Want to play your best golf in the big events? Follow Cameron Smith’s Masters preparation and you could be the toast of your club.
Featured image: Saudi International 2022/Neville Hopwood
It’s no secret Cam Smith wants to win the Masters – every player does. The Brisbane boy has come close a few times; he owns three top 10s from his past four starts on golf’s hallowed turf. Among those results was a tie for second in 2020, when Smith became the first golfer in Masters history to shoot all four rounds in the 60s.
Now a four-time PGA Tour winner, he’s hungrier than ever to win a green jacket.
One would think a professional golfer eyeing Augusta National as the site of his maiden Major win would change and ramp up his usual practice schedule. But Smith doesn’t; he just narrows in on several crucial areas. Here are some of the aspects of Smith’s game he works on year-round, but with extra intent when the Masters is around the corner.
DRIVING: GET THE TAKEAWAY RIGHT
My tendency with the driver is to get a little outside on the takeaway; meaning my arms move away from the body instead of with it. When that happens, a compensation can be for me drop the club back inside on the downswing. If that happens, the swing path is too in-to-out to be consistent. So, I work on taking the club back more along the target line. One of the reasons my driving has improved during the past two years is I have dedicated more time to building strength. I’ve lost some weight but I’ve also put on some muscle. This has allowed me to increase my clubhead speed without affecting my swing sequencing. How’s your gym membership going?
MASTER IT: You need to drive it long and straight at Augusta to be able to take advantage of the par 5s, or risk getting left behind. The proof is there; the past two Masters I have finished tied 10th and tied second – because I had the driver in top gear. Ask your local pro for takeaway tips!
IRONS: SWING BOTH WAYS
My irons are always very solid, but the work I do with the irons is quite similar to the driver. I just ensure I’m not taking the club too far outside on the way back. This is really important with the irons because how shallow I come into the ball affects the trajectory of the shot – and that’s everything for approach play on tour. If you have ever seen me on the range at a golf tournament, often I have a training aid inside my forearms while I hit balls to ensure my arms stay connected to the body. If my arms are in front of me on the downswing then I’m going to hit it solid.
MASTER IT: Irons are maybe the most important aspect of your game at Augusta National. Your approach play needs to be solid enough that you can go at flags when you have a ‘green light’ situation, but you also need reasonable looks at birdie even when you aren’t firing at the pins. In the lead up to the Masters, I’ll make sure I’m really comfortable working the irons in both directions (fade and draw). That’s the best way to get at the flags at Augusta. It’s also an important skill for amateurs to develop because it’ll present you with more options and take your game to the next level. Ask your local PGA professional what is the best shot-shaping drill to work on for your skill level.
WEDGES: IT’S A NUMBERS GAME
By the time you climb into the top 15 in the world, your wedges are world class. You can’t get there without that part of your game firing. So, when I’m practising my wedges, I’m not necessarily thinking about technique because the hard yards have already been put in. What I do work on are the trajectories and the landing numbers. The heights I want my wedges to come off the face will vary depending on the tournament I’m playing.
MASTER IT: Leading up to the Masters, I’ll put in some extra work hitting wedges with a TrackMan in front of me. I’ll call out the distance I think it’ll carry, before I look at the screen, to get completely in sync with the landing numbers. That’s so crucial at Augusta; you need your wedges to be landing in the exact portion of the green you’re aiming at. Give it a go – it’s fun!
PUTTING: DISTRIBUTE YOUR WEIGHT EVENLY
This may sound simple, but I go back to basics a lot with putting and ensure my fundamentals are solid. For me that’s being very balanced over the putt and hitting every putt in the middle of the putterface. I like to feel my weight is evenly distributed when I’m standing over a putt. From there, it should be really easy to strike the middle of the putterface. When you know you’re hitting the middle of the face, it builds confidence which in turn helps you putt better.
MASTER IT: Controlling your speed on the greens is everything at Augusta. If your speed isn’t dialled in, it’s hard to contend there. One of the first things I do when I arrive at Augusta National for the week of the Masters is spend a decent amount of time learning the speeds of the greens and sharpening my feel for distances with the putter. On the day of your big tournament, ask your pro what the club’s greens are rolling at, and prepare accordingly on the practice green.
