LIV Golfer Cameron Smith invests in Jacksonville private golf club, Jim Furyk to renovate the course

LIV golfer Cameron Smith invested in Glen Karen Golf and Country Club, a private golf club located in Jacksonville. Smith is a leading investor in the Florida-based golf club, which was acquired by local development company Corner Lot on Friday, January 5.

Jim Furyk, the 2003 US Open champion, will be renovating the golf club, which will be managed by Hampton Golf. The official aim is to close the land for a year while renovations are made and a variety of corridors for the golf course are built.

Speaking about the new investors, Travis Norman, executive manager of Hampton Golf, mentioned that Corner Lot's CEO, Andy Allen, had expressed a strong desire for Smith to be a part of the team restoring the golf club. And gladly, the former Claret Jug champion was on board.

"Andy Allen kept saying I want you to meet with Cam Smith, and that’s how it happened. I went and met with his business team, and he’s in. There’s a significant amount of deferred maintenance to be addressed in the first year to make it a premier club in the area. We know that demand is high for a high-end private club with limited membership, and the supply is lower in this market,” Norman said (via Golf Week).

Jim Furyk has been a longtime member of Glen Kernan and is eager to revamp the golf course. Speaking of his work with the team, Furyk stated that they intended to create more holes and make the ground playable.

“The golf course has a lot of promise and good bones. Our plan is to make a few holes a little more playable for our average golfers and extend some tee boxes to lengthen the course for our better players,” he said (via Golf Week).

In addition, Furyk mentioned Smith, saying he would speak with the Australian and would work accordingly.

"I’m sure he’ll (Smith) be interested. I think Andy has let him know that he can have some input on the practice facilities (at the double-sided range) and such, so I’ll talk to him a little bit about that. I’m sure Cam will want some privacy at the back of the range to get his work done and get ready for tournament golf.”

According to Golf Week, Friday was the last day when the club was public and will now be under the control of Cornet Lot. The construction is likely to begin next week.

---

When will Cameron Smith play next?

Cameron Smith competes on LIV Golf and the Saudi Arabian circuit only has a limited number of 14 tournaments in a season. They completed the regular second season in October 2023 and the new season will begin in February 2024.

Smith is most likely to return to professional tournaments with the 2024 LIV Golf Mayakoba event, which will take place from February 2-4 at El Cameleon Golf Course in Mexico.