Elvis Smylie didn’t think it would take this long to play his first Open Championship.

That may seem outlandish for a young man who turned 22 in April, but almost everyone who watched his meteoric entry into the world of professional golf thought the same.

Why wouldn’t you when, as a 19-year-old amateur, he very nearly won the very first Webex Players Series Victoria event at Rosebud Country Club in January 2021.

Beating the pros while still an amateur is a rite of passage for the very elite, but it was the way in which Smylie finished second that started the frenzy.

Tied for 97th after a 75 on day one, Smylie stormed home with matching 8-under 63s on the weekend to finish just one back of Brad Kennedy

A month later, in his first event as a professional, Smylie was tied for third at Webex Players Series Sydney. Three weeks after that, he was tied for second at the NSW Open at Concord Golf Club.

Within the space of two months he had exploded into golf’s consciousness, climbing from a 1,571st-ranked amateur to the 494th-best player on the planet with the world at his feet.

A few months later he was taking up sponsor invitations to play against the likes of Sergio Garcia, Viktor Hovland and Martin Kaymer on the DP World Tour, but the transition has been far from seamless.

While he continued to showcase his considerable talent on home soil, the silky left-hander missed the cut in all 10 DP World Tour events he has played on foreign soil to date.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way, yet a 22-year-old wise beyond his years now believes it is the path he was destined to take.

“Looking back on it, I think it’s been a blessing in disguise,” says Smylie ahead of his major championship debut at The Open Championship at Royal Troon this week.

“Everything that I’ve gone through from Rosebud to now is going to help shape me into the person that I’ll be in five, 10 years’ time.

“As much as it’s a little bit odd saying this, maybe it’s a good thing that everything’s happened this way.

“I’ve learned how to dig deep at certain times and get myself out of little holes that I’d been in. “As time’s gone on, I think I’ve appreciated everything that has happened. I’ve got a better perspective on how I can manage everything as well as I can moving forward.”

Sporting blood

Expectation is nothing new to Elvis Smylie.

Father Peter played doubles at three tennis Grand Slam championships and mother, Liz, featured in 13 doubles Grand Slam finals, winning the women’s doubles at Wimbledon in 1985 and the mixed doubles with fellow Australian John Fitzgerald at the 1983 US Open.

Yet while he played as a junior, tennis was never their youngest child’s calling.

“With tennis, you always needed somebody to hit with,” Smylie reasons.

“At the time, my two sisters were living overseas, my mum’s knee was no good and my dad wasn’t in the best shape.”

Growing up living at The Glades on the Gold Coast, golf was always available, and Smylie took every opportunity to feed his insatiable passion for the game.

A torch enabled extra practice on the chipping green late into the evening but it would be Adam Scott’s Masters win in 2013 that proved pivotal in setting Smylie’s path.

“I was at Southport Golf Club and about to go out and play,” he recalls of that fateful Monday morning.

“I was 11 at the time and stuff like that gave me goosebumps.

“Seeing Adam win I was like, ‘That’s what I want to do for a career’.”

Although he has gravitated towards a different sporting pursuit to his accomplished parents, Smylie says that their understanding of professional sport has been vital in navigating the challenging waters of injury and inconsistent form the past two years.

“You have a respect for Mum and Dad knowing that they’ve gone through what I’m going through, just in a different sport,” Smylie adds.

“It’s a very lonely sport, golf, and it’s very important to be able to surround yourself with people that not only want the best for you as a golfer but want the best for you as a person.

“Especially when you’re in those moments that aren’t very nice. Those moments where you’re missing cuts, you really have to rely on those people that are close to you, like your parents.

“To be able to give you that perspective of tough times won’t always last and just keep building towards what you think is the right path.”

Open learnings

Smylie had barely got his clubs in the car after finishing in a tie for second at Final Qualifying at Royal Cinque Ports two weeks ago before messages on Troon came flooding in from Mike Clayton.

A nine-time Open starter – including at Royal Troon in 1989 – Clayton has served as caddie and confidante during Smylie’s formative years in professional golf.

He is one of the most respected voices in world golf and shapes as an ace up Smylie’s sleeve, albeit from tens of thousands of kilometres away.

“He sent me a great e-mail with what to look out for at Troon,” says Smylie.

“The first six holes are the holes that you need to make your score on. And then the back six, I think from 13 to 18, the prevailing wind is straight into your face off the left, so you’re going to have to hit a lot of those low bullet shots that I’m quite familiar and comfortable with.

“Heading into the week, I’ve got a pretty good idea on what shots are required and how I’m going to come up with a really good game plan.”

It won’t be Smylie’s first time to Troon, having attended The Open with his parents as a 14-year-old back in 2016.

It was his first exposure to links golf and sprinkled an additional layer of inspiration into his competitive DNA.

There are plans afoot to play practice rounds with Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee – which could also include Viktor Hovland and Rory McIlroy – but Smylie does not view his debut Open Championship as an end-goal he has finally reached.

No, this is the start of the journey he now feels finally ready to begin.

“I do feel like I belong and I do feel like I can compete,” says Smylie, who joined the Ritchie Smith coaching stable in January after a long association with Ian Triggs.

“I’ve spoken to Min briefly about it and he is a really good guy to be able to try and learn off and see what areas of his game make him a top-30 player in the world.

“To be fair, I don’t feel like I’m too far away from that. I just need to have more experience.

“This is going to be a great stepping stone for me in the right direction.”