You are forgiven if you missed it. Under lights in Saudi Arabia, on a breakaway tour, is not exactly where you’d be looking for golf’s next big thing.
But, sure enough, there he was. That is, if you believe the hype.
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And if he’s leaving Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau in his wake, while new colleagues trip over themselves to deliver praise, why the heck wouldn’t you?
Elvis Smylie could well be on course to become Australia’s next international golfing superstar.
If that seems like a premature call on the 23-year-old Queenslander, then consider this: Since turning pro in 2021, he’s won on every tour he’s featured on. The latest came on his LIV Golf debut in Riyadh, where he edged the competition’s best player and two-time major winner, Rahm, by one shot to clinch the A$5.6m winner’s cheque.
Smylie exploded with cries of ‘c’mon’ and ‘yes’ after his winning putt hit the bottom of the cup, and a star was born.
But the win did more than just thrust his name forward on the international stage.
It showed that for all the kicking and screaming on LIV Golf to gain more world ranking points, there is a legitimate pathway back to global relevance for its players.
Smylie might even be the first to walk it.
The world ranking was a hot topic at The Grange on Tuesday ahead of LIV Golf’s showpiece event in Adelaide, with many players getting their first chance to react in full to the OWGR’s decision to allocate a reduced amount of points for top-10 finishers.
But for all the uproar about perceived injustices — 47/57 golfers won’t win any OWGR points per LIV event — Smylie struck a drastically different tune.
Speaking of his world ranking goals, he said: “Definitely (to be) top 50 in the world, which I’m very close to achieving.
“It’s great we do get recognition. At the end of the day, good golf takes care of itself so, I will try win a few more times and, ultimately, the Masters is something that’s on my mind now.
“That’s a conversation I can start to have, and it’s fuel to the fire for me. So let’s see what happens these next few weeks.
“I’m continuing to progress in the direction that I want to and play my way into majors, which is something that I’m very passionate about doing.”
That would be some leap, but the facts don’t lie. Smylie, with his eyes firmly fixed on the prize, is suddenly on the brink of breaking into the Masters — and other majors could follow.
He’s got there by virtue of his prodigious jump up the world rankings in Riyadh, where victory lifted him from world No.134 to 77th.
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Another win this week in Adelaide, and Smylie is projected to rocket himself to about 45th.
There remains heavy conjecture over whether LIV Golf is appropriately recognised by the OWGR, and fair enough. Smylie only clinched 22.99 points in Riyadh compared to Chris Gotterup’s 58.10 in Phoenix.
However, Smylie’s win shows how the OWGR’s softened stance towards LIV does genuinely leave the door ajar to its best performers.
‘CAN BE THE BEST IN THE WORLD’
Should Smylie break new ground by busting through that door, the wider golfing world will be in no doubt over his true potential.
It’s something that’s been understood for some time to golf fans on these shores, where Smylie is not an unknown force.
That is in small part down to the fact that he might not even be the most famous member of his family. Smylie’s mother, Liz, is a four-time Grand Slam winner in doubles, while father Peter was also a tennis pro.
Riyadh champ Smylie eyeing masters spot | 00:29
But Smylie’s own fame is chiefly down to a breakthrough win at the 2024 Australian PGA Championship, where he edged out mentor Cameron Smith to win by two shots.
Even so, his rise to this point has been far more rapid than anyone could’ve thought.
Take it from Smith, whose relationship with Smylie goes back to 2019 when he was the 17-year-old recipient of the scholarship bearing his name.
“It’s all happened really quickly,” Smith said. “I don’t think I would have thought it would happen that quick. But it has, and it’s great. It’s awesome.
“I think Elvis has already decided he wants to be one of the best golfers in the world and he proved it (in Riyadh).
“And the crazy thing is I still think he’s got a lot of improving to go, which is pretty scary, really, for the rest of us, because he waxed us.
“So I genuinely think he can be the best golfer in the world. He’s got all the tools of the trade.
“He’s got the mentality, he’s got the grit — he’s a Queenslander, so that comes with it — so he has to decide where he goes from here, and I think he can only go one way, and it’s to get better.”
Though Smith’s praise is undoubtedly the strongest Smylie has received, this is not merely a case of mentor sticking up for protegee (and teammate, since his recruitment by Ripper GC).
If the OWGR was the biggest talking point in Adelaide, it only narrowly eclipsed Smylie who was a firm rival for top-billing. From Smylie’s Ripper teammates, to international rivals at Fireballs and Smash GC, it was clear that the Australian left an astonishing first impression in Riyadh.
“I played with Elvis in the final round. What an incredible golfer and such a good kid,” LIV Golf’s individual champion in 2023, Talor Gooch, said.
“Twenty-three years old is crazy to think about. I was not nearly as mature as he is when I was 23 and not nearly as good of a golfer as he is.
“It’s incredible since I’ve turned pro how much better these dudes are when they turn pro than what we were 10 years ago when we turned (pro) — it’s unbelievable the shift in that.
“It’s awesome. You see a 23-year-old Elvis that just won … and to see him putting all the time in, and he’s literally 30 years younger than some of the other guys out here … it’s incredible.”
And it wasn’t just the senior crop who were left gushing over Smylie.
So, too, were his rival young guns on tour David Puig, Josele Ballester and Luis Masaveu, who are all less than 25 but are equally stunned by Smylie’s own rapid rise.
“He played incredible,” Puig said. “I tried my hardest to beat him, and he just kept making birdies and playing awesome golf.
“Maybe it means that the youngsters are hopefully ready to win a little more.
“It’s just a great inspiration for me and probably for those two guys (Ballester and Masaveu), as well, to know that in a way we’re ready to win, and hopefully beat the older players more often.”
Ballester added: “Seeing Elvis win last week was definitely inspirational.
“I think it’s a good sign for the league that young guys like us, we can start being in contention more often and eventually win like Elvis did.”
Masaveu said he was also inspired by Smylie’s win, adding that it showed the young guns that “we can do it as well”.
Elvis Smylie’s most recent pro results
LIV Riyadh — 1
Hero Dubai Desert Classic — T109
Australian Open — T8
Australian PGA Championship — T19
DP World Tour Championship — T42
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship — T32
Genesis Championship — T75
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship — T99
Open de France — T2
BMW PGA Championship — T31
Irish Open — T37
Betfred British Masters — T33
Danish Golf Championship — T6
A LANDMARK STEP
There is an added twist to Smylie’s LIV arrival that makes his situation even more incredible.
While many of LIV’s recruits joined the tour at the expense of competing on others — in many cases, memberships were relinquished — Smylie has suggested he will remain a semi-regular contender on Europe’s DP World Tour.
That is despite the fact that the DP World Tour has issued hefty fines to members who have skipped events to play conflicting LIV Golf tournaments.
Rahm revealed earlier this year that in two seasons on LIV Golf, his fines have tallied about A$4.2 million, though they were subject to an appeal.
Smylie’s arrangement is a curious one with the Australian refusing to reveal its exact details.
Nonetheless, his comments suggest that LIV Golf chief Scott O’Neil has brokered a special deal for a select few, including Smylie, to continue to play on Europe’s premiere circuit without significant penalty.
“The one thing that I will say is what a great job Scott O’Neil has done with being able to have negotiations with the DP World Tour and coming up with a solution for us LIV players that still want to continue playing on the DP World Tour,” he said.
“I’ve been given that opportunity, and I’m excited to continue playing on that Tour.
“There’s protocols to go through, and there’s steps that LIV is still going through with the DP World Tour, but we’re really confident that we’re able to move in a positive direction.”
Last season was Smylie’s first as a full-time DP World Tour player. His best result outside of winning the Australian PGA was a T2 at the Open de France, where he was narrowly defeated by Michael Kim, while he claimed top-10 finishes at the Danish Golf Championship and Australian Open.
Speaking of the importance of continuing in Europe, Smylie said he views the exposure to different courses and environments as crucial to his ongoing development.
“Last year was such a huge learning curve of having that opportunity of playing so many different tournaments worldwide, and that tour is still very competitive,” he said.
“And I feel like playing on that tour is still going to put me in really good stead in order to continue to get better.
“That experience last year in Europe really served me in great stead. I felt like I really became a worldly golfer. You’re always competing in different environments and conditions, and that’s something that I’ve really thrived on, and I’m really looking forward to this year.”
If nothing else, the shock development — and the lengths in which LIV was prepared to go in its hunt for his signature — speak to how highly-rated Smylie is.
His next step could prove mutually beneficial, too, amid a backdrop of uncertainty for LIV Golf.
The Saudi-backed tour is reaching its crossroads moment as it heads into a fifth season, with more stars coming off contract.
Already, Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed have quit the league to chase returns on the PGA Tour.
There is the potential for more to follow with DeChambeau refusing to commit beyond this year, while the PGA Tour briefly threatened to snatch Smith and Rahm via a special, limited-time offer. Though that offer has now lapsed, it stands to reason another could emerge in the future with the PGA Tour clearly open to bringing top players back into the fold.
It places added importance on the success of those that LIV have recruited to flourish into big names in their own rights.
Herbert goes in on OWGR over rankings | 00:35
In the absence of any big-name signings, recruits have increasingly trended toward young players, such as Smylie, who aren’t superstars, but have the potential to be so. Puig and Ballester are earlier examples, while champion college golfer Michael La Sasso was this year plucked as another prospect.
Combined with the special deal with the DP World Tour — and the fact his recruitment left foundational player Matt Jones without a spot on LIV Golf — Smylie has added weight on his shoulders in his debut year.
Even so, that pressure comes with opportunity. And on the weight of early evidence, it’s one that Smylie is ready to grasp.
He knows that he’s already “gained the respect of each player on the tour”, but he made it clear in Adelaide that this is just the beginning.
“I think the important thing for me … is just not get too complacent with what we achieved last week, which was something significant,” Smylie said.
“I think we now want to look forward and look for the next mountain to climb…”
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