LIV GOLF MEXICO CITY

April 26, 2025

Cam Smith

Club de Golf Chapultepec

Ripper GC

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Let's welcome the captain of Ripper GC, Mr. Cameron Smith. You currently are sitting in second place, one shot off the lead. You shot 5-under today. Tell us about your round.

CAM SMITH: Yeah, much more of the same, really. Played really aggressive golf. Hit the driver quite nice and gave myself plenty of opportunities, so I got off to a really good start. I had a couple of bogeys in a row there through 5 and 6. Just hung in there and kept giving myself chances.

Q. I don't know if you were in here earlier, I was telling Bryson every time I looked up at the TV and watching you guys, you looked like you were having so much fun out there. Was it as fun as it looked?

CAM SMITH: Yeah, it's a really cool vibe out here. I think the fans do a lot of that. They're very excited to have us here. It's cool to play in front of. I'm sure it'll be much more of the same tomorrow. Yeah, hopefully Bryson and I and Joaco can put on a good show.

Q. Cam, I asked Bryson this, but you guys have never played in the final group on a Sunday here at LIV Golf. Just what's it like playing with him? Obviously you got a chance to see all the big drives. You had a couple yourself.

CAM SMITH: Yeah, it's nice playing with him. At times I wish I could drive the ball like him. I often wonder about how much better of a golfer I would be if I could drive the ball like him.

But I think we play a very similar style of golf. We're both pretty aggressive, particularly around here. I think there's a lot of opportunities to lay back, and all of us were hitting driver today and trying to send it down there and give ourselves an opportunity.

It was cool to watch. He's obviously a great player in his own right, and he's going to be tough to beat tomorrow.

Q. The last time you guys both won on LIV Golf, you actually won -- you split four tournaments in a row there at the end of the 2023 season. How much would it mean to get back in that winner's circle at LIV Golf and knowing he wants to end that drought, too.

CAM SMITH: Yeah, it's disappointing not to win, particularly through a season. I think it's definitely on everyone's radar. I wouldn't say it's a goal really, but it's nice to do.

Yeah, but being in contention tomorrow and today was so much fun. It's been a while for me to be at the top of the leaderboard, so I'm really enjoying it, having fun with Sammy out there, and we're trying to make light work of it, so hopefully we can do much more of that tomorrow.

Q. How long did it take to recover from the victory in Miami?

CAM SMITH: I went straight to the Masters that night, so I didn't have much of a celebration at all. I was straight up there that night. Yeah, that was really it. I didn't do anything. That might have been the only one ever that I haven't done anything with the boys. I think everyone went home and everyone had a pretty quiet one. I know Leish would have had a fun couple of weeks at home.

Yeah, it's nice to enjoy those moments, but for me, it wasn't to be.

Q. How would you describe the vibe and the atmosphere on 17 and 18 because the last putt was really terrific and obviously all the fans were going crazy. How would you describe the vibes here?

CAM SMITH: Yeah, it's cool. It's really cool going around the world and seeing the different cultures, how they kind of party. We get to see that quite often. Usually we have a different party hole every week, and I'm really digging this one. This one is pretty cool. It's nice to have a short little par-3 where you can try and make a birdie and make the crowd go wild. But yeah, it's been really fun so far.

Q. When you have great rounds like today and yesterday, how often do you pay attention to the other players' performances?

CAM SMITH: I wouldn't say I pay too much attention to the guys in my group. I am a bit of a leaderboard watcher. I like to know what's going on around the golf course and like to know kind of what I have to do to stay at the top of the leaderboard.

Out there I'm really kind of focusing on myself, but also trying to figure out what I need to do to stay up there.

Q. What will be the key to get in the spot with Bryson to demonstrate in these two days that you are fighting very hard and very tough for the title?

CAM SMITH: Yeah, I don't think I really need to do anything different, to be honest. I just need to go out there and do much more of the same stuff. I feel like I'm hitting my irons and my wedges as good as I have for a long time. I've been giving myself lots of close kind of birdie opportunities.

Yeah, much more of the same tomorrow. Hopefully a couple more putts drop, and we'll see what happens.