Australian golfers Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman will be announced as LIV Golf’s new defectors on Tuesday night, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The bid to lure Smith was previously reported to be around $143 million.
It’s big news for the sport as world No. 2 Smith will be the highest-ranked player to leave the once-powerful PGA Tour for the Saudi-backed rebel league , which is headed by Australian icon Greg Norman.
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News of Smith’s defection first leaked when he won the British Open last month, although he has refused to confirm or deny the rumours.
He held on to compete in the Tour Championship for a crack at the $26 million winner’s prize, but fell far short of the top spot.
Australia’s Cameron Smith in action during the final round of The Players Championship in Florida. (Getty)
The winner of that, Rory McIlroy, has been the staunchest critic of his fellow pros signing with LIV, which was originally seen as a way to leverage the PGA Tour to increase prize money and give players more power.
Norman’s first big recruit was multiple winner Phil Mickelson, whose name has been largely thrown into the mud in recent months, not only by his defection but also by brazen comments made about crimes against human rights that the Saudi government is accused of.
LIV has slowly recruited an impressive roster of professional golfers, highlighted by Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.
But so far, LIV has failed to land a current top-10 player. Smith is first: he is only behind the American Scottie Scheffler in the world ranking.
Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith. (Getty)
Although LIV Golf has been accused of breaking the sport, it is making moves to raise its profile in Australia.
Norman plans to bring three tournaments Down Under next year, where Aussies will be able to see Smith, Leishman and other big names, a luxury fans from the Antipodes would probably never have.
LIV Golf’s next event is this week in Boston, where Smith and Leishman could debut in the new league.
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