After years of struggling, Cameron Smith and his golf game are on the rise. But the major leaguer and LIV Golf star thinks pro golf’s prize money should go the other way.
That was the gist of his comments to Mirror Sports US this week at LIV Golf Andalucia in Spain. The 2022 Open champion revealed why he thinks golf’s surge amid the LIV Golf-PGA Tour battle is over, and that purses across golf should be reduced “back to the way they were.”
How much golf prize money has increased since LIV arrived
By the end of 2022, Smith was at the peak of his powers. He won the Players Championship earlier that year, then followed it up with a major victory at the 2022 Open Championship in St. Andrews, where he topped Rory McIlroy in the final round.
Smith then signed a massive LIV Golf contract reportedly worth over nine figures. Since its inception, LIV Golf has bagged $30 million with $4 million going to the winner. Those numbers were far higher than the prize money available on the PGA Tour at the time.
Wasting no time, Smith entered the 2022 LIV Chicago event with a win, adding two more LIV victories in 2023.
In response to LIV’s big purses, the PGA Tour and the majors fought back by significantly increasing their prize money. The Players Championship is a good example.
In 2021, Justin Thomas took home $2.7 million in total player earnings of $15 million for his win at TPC Sawgrass. That was a great golf bag at the time.
In 2022, the prize money increased significantly, and Smith received $3.6 million of the $20 million fund.
But the expansion was not done. From 2023 to the present, the Players Championship has featured a $25 million purse with $4.5 million going to the winner.
Larger purses have gone through the same trend, although they have increased more slowly, and the PGA Tour has added a series of Signature Events with purses of $20 million.
Cam Smith on golf’s biggest money: ‘Time for it all to come back’
The way Smith sees it, the ever-growing purses need to stop, and the prize money needs to be brought back to mind. After telling Mirror Sports US that the reduction in LIV bags in 2027 will not cause him to leave the tour, he spoke at length about the issue of the weather bags.
“It’s been four or five years for us golfers, for everyone around the world. A lot has changed, but I think honestly, it’s time for everything to go back to the way it was,” Smith said.
That’s especially true at LIV, where management is busy looking for investors following the decision by Saudi Arabia’s PIF to pull all money out of travel after this season.
“Obviously it wasn’t working, and it’s a long shot, if it happened,” Smith told Mirror Sports US “So we’ll see what happens. I’m sure there will be a lot of changes, especially with the prize money next year.”
If LIV Golf survives to see the 2027 season, and prize money is drastically reduced, then the question becomes: will the PGA Tour and majors follow?
Although Smith supports the idea, it may be difficult to convince other professional golfers that they deserve a pay cut.
As for Smith’s game, it looks like he’s finally rounding into form. After missing six straight cuts in majors starting in 2024, he entered the 2026 PGA Championship and finished T7.
