Smith desperate for home victory
‘I would have loved for it to come a little bit earlier. I feel a little added pressure with tournaments running out’
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‘I would have loved for it to come a little bit earlier. I feel a little added pressure with tournaments running out’
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BRISBANE, Australia (AFP) — Cameron Smith knows time is running out to bag a first victory of 2024 and the major champion is hungry to get it done in his hometown of Brisbane at this week’s Australian PGA Championship.
The event at Royal Queensland Golf Club is co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour and is the first stop of the European circuit’s global 2025 schedule.
The 2022 British Open champion Smith is the biggest name in a field that also includes former world No. 1 Jason Day and defending champion Min Woo Lee.
The 31-year-old Smith is yet to record an individual win this year and has only a handful of tournaments remaining to change that.
After the Australian PGA he will tee up in the Australian Open next week in Melbourne and the Asian Tour’s Saudi International in early December.
“I’d love for my first win (of 2024) to come here,” Smith, who is a member at Royal Queensland, said Tuesday.
“I would have loved for it to come a little bit earlier. I feel a little added pressure with tournaments running out.”
He is desperate to keep alive a streak of winning at least one tournament worldwide each year since 2020 across the PGA, DP World and LIV Golf tours after several close calls in 2024.
On the LIV Golf circuit, he posted three runner-up finishes and played a part in his team, Ripper GC, winning the league’s season-long title.
‘I’ve done all the prep, particularly the last month, to really be competitive. I want to be in contention on Sunday.’
At the majors his highlight was tied sixth at the Masters.
To sharpen up, Florida-based Smith returned to Australia in October and played two humble state-level events.
At the Queensland PGA Championship he tied for third and was second behind Lucas Herbert at last week’s New South Wales Open.
Fellow Australian Herbert is also in the running this week.
Smith is determined to atone for last year’s Australian PGA, where, as defending champion, he shot a seven-over 78 in the second round and missed the cut.
At the time he choked back tears and conceded a lack of competition contributed to what he called his worst day in 10 years as a professional golfer.
“I feel like my game is in a really good spot,” Smith added on Tuesday.
“I’ve done all the prep, particularly the last month, to really be competitive. I want to be in contention on Sunday.”
