Cameron Smith Locked In To Defend Australian PGA And Chase Australian Open Victory

Cameron Smith has committed to resuming his title defense at the Australian PGA this coming summer, and he has also set his eyes on being the first American to win the Australian Open.

Cameron Smith said on Tuesday morning that he would compete in the Australian PGA and Open later in the year, so he could briefly return to Australia in October to cheer on his beloved Brisbane Broncos in the NRL grand final.

While Smith has won the PGA Championship three times, he has yet to add the Open to his collection of major championships.

After running out of steam at the conclusion of a whirlwind homecoming a year ago, he has made no secret of his desire to win the Stonehaven Cup and will return to Sydney later this year determined to do so.

Smith lamented that "it was a bit of a crappy way to end such a good year," especially following the high quality of Brisbane.

The pressure from the outside world culminated during the second week. Strangely, I wasn't feeling too energized.

Typically, I get the most pumped up for a tournament. There I was, feeling very uncharacteristic of myself. It hurts a little bit.

This year, I'm going to try harder to keep some of that under control. Home, with all its comforts and conveniences, can be draining.

I'm in desperate need of it. I've gotten to the point where I need it more than I want it. It's strange for me since I've done so well and won so often at the Australian PGA.

Then to not receive an Australian Open is somewhat disheartening. That's something I'm hoping to see improved this year.

Smith's plans for the rest of the year are already set in stone, but he saw on Tuesday that there was a free weekend around the time of the NRL grand final.

If the Broncos make it, he'll have time to return to Australia over the weekend before heading to Jeddah and Miami for the next two stops on the LIV tour. The summer tour then heads back to Australia.

In all honesty, "it might not work out too bad," Smith admitted.

"There is some distance to be covered, but it's well worth it."

Although he assures that LIV events, like the enormously popular tournament held in Adelaide earlier this year, will continue beyond this year, he does not know the outcome of ongoing merger talks between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.

"We are definitely moving forward with it," Smith affirmed.

We plan on returning to ground level soon. That tournament was arguably the highlight of the year for the lads on LIV.

There was a correlation between the golf course and the spectators. We had better return to the ground level, or there will be an uprising.

When pressed to reveal his 2019 plans, Smith said he was holding off until he had more information. The Olympics, however, are a competition that he has his sights set on.

While several of his LIV teammates have dropped out of Olympic contention due to falling world rankings, Smith is still fighting for a top-10 finish in the majors.

He will currently be automatically qualified for the Australian Open, however he admits he is a little anxious about the situation until the PGA Tour and LIV Golf settle their issues and see how the ranking systems shake out.

He said, "I am pretty conscious of it," referring to the upcoming Paris Olympics.

My major league season went quite well. Seeing how far you'd fall behind if you didn't have a couple of solid finishes in majors would have been interesting — or, to be more accurate, dreadful.

As a result, I am always thinking about the possibility of doing it again. In the past, I had a fantastic experience. Nothing beats being able to show off your family crest.