Cameron Smith is reconsidering his commitment to LIV Golf after funding issues arose, impacting Australian golf's future. The PGA of Australia is concerned about the implications for local tournaments and the sport's development.
Key points
Cameron Smith is reconsidering his commitment to LIV Golf.
LIV Golf faces funding issues after Saudi investors withdrew support.
The PGA of Australia is concerned about the future of Australian golf.
Smith's contract with LIV was reportedly over $100 million.
He has missed the cut in his last six major tournaments.
Mentioned in this story
Cameron SmithLIV GolfPGA of AustraliaAustralia
He was Australian golfâs shining light, a likeable everyman whose career has found the rough. Now, Cameron Smith âmay be rethinkingâ his decision to stick with LIV Golf, according to the head of the PGA of Australia, after Saudi Arabian investors withdrew funding from the upstart tour.
The entire Australian golf sector is wrestling with what a future without LIV â or with a fiscally restrained LIV-lite â might look like, as the South Australia government pushes on with spending $45m for an upgrade to a course still scheduled to host a LIV tournament from 2028.
Australiaâs golfing institutions are immune to any collapse of LIV, yet the links within the sport run deep. As the body for golfâs professionals, the PGA of Australia wants the best for Smith and his countrymen. A junior entry program run by Golf Australia is sponsored by Smithâs LIV team Ripper GC, and the sportâs governing body celebrates the nationâs best golfers performing at their peak. All rely on the sportâs biggest names playing local tournaments.
Smith was one of LIVâs highest-profile recruits when he joined in 2022, weeks after winning the Open, in a deal reportedly worth more than $100m. He has missed the cut at his past six majors, even if two eighth-place finishes at LIV tournaments this year are a reminder of his quality.
Still just 32, Smith stuck with LIV earlier this year during a window when the PGA Tour offered a way back for players that would involve a financial penalty.
Patrick Reed reacts to his hole-in-one at last yearâs LIV Golf tournament in Adelaide.
Patrick Reed reacts to his hole-in-one at last yearâs LIV Golf tournament in Adelaide. Photograph: Jon Ferrey/LIV Golf/AP
Q&A
Why is Cameron Smith reconsidering his decision to stay with LIV Golf?
Cameron Smith is rethinking his decision due to the withdrawal of Saudi funding from LIV Golf, which raises concerns about the tour's financial stability.
What impact will LIV Golf's funding issues have on Australian golf?
The funding issues may affect local tournaments and the overall development of the sport in Australia, as the PGA of Australia seeks to support its players.
How much was Cameron Smith's contract with LIV Golf reportedly worth?
Cameron Smith's contract with LIV Golf was reportedly worth more than $100 million when he joined in 2022.
What are the recent performances of Cameron Smith in major tournaments?
Cameron Smith has missed the cut in his last six major tournaments but has achieved two eighth-place finishes in LIV events this year.
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Gavin Kirkman, chief executive of the PGA of Australia, said Smith will be discussing his future with his management in the coming weeks, before a meeting with Kirkman and his team later this month.
âWhat weâre hearing, heâs too young to retire, and then, where he made that decision based on where LIV Golf was at that stage, he may be rethinking with his management,â Kirkman said.
While there appears to be efforts underway to continue operating LIV even without the investment of Saudi Arabiaâs Public Investment Fund, any salvaged operation is unlikely to resemble the flashy disruptor that has burnt through more than $5bn.
Some have called for bans and severe penalties for players seeking to rejoin the established tours if LIV falls over. However, the figurehead of the professional game in Australia urged golf officials with the majors and international tours to remember the best interests of the sport.
âTheyâll have to come together and work out how theyâre going to get the best golfers in the field, and then we want the best golfers to come to Australia because we know weâve got the courses, the capabilities,â Kirkman said, noting LIV has several esteemed Australians on its books who are already full members of the PGA Tour of Australasia.
âOur focus is on Cam, Marc Leishmanâs still got a lot of golf to play, Elvis Smylie is a superstar and Lucas Herbert is capable of winning a major, so those four players are very important to Australian golf.
âWe canât make their decisions for them, but this is where we hope the global golf ecosystem really comes together because I can say that all the tours and all the majors want the best golfers playing.â
Elvis Smylie of Ripper GC plays a shot from a bunker during day one of LIV Golf Mexico City at Club de Golf Chapultepec
South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas said last week LIV Golfâs chief executive Scott OâNeil had assured him Adelaide would host a LIV tournament next year. The city has a deal to host a LIV tournament until at least 2031.
James Sutherland, chief executive of Golf Australia â the sportâs broad stewards in Australia â said: âWeâre certainly not blind or ignorant to some of the discussions going on with LIV and uncertainties around all of the golf course developments and what have you in Adelaide.â
But he was eager to highlight how LIVâs popularity in South Australia has unlocked a new formula in golf that blends sport, lifestyle and music, akin to a similar transformation in tennis.
âWe look really closely at what the Australian Open tennis does in creating a great spectacle, in terms of sports entertainment with a lot on the line, but at the same time [giving] a reason for people to come to the event, to be in the precinct, to enjoy the atmosphere and to have a whole lot of other form of entertainment in and around it. â he said.
âLIVâs done that really well. Iâm not sure that we we will be able to afford the sorts of artists that they attract to their events, but just trying to find a way to have a varied offering and improve that and get bigger crowds at our major events and maybe even extend beyond being four days of entertainment in the way that tennis has.â
Sutherland is preparing for a board meeting this week in Adelaide, where the future of the LIV tournament remains a source of consternation. He said there will be more opportunities to attract elite golf to South Australia, although he noted there may now be more competition. âWe want all of our states to be vying for major events,â he said. âWe havenât necessarily enjoyed that demand in the past.â
The 2025 menâs Australian Open in Melbourne was boosted by the appearance of Rory McIlroy, who will return later this year. The womenâs edition in March was hosted by Kooyonga Golf Club in Adelaide, the first under a three-year deal with South Australia that will conclude with the 2028 edition at the renovated North Adelaide public course.
Sutherland said golfâs new recipe for fan engagement â thanks, in part, to LIV â leaves it well placed. âWeâre really confident that state governments and other municipalities will come in behind and be coveting the hosting rights to major tournaments.â
