Cameron Smith
Name:
Cameron SmithAlso known as:
CamCountry:
AustraliaBorn:
Born on August 18, 1993 in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.Original/Home Club:
Occupation:
Professional golferTurned Pro:
2013MAJORS (1): The Open (2022). Presidents Cup player (2019). Multiple Australasian, European and PGA Tour winner. Asian Tour Rookie of the Year (2014).
Smith developed his skills on the PGA Tour of Australia and the Asian Tour, where he took Rookie of the Year honours in 2014. He switched his focus from 2015 onward to the PGA Tour in the USA, enjoying his first win on that Tour in 2017.
By 2022 Smith was a leading PGA Tour player, and one who was ready to make an indelible mark on the game. In March he scooped the lucrative Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. Then in July, at the home of golf in the 150th Open Championship, he fortuitously rolled in one long putt after another to shot a final round 64. His hot putting streak allowed him to snatch the Claret Jug from third round leader Rory McIlroy's grasp.
In 2022, aged 29, Smith was enticed onto fellow Aussie Greg Norman's "rebel" LIV Golf series, alongside a few other well-known but mainly "ageing" golf stars, and an abundance of lower-ranked "unknowns". (LIV Golf is a Saudi Arabian-bankrolled breakaway rival to the main international tours. It is based on limited-field 54-hole events, with massive prize funds, guaranteed payouts and, for some, eye-watering signing-on bonuses).
Aus/NZ
Fortinet
Played as the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship (Nov 24-27; Aus Tour event and joint European-DP World Tour 2023 season-opener with the Joburg Open). Second-placed Ryo Hisatsune (Jpn) and Jason Scrivener (Aus) finished 3 shots behind LIV golfer Cameron Smith (Aus). This was Smith's third PGA Tour of Australasia win; the other two came in this same event in 2017 and 2018. [Royal Queensland GC, Eagle Farm, Brisbane, Qld.]. Note: the second of two Australian PGA Championships played in 2022.
America
LIV Golf
Played as the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series (Chicago) (Sept 16-18; LIV Golf event; 54-hole 48-player no-cut individual event, and accompanying 4-player team event). [Rich Harvest Farms, Sugar Grove, nr Chicago, Illinois].
Individual event: Second-placed Dustin Johnson (USA) and Peter Uihlein (USA) finished 3 shots behind Cameron Smith (Aus). Smith scooped the $4 million first prize, while the two runners-up each bagged $1,812,500.
Team event: second-placed Smash team (brothers Brooks & Chase Koepka, Peter Uihlein and Jason Kokrak) finished 2 shots behind the Four Aces team (Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Pat Perez & Talor Gooch), who shared the $3 million team first prize.
Note: the fifth of eight 2022 "Invitational Series" events run by Greg Norman's Saudi Arabian-bankrolled LIV Golf company.
America
Sentry
Played as the Sentry Tournament of Champions (Jan 6-9; first PGA Tour event in 2022). Second-placed Jon Rahm (Esp) finished 1 shot behind Cameron Smith (Aus). Smith's 34-under-par set a new record for a 72-hole PGA Tour event, beating Ernie Els' record of 31-under made in the same event on the same course in 2003. [Plantation course, Kapalua Resort, Maui, Hawaii].
Majors
R&A
The Open Championship (150th) (July 14-17). Second-placed Cameron Young (USA) finished 1 shot behind 28-year-old Cameron Smith (Aus), who recorded his first major championship win. Smith's final round 8-under-par 64 included a back-nine of 30 that started with five straight birdies. [The Old Course, St Andrews, Fife].
America
x
Played as The Players Championship (Mar 10-13). Second-placed Anirban Lahiri (India) finished 1 shot behind Cameron Smith (Aus), who recorded his fifth PGA Tour win, and the biggest win of his career. [Stadium Course, TPC Sawgrass, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL].
Awards
PGA of America
Cameron Smith (Aus; 96 pts) won the PGA of America Player of the Year Award, based on points allocated for PGA Tour wins, money list position and scoring average. Scottie Scheffler (USA) was a close second with 94 pts, and Rory McIlroy (N. Ire) third with 62 pts. A few days after winning the award Smith announced he was leaving the PGA Tour to play on Greg Norman's lucrative LIV Golf tour.
America
Zurich
Played as the Zurich Classic of New Orleans (Apr 22-25; two-man team event: betterball rounds 1&3; alternate shot rounds 2&4). Winning team of Marc Leishman (Aus) & Cameron Smith (Aus) beat Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) & Charl Schwartzel (RSA) with a par at the first playoff hole (par-5 18th). The two Aussie winners each took home prize money of $1,069,300. [TPC Louisiana, Avondale, nr New Orleans, LA].
America
Sony
Played as the Sony Open in Hawaii (Jan 9-12). Cameron Smith (Aus) beat Brendan Steele (USA) with a par at the first playoff hole (par-4 10th), to claim his second PGA Tour title. [Waialae CC, Honolulu, Hawaii].
Aus/NZ
x
Played as the Australian PGA Championship (Nov 29-Dec 2; Aus/Eurpn Trs event; PGA Aus season-ending event; Eurpn Tr 2019 season). Second-placed Marc Leishman (Aus) finished 2 shots behind defending champion Cameron Smith (Aus), who recorded his second European Tour win. [RACV Royal Pines Resort, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia].
America
Zurich
Played as the Zurich Classic of New Orleans (Apr 27-30; first-time as a two-man team event; alternate shot rounds 1&3, betterball rounds 2&4). Jonas Blixt (Swe) & Cameron Smith (Aus) beat Kevin Kisner (USA) & Scott Brown (USA) with a birdie at the fourth playoff hole (par-5 18th). The winners both took home first place prize money of $1,022,400. [TPC Louisiana, Avondale, nr New Orleans, LA].
Aus/NZ
x
Played as the Australian PGA Championship (Nov 30-Dec 3; Aus/Eurpn Trs event; Eurpn Tr 2018 season). First-time European Tour winner Smith (Aus) beat Jordan Zunic (Aus) with a par at the second playoff hole (par-4 18th). [RACV Royal Pines Resort, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia].
Awards
Asian Tr
Cameron Smith (Aus) won the Asian Tour 2014 Rookie of the Year Award as the leading first-season player. He finished fifth on the Tour's Order of Merit, with earnings of US$427,476.
Tournament of Champions: the PGA Tour’s calendar-year starts, as it has done since 1999, with this iconic event in Hawaii. The field is drawn from players who won a PGA Tour event in 2022, or were amongst the top 30 in last year’s FedEx Cup final standings (Jan 6-9).
Desert Swing: the European (DP World) Tour launches into 2023 with three events in its UAE “Desert Swing”. Up first is the Abu Dhabi Championship (Jan 19-22), followed by the Dubai Desert Classic (Jan 26-29) and the Ras Al Kaimah Championship (Feb 2-5).
Kathy Whitworth: the end of 2022 saw the passing of LPGA Tour legend Kathy Whitworth. Her 88 LPGA Tour victories is more than achieved by any other golfer on either the LPGA or PGA Tours. Amongst her victories were six major championship titles.
Barry Lane: the golfing world was also saddened by the passing of Barry Lane, one of the European Tour and European Senior Tours most popular players. Enjoying success on both Tours, Lane was know for his excellent ball-striking and amiable personality.
Marco Simone Golf & Country Club: With a clubhouse that might befit a Roman Emperor, and a golf course to match, you can be sure of a memorable outing at Rome's most talked about golf facility.
Jim Fazio's original layout was much changed to create a modern Ryder Cup course ... now one of the Eternal City's (and Italy's) most revered.
Costa’s "Cruise & Golf" allows golfers and their families to combine a unique golfing experience with the relaxation and fun of a cruise on board Costa Smeralda. Golf enthusiasts are offered a choice from 23 top-quality golf clubs; their chosen courses are played during the ship’s port calls in Italy, France and Spain. While the golfers are driving the fairways, accompanying non-golfers are able to enjoy the amenities and activities on-board, or explore wonderful places on day excursions organised by Costa. Read more ...
You can subscribe to the Where2Golf channel on YT if you like to see more video content. You'll find a "Subscribe" button on any of our YouTube videos. Or if you want a quick and direct access subscribe here. Once done, any new published videos will show up in your Subscriptions feed.
