PLAYER SPOTLIGHTS<\/p>\n
Cameron Smith: Smith has three LIV Golf victories but went winless in both 2024 and 2025. The former Open Champion has\u00a0arguably the\u00a0best short game in the\u00a0world,\u00a0but his inconsistency with the driver has created some inconsistency in his game over the past few years.\u00a0Smith has been open about his frustrating results and is working hard to regain the form that made him one of the best players in the world. I expect a\u00a0bounce back\u00a0season from Smith in\u00a02026.<\/p>\n
Marc Leishman:\u00a0Leishman had a fantastic 2025, winning LIV Golf Miami and the Victorian PGA Championship in the fall. The veteran continues to play good golf in his early 40s and is coming off one of the best iron seasons of his career. When conditions are tough, Leishman has both the physical and mental tools to climb the leaderboard.<\/p>\n
Lucas Herbert:\u00a0Herbert has been inconsistent thus far on LIV Golf but when he\u2019s in form, has the raw talent to compete with any player in the league. He is long off the tee and has an underrated short game. The 30-year-old should challenge for his first individual win in 2026.<\/p>\n
Elvis Smylie:\u00a0The addition of Smylie was a monumental moment for Ripper GC that should not be understated. The 23-year-old is undeniably the best young Australian player in the world, and his commitment to Ripper GC reaffirms the team\u2019s standing in a country that has a rich golf history. Smylie is a smooth-swinging lefty who has the talent to impact the standings right away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
WHAT THE STATS SUGGEST\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ripper GC has consistently been one of, if not the best, team in the league when it comes to short game. In 2025, they ranked first in the league in putting and third in scrambling. Smith, Leishman and Herbert are all phenomenal on and around the greens and that will continue to be a strength of theirs in 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n
WHERE CAN THEY IMPROVE?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ripper GC\u2019s wizardry around the greens have made up for a lot of deficiencies. Last season, they ranked last in the league in both driving accuracy and greens in regulation. The addition of Smylie, who is a solid player tee to green, should help; but they need more out of their captain in the ball-striking department in 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n
KEY QUOTES<\/p>\n
Cameron Smith on the signing of Elvis Smylie:\u00a0\u201cSigning Elvis is a huge moment, not just for Ripper GC, but for Australian golf. He\u00a0represents\u00a0the next wave of Australian talent coming through at a time when the sport is absolutely booming back home. Elvis has already shown he can win under pressure, compete against world-class fields, and perform on big stages.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron Smith on his lack of positive results in 2025:\u00a0\u201cIt can\u00a0definitely get\u00a0in your head;\u00a0I think it\u00a0is in my head.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0just frustrating.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0been my story of the\u00a0year,\u00a0I feel\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0worked hard all year and got nothing out of it. I do know what the answer\u00a0is;\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0just to keep working hard and try to be patient.\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0tried to do all the right stuff, for whatever reason\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not coming together on the course.\u201d<\/p>\n
Elvis Smylie on joining Ripper GC:\u00a0\u201cGrowing up in Australia, you understand what golf means back home \u2013 the history, the mateship, and the pride that comes with representing your country. To join Ripper GC, led by my long-term mentor, Cam Smith, at a time when Australian golf is growing the way it is means a lot to me. I\u2019m proud to be part of something that embodies where the game has been, and where it\u2019s going next.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
BOTTOM LINE\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ripper GC will be rejuvenated by the addition of Smylie and are always among the most competitive teams on LIV Golf. If Smith can find some form, they will be a contender in the Team Championship.\u00a0<\/p>\n
THREE BOLD PREDICTIONS<\/p>\n
Cameron Smith will finish\u00a0top-10\u00a0at The Masters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Elvis Smylie will finish in the Lock Zone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ripper GC will win LIV Golf South Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PLAYER SPOTLIGHTS Cameron Smith: Smith has three LIV Golf victories but went winless in both 2024 and 2025.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":438797,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[443],"tags":[49,48,622,82],"class_list":["post-438796","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/438796","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=438796"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/438796\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/438797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=438796"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=438796"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=438796"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}