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On Sunday, Cameron Smith walked onto a practice range about lunchtime and was told it was closed.
No matter who you are or how badly you need to erase the memories of the worst week of your career, you can’t do it now. Come back later.
The former British Open champion took it in good grace. He was advised it was done for safety reasons with (very few) fans walking adjacent to the range down the first hole during the tournament.
How bad did they think he was hitting them?
Instead, Smith wandered over to a nearby chipping area and scooped up some loose balls just so he had a few to work with.
While the Royal Queensland galleries snaked alongside Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott on the final day of the Australian PGA Championship, equally fascinating were Smith’s invisible hours.
Cameron Smith during the Australian PGA Championship.Credit: Getty
This week’s Australian Open now has an intriguing storyline never thought possible: can Smith rebound from the worst week of his professional career?
All golfers have bad days or weeks. Some have bad months and years. But never have Australian golf fans seen Smith play so badly, and react so emotionally.
As he choked up speaking to reporters after his second-round seven-over 78 on Friday – meaning he missed the cut by an unbelievable nine shots and was 21 strokes shy of 36-hole leader Min Woo Lee – Smith showed he’s as vulnerable as the next professional golfer, no matter what the CV or how much money you have.
Greg Norman’s LIV golfers have been admonished in some quarters for taking the obscene amounts of money to switch to the rebel tour, which its most ardent critics pan as being exhibition golf with guaranteed pay cheques, making golfers care less about their results.
But in a couple of minutes, Smith showed how much pride he still has in his performance – in the least lucrative event he’s played this year. And for his image, that can’t be a bad thing.
For years, Smith’s persona has been exaggerated by fans, maybe wanting to see themselves in one of the world’s most well-paid athletes.
They love the mullet, they love that he gets up in the middle of the American night to watch rugby league, that he yearns to drive his V8s through the streets of Brisbane, and can tell you exactly how many beers fit into the Claret Jug or Joe Kirkwood Cup.
They love him because he could be living next door.
But what if they’re only learning about the other side of Smith now?
Cameron Smith starts his second round at Royal Queensland.Credit: Getty
His success has been built on meticulously preparing for each event. Breaking down in front of reporters after missing the cut so badly might have been as much to do with a recognition he had left plenty of stones unturned before the Australian PGA Championship.
Smith and a small crew spent a few days fishing on the Great Barrier Reef after the former world No.2 finished runner-up in the Hong Kong Open. He was sluggish to start the opening holes of the tournament and never recovered, hence why he went straight back to work on the weekend.
About 50 people watched him on the putting green on Sunday. His coach Grant Field placed golf balls neatly in a circle around a hole, each about six feet from the target.
Smith incessantly prepared for each putt like it was one to win The Masters. He made some, missed some, cursing at least one which shaved the hole.
At the end of it all, he signed autographs and smiled for selfies from every fan who wanted one. No request was refused. It made him a little late getting to the range. Nothing is going to be easy about this week.
Maybe we’re about to learn about a whole new side to Cameron Smith.
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