Cameron Smith says LIV Golf’s Ryder Cup-like team format gives a ‘rare’ feeling in golf

Cameron Smith’s Ripper GC won the 2024 LIV Golf Team Championship in Dallas on Sunday (September 22). The Australia-based team finished the finale with 11-under 277, three shots ahead of 4Aces and Iron Heads. The team, also featuring Aussies Lucas Herbert, Marc Leishman and Matt Jones, bagged the event’s massive $14 million prize money paycheck.

Following the win, Smith drew parallels between LIV Golf’s team format to other events like the Ryder Cup. Replying to a media query comparing the breakaway tour events to Major championships and PGA Tour events, the Aussie said that LIV events make players play for the rest of the squad. The 31-year-old golfer said the ‘feeling’ of wanting to win for others is “really rare in golf.”

The former PGA Tour pro claimed that the Saudi-backed circuit’s team format “genuinely makes you a better golfer.”

Comparing his latest LIV Golf win to his wins at the Open at St Andrews, THE PLAYERS and other PGA Tour events, Cameron Smith said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:

“Yeah, I've been in a lot of nervy situations, I think. But when you're playing for some other guys, there's really no feeling like it. I think that's what events like the Ryder Cup do so well, because you genuinely want to win for the other guys.

"You want yourself to do good for them, and that's a feeling that is really rare in golf. I think it genuinely makes you a better golfer, too, when you're out there and times are tough, you're digging for these guys every week, and it's a pretty cool feeling to have.”

It is pertinent to note that Cameron Smith’s Ripper GC finished third in the season-long standings before entering the Team Championship and winning it. Meanwhile, Smith finished T5 in the Stroke Play competition in Dallas. He managed to finish seventh on the circuit’s final player leaderboard.

Cameron Smith’s 2024 season explored

Cameron Smith had a mixed 2024 season on LIV Golf. The Aussie golfer started off the new season with a T8 finish at the LIV Mayakoba in February. He went on to secure a total of seven top-10 finishes, including three runner-up finishes at LIV Golf Hong Kong, Singapore and UK. However, he never managed to clinch a victory.

Smith’s disappointing withdrawal from the Miami event and 52-placed finish at LIV Golf Chicago were the low points of his season.

Interestingly, the six-time PGA Tour winner highlighted his year with a T6 finish at the Masters.

Listed below is the complete breakdown of Cameron Smith's 2024 season:

LIV Golf Mayakoba (El Camaleón Golf Course) - T8
LIV Golf Las Vegas (Las Vegas Country Club) - T15
LIV Golf Jeddah (Royal Greens G&CC) - T41
LIV Golf Hong Kong (Hong Kong Country Club) - 2
LIV Golf Miami (Trump National Doral Golf Course) - Withdrawn
LIV Golf Adelaide (The Grange Golf Club) - T14
LIV Golf Singapore (Sentosa Golf Club) - T2
LIV Golf Houston (Golf Club of Houston) - T48
LIV Golf Nashville (The Grove) - T9
LIV Golf Andalucía (Real Club Valderrama) - T6
LIV Golf United Kingdom (JCB Golf and Country Club) - T2
LIV Golf Greenbrier (The Old White Course) - T8
LIV Golf Chicago (Bolingbrook Golf Club) - 52
LIV Golf Dallas - Stroke Play (Maridoe Golf Club) - T5

Major championship results:

Masters Tournament (Augusta National Golf Club) - T6
PGA Championship (Valhalla Golf Club) - T63
U.S. Open (Pinehurst No. 2) - T32
The Open (Royal Troon Golf Course) - Missed Cut

Following the LIV Golf season’s conclusion, Cameron Smith has committed to multiple events in Australia including the Queensland PGA Championship and the BMW Australian PGA Championship.