Cam Smith struggled to articulate his feelings as he battled to rediscover his form during the closing stages of 2025.
The Australian missed his seventh consecutive cut at the Australian PGA Championship, shooting a four-over 75 in front of his home supporters at Royal Queensland. The disappointing result has seen the 32-year-old plummet to No. 345 in the Official World Golf Rankings, a dramatic fall from grace for the former No. 2 and 2022 Open Championship winner.
In a candid interview with reporters following another missed cut, Smith offered a brutally honest evaluation of his current situation. Some observers, including former professional Mark Allen, have suggested that the 32-year-old’s downturn began when he made the move to LIV Golf, citing concerns that the level of competition doesn’t match that of the PGA Tour.
“Yep, it was s—,” Smith said when asked about his showing at Royal Queensland, where he failed to make the weekend for the seventh consecutive tournament. The Australian admitted his string of failures has left him baffled, as he desperately seeks solutions to his ongoing struggles on the course.
“If you had have told me that was going to happen this morning, when I was warming up, I’d have told you otherwise,” he told reporters afterward. “I don’t know, I just don’t know. I am so confused. I was feeling good, really confident and just couldn’t get anything going.
“It was weird. I was in between clubs a lot today. Hit a couple of bad shots that I would have liked to have again. Drove the ball well .. hit a lot of nice shots. Tough lies killed me today … and then couldn’t get up and down.”
Smith’s remarks following his stumble at Royal Queensland came after the 32-year-old had portrayed himself as a golfer desperately seeking solutions when he addressed journalists before the tournament. In the days preceding the event, Smith acknowledged to reporters that he was determined to reverse his fortunes this year.
“Yeah, that would be cool,” the LIV star told Australian Golf Digest. “I haven’t really thought about that because I’ve been playing like c— but that would be awesome, and maybe that’s a good thing to think about and get me amped up for this week.”
Notably, Smith’s young son, Remy, was watching from the gallery as his father attempted to secure his first victory with his child present. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be for the Australian champion.
Having made his seventh consecutive cut, Smith recognizes the adjustments needed to regain his form, though the LIV star knows he must first achieve the proper mental state to engineer a turnaround.
“It can definitely get in your head, I think it is in my head; It’s just frustrating,” he continued, per Bunkered. “It’s been my story of the year, feel I’ve worked hard all year and got nothing out of it.
“I do know what the answer is, it’s just to keep working hard and try to be patient. I’ve tried to do all the right stuff, for whatever reason it’s not coming together on the course.”
The 32-year-old will have one final opportunity to salvage his season at Royal Melbourne during the Australian Open, where Smith hopes to reverse his fortunes.
