty ordinary.”
Smith had an army of people in the background of his final putt, for birdie. Most of them were souped up and shouting like it was the final furlong of the Melbourne Cup. Music roared in the background like he was playing on the dance floor of a nightclub. It would have been quite the moment if he made it. He missed. Not a lot happening right now.
The world was at Smith’s feet when he won the British Open in 2022. The No.1 ranking beckoned. Great stuff, historic stuff, so much going on in every moment.
He’s triumphed twice on the rebel tour – in 2022 and 2023 – but had a shocker in Australia last summer, reducing him to tears, and his ranking has plummeted to 53rd and he’s going to miss the Olympic team.
I cannot quite put my finger on it, and it sort of makes no sense because he finished Top 10 at the US Masters at Augusta, but something about his LIV career is a bit of a bummer.
Good on him for reverting to the lifestyle he wants: less tournament golf, more free time. His supporters want him ripping into the Americans on the weekly PGA Tour merry-go-round and chasing the title of world’s best golfer, but he’d rather give that a miss in exchange for a large sum of money and a lighter schedule.
No one’s blaming him. I’d probably do the same. It’s just a shame to so infrequently see a wonderful Australian golfer contesting important tournaments. I guess it’s our loss, not his.
Impressions of LIV Adelaide? Admired the gallantry of the commentators for suggesting the 5000-strong crowd at the Watering Hole sounded “more like 500,000” in a “gladiatorial” atmosphere. Didn’t detect that on the broadcast.
Loved the quality of the field, the best in Australia in recent memory outside of Presidents Cup. But they should ditch the shorts. Professional golf and Test cricket should be played in long pants, right? Imagine Pat Cummins steaming in while wearing shorts. Absurd. Not in a million years.
I sort of really enjoyed it. But I couldn’t help looking at Smith and two-time major champion Jon Rahm and thinking of Billy Joel’s most cutting lyrics: men, what are you doing here? The world’s richest tour was enjoyable in a madcap sort of way, but it also felt a bit cheap.
The wrong music at the wrong times. Like, the quietly contemplative moment before Smith’s first tee shot was accompanied by the screeching “Welcome To The Jungle” by Guns N’Roses. He hoiked his opening stroke into the trees while his ears bled.
I liked the shotgun start. All players on the course at the same time. A neat five-hour package. Fairer, too, with everyone playing in the same conditions. Any tournament can be intriguing and LIV Adelaide will be no different. As one of the ever-enthusiastic commentators said of Sunday’s final round, “It’s going to be bonkers!” Nothing wrong with that.
LIV is the good, the bad and the unruly of golf. Any tournament featuring Smith, Rahm, Sergio Garcia, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau and assorted other luminaries is noteworthy. I feel like it’s a grand retirement village for the elder statesmen. I feel like Smith and Rahm are wasting their prime years in it. It’s perfect for the 40-year-old Leishman.
“There’s some nervous energy, for sure,” he said. “This morning and the first couple of holes, definitely. It’s good. Now we’re playing less, it means a lot. They’re big tournaments and we’re playing for a lot of money and a team and your teammates. It’s good to feel that nervous energy. There’s a lot to play for.”
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