x
Skip to main content
Golf Logo
InsideGolf Join Now  / Log In
Aussie Rules: Cameron Smith breaks Rory McIlroy’s heart, storms back to win Open at St. Andrews
SHARE
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share by Email
Golf Logo
  • News
    • Latest
      • News
      • Features
      • Shows
      • PGA Tour Schedule
    • Series
      • Tour Confidential
      • Monday Finish
      • Hot Mic
      • Rogers Report
    • Shows
      • The Scoop
      • Subpar
      • Seen & Heard
  • Instruction
    • Game Improvement
      • Driving
      • Approach Shots
      • Bunker Shots
      • Short Game
      • Putting
      • Rules
      • Fitness
    • Series
      • Top 100 Teachers
      • Rules Guy
      • The Etiquetteist
    • Shows
      • Warming Up
      • Play Smart
      • Short Game Chef
      • Pros Teaching Joes
  • Gear
    • Clubs
      • Drivers
      • Irons
      • Hybrids
      • Fairway Woods
      • Wedges
      • Putters
    • Other Gear
      • Balls
      • Shoes
      • Apparel
      • Golf Accessories
    • Series
      • ClubTest
      • Winner’s Bag
    • Shows
      • Fully Equipped
  • Travel & Lifestyle
    • Travel
      • Course Finder
      • Courses
      • Resorts
    • Lifestyle
      • Accessories
      • Celebrities
      • Food
      • Style
      • Betting Advice
    • Shows
      • Super Secrets
      • Destination Golf
  • Shop
    • Shop
      • Clubs
      • Shafts
      • Training Aids
      • Balls
      • Bags
      • Technology
      • Apparel
      • Accessories
      • Our Picks
      • Shop All
    • Collections
      • The GOLF Collection
      • The Birdie Juice Collection
      • The Fully Equipped Collection
      • Shop All
  • Newsletters
    • Sign Up for GOLF’s Newsletters
      • Hot Mic
      • Monday Finish
      • Play Smart
      • Our Picks
      • Top Stories
      • Sign Up for All
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Features
    • Shows
    • PGA Tour Schedule
  • Instruction
    • All Instruction
    • Driving
    • Approach Shots
    • Bunker Shots
    • Short Game
    • Putting
    • Rules
    • Fitness
  • Gear
    • All Gear
    • Drivers
    • Irons
    • Hybrids
    • Fairway Woods
    • Wedges
    • Putters
    • Balls
    • Shoes
    • Apparel
    • Golf Accessories
  • Travel & Lifestyle
    • All Travel
    • All Lifestyle
    • Course Finder
    • Courses
    • Resorts
    • Accessories
    • Celebrities
    • Food
    • Style
    • Betting Advice
  • Series
    • Tour Confidential
    • Monday Finish
    • Hot Mic
    • Rogers Report
    • Rules Guy
    • The Etiquetteist
    • ClubTest
    • Winner’s Bag
  • Shows
    • The Scoop
    • Subpar
    • Seen & Heard
    • Warming Up
    • Play Smart
    • Short Game Chef
    • Pros Teaching Joes
    • Fully Equipped
    • Super Secrets
    • Destination Golf
  • Shop
    • Clubs
    • Shafts
    • Training Aids
    • Balls
    • Bags
    • Technology
    • Apparel
    • Accessories
    • The GOLF Collection
    • The Birdie Juice Collection
    • The Fully Equipped Collection
  • Newsletters
    • Hot Mic
    • Monday Finish
    • Play Smart
    • Top Stories
    • Our Picks
    • Sign Up for All
InsideGolf Join Now  / Log In
InsideGolf
News

Aussie Rules: Cameron Smith breaks Rory McIlroy’s heart, storms back to win Open at St. Andrews

By: James Colgan
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Follow on Instagram
July 17, 2022
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share by Email
cam smith open championship

Cameron Smith surged to his first major championship victory at the 150th Open at St. Andrews.

Getty Images

A new man has taken up residence at the Home of Golf. Cameron Smith stormed back from as many as three down on Sunday to claim his first major win at the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews.

In a brilliant final-round performance, Smith (20-under) recorded the lowest Sunday score ever for a winner at St. Andrews, a bogey-free 64 that vaulted him past the prohibitive hometown favorite, Rory McIlroy.

Smith entered the day three back of McIlroy after a disappointing round in the final pairing on Saturday, but shot out of a cannon in the penultimate group on Sunday. After birdies on the second and fifth, the 28-year-old Australian made five straight down the back nine, a stretch that vaulted him into the lead and, eventually, won him the tournament.

“I knew if I could get it somewhere within, 15-25 feet, I’d have a chance,” Smith said afterward. “Luckily, a few went in.”

While McIlroy faltered through the easy stretch from 10-14, Smith went on a scoring bonanza. Smith needed just six putts to hole five straight birdies on the ‘outer loop’, which pushed him into a one-stroke lead he never relinquished.

ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND - JULY 17: Cameron Smith of Australia reacts on the 15th green during Day Four of The 150th Open at St Andrews Old Course on July 17, 2022 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
Cam Smith’s five-birdie streak won him the Open on Sunday. Getty Images

Comparatively, McIlroy played the stretch at just one-under, needing 10 putts to get through the easiest stretch on the course. McIlroy also played a bogey-free round on Sunday, but a par on the 14th — a short par-5 that played as the third-easiest on the course all week — sunk his chances of catching Smith.

Smith’s approach on the famed Road Hole 17th nearly unseated his efforts. He hit his second shot just short of the green, his ball rappelling into the valley just shy of the massive Road Hole bunker. Rather than chip over the face of the bunker, Smith putted around it, leaving a testy 15-footer for par. But that was no matter. His par putt fell into the side of the hole for an all-world four, preserving the lead.

Putting
ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND - JULY 17: Cameron Smith of Australia reacts on the 15th green during Day Four of The 150th Open at St Andrews Old Course on July 17, 2022 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
‘FIVE in a row!’: Watch Cam Smith’s amazing British Open birdie streak
By: Luke Kerr-Dineen

On the 18th, Smith again flirted with disaster when his drive dribbled just right of the Valley of Sin. He faced a long, testing eagle putt over a dangerous ridge. But his putter bailed him out again, with two simple putts paving the way for a tournament-clinching birdie.

Indeed, Sunday would come down to putting. While Smith drained clutch putt after clutch putt, McIlroy burned edge after edge, the most damning of which coming on the 17th, when a 15-foot birdie effort missed just wide. McIlroy made just two birdies on Sunday, the last of which coming on the 10th green. But it was the eight-hole birdie-less stretch between 11 and 18 that proved the difference. Though Sunday at St. Andrews was McIlroy’s nearest miss yet, his major-less streak reached eight years with the loss.

With the victory, Smith becomes the 30th winner of the Open at St. Andrews. He joins Zach Johnson, Louis Oosthuizen and Tiger Woods to earn major championship victories at the Old Course in the 21st Century.

Latest In News

8 minutes ago

Two golfers versus...one?! Inside the most fascinating match of the year

12 hours ago

Arkansas' Maria Jose Marin wins NCAA DI Women's Golf Championship

12 hours ago

Top-ranked amateur Luke Clanton wins Ben Hogan Award

16 hours ago

Sergio Garcia barely misses U.S. Open spot, likely snapping incredible streak

James Colgan

Golf.com Editor

James Colgan is a news and features editor at GOLF, writing stories for the website and magazine. He manages the Hot Mic, GOLF’s media vertical, and utilizes his on-camera experience across the brand’s platforms. Prior to joining GOLF, James graduated from Syracuse University, during which time he was a caddie scholarship recipient (and astute looper) on Long Island, where he is from. He can be reached at james.colgan@golf.com.

  • Author Twitter Account
  • Author Instagram Account

Related Articles

Gear
Todd Hamilton Hybrid, Royal troon

His Open win made this hybrid famous. But its manufacturer couldn't capitalize

By: Ryan Barath
News
ivor robson holds mic open

Ivor Robson, beloved Open Championship announcer, dead at 83

By: James Colgan
News
Brian Harman checks his yardage book and scorecard on the 11th hole green during the final round of The 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool Golf Club on July 23, 2023 in Hoylake, England.

How did Brian Harman distract himself during Open Championship week? A sci-fi novel

By: Jack Hirsh
News
jon rahm palms to the sky

Open Championship stock report: Ryder Cup (up!), TV ratings (down!) from Royal Liverpool

By: James Colgan
Travel
From top right, clockwise: Royal Liverpool's 17th, Open winner Brian Harman, Wallasey Golf Club, the Tasting Bar and Kitchen in Hoylake.

Lessons from Hoylake: A hidden golfing gem, a contentious par-3, the next Brian Harman and more

By: GOLF Editors
News
Tommy Fleetwood at Royal Liverpool.

10 Open Championship scenes you couldn't have seen on TV

By: Dylan Dethier
News
Brian Harman

Brian Harman hate, Rory, Beatles: 50 Open Championship observations 

By: Nick Piastowski
Travel
17th at royal liverpool

He designed the Open's controversial 17th hole. Here's how he thought it played

By: Josh Sens
News
Brandel Chamblee

Brandel Chamblee says Rory McIlroy is past his physical prime

By: Jessica Marksbury
Sign up for GOLF's Newsletters
Get the latest news, the hottest instruction tips, new product releases, golf media insider reports and more delivered directly to your inbox. Choose your favorites now.
Sign Up
Categories
  • News
  • Instruction
  • Gear
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
Services
  • Masthead
  • GOLF Media Kit
  • GOLF Magazine Customer Service
  • TERMS OF SERVICE
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • Opt-out of Ads/Sharing
  • Your Privacy Choices
Social
  • facebook
  • x
  • instagram
  • youtube
Membership
InsideGOLF Logo
More than $140 Value for JUST $39.99

INCLUDES 12 SRIXON Z-STAR XV GOLF BALLS, 1 YR OF GOLF MAGAZINE, $20 FAIRWAY JOCKEY CREDIT - AND MUCH MORE!

LEARN MORE

© 2025 EB Golf Media LLC. An 8AM Golf Affiliated Brand. All Rights Reserved. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy a linked product, GOLF.COM may earn a fee. Pricing may vary.

Go to mobile version