Cameron Smith Struggles at Home and Misses the Cut
Cameron Smith, the three-time Australian PGA champion, has had another disappointing performance in his homeland, failing to make the cut for the seventh consecutive time. Smith carded a four-over-par (75). The local player began his Friday round on the projected cut line, two under par, and had early birdie opportunities, but on two occasions his ball stayed on the edge of the hole. After falling below the line with a bogey on the 11th hole, a struggling Smith watched as putts for par slipped away on the 13th and 14th holes, in lamentable scenes at the Royal Queensland Golf Club. Despite a birdie on the 17th hole, a double bogey on the 18th hole sealed his fate. Finished with two over par, far from the leaders, including Brett Rankin, Kazuma Kobori, Wenyi Ding and Anthony Quayle, who were at nine under par. Rankin, with seven under par after 18 holes, led the standings with nine under par, despite a double bogey on his penultimate hole. The 2023 champion, Min Woo Lee, joined the top, with six birdies before a bogey on the last hole. Cameron Davis, Daniel Hillier, Marc Leishman, and Marco Penge (seven under par) are near the top, while Ryan Fox fell three strokes to be at five under par. Adam Scott (six under par) is also in the running thanks to a long birdie putt on the 17th. Defending champion Elvis Smylie (two under par) managed to make the cut, while Joaquín Niemann and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen struggled. Smith had one of his worst days as a professional, missing the cut at the Royal Queensland in 2023. This time, the former world number 2 and winner of the 2022 Open Championship, is the only player who didn’t make the cut in all four majors this year. Smith will arrive at next week’s Australian Open in Melbourne with a winless streak of almost two and a half years. Lee, his playing partner, achieved several wins, and Davis showed a good performance in his first tournament since leaving the PGA Tour in August. Leishman, for his part, demonstrated his ambition.We are golfers and entertainers, and I really enjoy entertaining, whether it’s a driver off the deck or a bunker shot with spin.
Leishman
