The merchandise shop has sold out of umbrellas before Cameron Smith’s 11:01 tee-time in round three of this Australian Open, such has been the tempest raining upon Kingston Heath on Saturday morning.

But out into the squalling wet winds we go, to see if Smith can make good on his pledge to fight his way back into a tournament he puts up there with the U.S Masters on his golf-life’s wish list.

Smith had also said he was disappointed the greens were soft, and also said - for he's said a bit this week, bless him - that he would likely need 20-under to win.

After his dud back nine on this course on Friday, to reach that number would mean 65-65 Saturday-Sunday.

For a player of his ability, that is do-able, even if he's spotting tournament leader and Ripper pal, Lucas Herbert, eight shots over the closing 36 holes.

But still – it is Cameron Smith, right? He was 11-under after 27 holes. He can do it again over 36.

Cameron Smith made five bogies on Saturday at Kingston Heath. PHOTO: Getty Images

We find the man on the 10th tee where he’s paired with Alfredo Garcia-Heredia of Spain and Italian Filippo Celli – cosmopolitan trio for a pub crawl up Lygon Street; somewhat ignominious one for Smith given it’s group 18 off the 10th.

The 10th? A brute – a par-4 that's par-5 for the members, into the squalling wet wind. There would be no shame in bogey for Smith except that his four-foot par putt is rammed four-foot past.

On 17 he tugs his tee-shot into the left-hand trap. There’s a pure and long extraction, leaving 25-foot for the bird. His subsequent three (3) putts include a mis-read followed by another four-footer rammed four-foot by.

This man has long been considered the best putter in the world.

“Maybe we should go follow Leish,” suggests a man to his mate, and we nearly agree. Marc Leishman's in the group ahead and on his way to six birdies and 68.

But no - onwards we roll because it’s Cameron Smith and there’s latent potential in the man. He's capable of brilliance. He's so great we' expect him to be, all the time.

But golf is not like that. For anybody. You may have enjoyed 38 points on Sunday, 39 points on Wednesday, and turned up on Saturday rehearsing your medal day speech only to chop your way to 108.

That, friend, is golf. And Smith is having one of those days, at least relative to his status in the game as one of the extraordinary few. 

Cameron Smith attracted a passionate following of fellow golfers who felt his pain. PHOTO: Getty Images

Onto 18 and Smith’s hand comes off driver, golf’s universal signal for nothing good can come from this. The behind-the-tee marshal's red bat flaps like a French lady's fan - Smith's ball has been blocked way right into a mighty eucalyptus.

He finds some luck from a path and makes par. But his drive from the first tee is blocked again, almost to the same place he hit it on 18. There follows a sideways chop-out and a bogey-six on a hole he made eagle-three on Friday.

When he bogies three he's T47 in a tourney he was leading 24 hours ago. And with ever thicker rain making ink-dots on the journo's notepad, we decide we can watch no more.

The man who will blunder his way to 76 is not the Cameron Smith that was Champion Golfer of the Year in 2022. It’s not the one who ran second at Royal Queensland last week.

Not in this round of golf. In this round of golf, Smith's had one of those rounds of golf.