Aussie PGA: Smith (78) misses cut as Lee leads Scott

BRISBANE, Australia — Cam Smith missed the cut in his Australian PGA Championship title defense after slumping to 9 over Friday after a 78 in the second round, finishing 21 shots off the pace.

Min Woo Lee took the lead at 12 under at the halfway point after a 5-under 66 on Friday, and Adam Scott was next at 11 under after shooting 65 in the second round.

Hometown favorite Smith was 2 over after the first round but the 2022 Open champion only slid further out of contention with a double-bogey, six bogeys and a solitary birdie in the second.

He missed the cut by nine strokes and said he couldn’t remember playing a worse round as a professional.

“Yeah, no words,” an emotional Smith, one of the stars of LIV Golf, said of his performance. “I’ve performed under pressure before and it’s not acceptable, a bit upsetting actually.”

John Lyras was third at 10 under and two other Australians, Lucas Herbert and Curtis Luck, shared fourth place at 8 under Joel Moscatel of Spain.

Luck’s ace on the 17th helped him to a second-round 67, while overnight leader Moscatel, who opened with a course record-equaling 63, had 71 on Friday.

Rikuya Hoshino of Japan was among the three players at 7 under.

The tournament is being played at Royal Queensland Golf Club, the proposed golf venue for the 2032 Olympics in Brisbane.

Smith missed putts, struggled with his driver and left irons short on the riverside course.

He turned at 4 over but double-bogeyed the 10th and his title defense was all but over there.

He’s next due to play the Australian Open in Sydney next week.