Smith drills LIV rival after last hole thriller

2 years ago 91

Cameron Smith drained a clutch putt connected the 18th spread astatine Trump National's connected Friday to decision Phil Mickelson's Hy Flyers GC and seal a semi-finals berth for Punch GC successful LIV Golf's Team Championship.

The Saudi-backed play league's last tourney of the the play comprises of 12 teams of 4 players, with the 48-person tract battling it retired for chopped of the $16 cardinal (AUD$25m) expansive prize.

The quarter-final gathering betwixt the all-Australian Punch GC squad and the Hy Flyers came down to the precise past hole, wherever this year's Open champion erstwhile again showed his people to clinch victory.

Australian Marc Leishman bushed Matthew Wolff 4&2 successful their singles match, but chap countrymen Matt Jones and Wade Ormsby's 3&2 nonaccomplishment to Bernd Wiesberger and Cameron Tringale levelled the scores.

However, satellite No.3-ranked Smith soon edged Mickelson 1up to assertion the match-up 2-1.

As skipper faced captain, Mickelson rallied connected the backmost 9 from 2 down to gully level with Smith astatine the last hole.

But aft Mickelson missed the fairway connected 18, leaving the doorway unfastened with a bogey to decorativeness his round, Smith executed a 10-foot putt to perfection to clinch the lucifer with a par.

Commentator Arlo White descried the conflict arsenic "a lucifer that volition beryllium etched into LIV Golf lore".

Speaking aft the round, Smith condemned Mickleson's dilatory play, calling retired the six-time major-winner's acquainted "gamesmanship".

"I deliberation Phil possibly had immoderate gamesmanship successful determination a small bit," helium said.

"He seemed to instrumentality everlastingly today. I deliberation we were 3 oregon 4 holes behind, truthful that was a spot painful.

"But different than that, it was good."

Punch GC — which was seeded second-last successful the tract — volition present look disconnected against Fireballs GC successful the semi-finals connected Sunday (AEDT).

Smith volition play skipper Sergio Garcia, portion Leishman faces Carlos Ortiz successful singles matches, and Jones and Ormsby instrumentality connected Abraham Ancer and Eugenio Chacarra.

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