It was a sight for sore golfing eyes at Royal Queensland Golf Club this weekend as Cam Smith, a hero in these parts, danced his way through a rain-delayed round to top the leaderboard, dazzling the home crowd with a performance as radiant as the Saturday sun.
Alongside the young gun Elvis Smylie, Smith, a three-time champion of this event, found himself in familiar territory, smiling wide at 10 under par.
Their brilliant play turned what could have been a washed-out affair into a showcase of Aussie grit and talent, making the most of the tournament’s unexpected cut to 54 holes.
Smith, who bagged this title in 2017, 2018, and not to forget last year, played a round that was nothing short of poetry, pencilling in seven birdies for a striking 65.
Not to be outdone, Smylie, stirred but not shaken by the conditions, carded a 67, featuring six birdies of his own. This duo stood atop a leaderboard that looked more Aussie than a barbecue on Bondi.
Chasing just a stroke behind was Marc Leishman, while David Micheluzzi, fresh off securing his DP World Tour card, was hot on their heels alongside the lone international threat within the top five—South Africa’s Aldrich Potgieter. Potgieter, eager to leave his mark, flew out of the gates with a string of birdies that had him sitting pretty at ten under before a couple of stumbles on the back nine.
Meanwhile, Smith and Smylie had their own back-nine stories to tell. Smith, ever the strategist, snagged three more birdies, and Smylie, not to be overshadowed, clinched a vital birdie on the last to solidify their lead.
Cam Smith: It was a bit better day today, which always puts a smile on your face and yeah, obviously the golf was pretty good as well.
Started really solid and kind of kept it going the whole way through. Maybe a few errant shots there at the end, but you kind of expect that throughout round of golf. So yeah, pretty solid, all in all.
It will be a lot of fun (potentially playing with Leishman on Sunday). Obviously Leish and I are really good mates and really good competitors as well.
We play against each other in most practice rounds as well, so it’ll be a really fun time.
It’d be nice (to win again). I’d like to think this is my home event. This tournament’s always been really nice to me and it’s always really nice to be in contention here.
I feel like obviously the crowd is behind me here and lots of good family and friends out here as well cheering me on, so it’s a really cool environment for me, which is probably why I’ve played so well. But at the same time, you’ve got to go out and do it, I suppose. So yeah, looking forward to tomorrow.
The international contingent, including England’s Matt Southgate and Switzerland’s Joel Girrbach, along with local stalwarts like Jason Day and Cam Davis, found themselves trailing, yet still in contention, setting the stage for a riveting final round.
As the sun sets on Royal Queensland, it’s clear that the Aussie stars are not just playing for the trophy but for national pride.
Cam Smith, with his eyes set on a fourth title, might just write another chapter in this championship’s storied history.
