Cam Smith: LIV Golf Members Motivated by Underdog Role for Next Week’s Masters

Cameron Smith will be going into Augusta National next week as the most-recent major winner and coming off a third-place finish in the 2022 Masters.

That would normally be enough to put him as one of the favorites, and while his odds are in line with the likes of Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay, and Collin Morikawa, the Australian is well behind the trio of favorites that includes defending champ Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, and Jon Rahm.

The reason for this is likely because we haven’t seen Smith play on a big stage since the Tour Championship. While the 2023 version of “the big three” has dominated much of the headlines around big events like The Players Championship, WM Phoenix Open, and Sentry Tournament of Champions, Smith is playing just his third tournament of 2023 starting today in Orlando for LIV Golf. His other two appearances have been seen by fewer than a half-million viewers, on average, in the United States.

While LIV Golf pros aren’t eligible for PGA Tour events, those who are eligible will be playing in the four majors.

Smith, while gearing up for this weekend’s LIV event in Orlando, Florida, spoke about his mentality prior to returning to golf’s biggest stage next week.

Smith told reporters at Orange County National:

“Obviously first and foremost for me, I’m trying to go there and play the best golf I can. I think it is important for us to go there, really show a high standard of golf which we know we’re all capable of.”

LIV IT A REST!

“There’s a lot of chatter going around about ‘these guys don’t play real golf anymore’. It’s B.S. to be honest.”

Aussie golf superstar Cameron Smith has slammed @livgolf_league critics ahead of @TheMasters

From @DarrenWalton369 https://t.co/rYtxNkwxWz

— AAP Sport (@AAPSport) March 31, 2023

Smith also spoke about how the LIV contingent that’s heading to Augusta next week will have a chip on their shoulder as they play their first Masters as part of the new organization:

“I think for us, internally, there’s a lot of chatter going around about ‘these guys don’t play real golf anymore.’ And I think it’s B.S. to be honest. And we just want to show people that.”

Since his win at the Open Championship at St. Andrew’s in July, Smith won a LIV event in Chicago and the Australian PGA Championship in November. However, 2023 has not yet been as kind, as Smith missed the cut at the Saudi International and was sixth and 26^th in two LIV events so far this year. He has a good track record at Augusta, finishing in the top 10 in four of his last five Masters tournaments.

Smith and 2020 Masters champion Dustin Johnson are the highest-ranked LIV Golf members in the Official World Golf Ranking who are playing in the Masters. There will be 15 others joining them, including Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Joaquin Niemann, and Louis Oosthuizen.

Cover Image Via Golf Digest