Englishman Laurie Canter chose to return to LIV Golf despite qualifying for a PGA Tour card.
Canter told The Times of London that the decision had to do with the point he’s reached in his career and personal life and that he won’t be turning his back on the DP World Tour, either.
LIV members are currently allowed to play on the DP World Tour (formerly known as the European Tour) provided they pay fines for competing in LIV events that conflict with the tour’s own schedule. The Saudi-funded golf league has been paying those fines for their players, but will stop doing so in 2026.
“The tour has to do what’s best for itself, but as to whether I’m having my cake and eating it, I feel like I’m doing the opposite,” Canter told the Times.
“I’m not leaving the DP World Tour. I’m playing LIV instead of playing on the PGA Tour. I will have to start paying fines myself and I’m not over the moon to drop £1 million to stay a member, but I want to be involved.”
Canter joined LIV Golf in 2022 but was demoted to a reserve by 2023 and appeared in just two events in 2024 as a “wild card” unaffiliated with a team.
He returned to Europe and won his first two DP World Tour events in June 2024 and February 2025. At the end of the 2025 season, Canter was among the top 10 players in the tour’s Race to Dubai points standings not already exempt on the PGA Tour — meaning he had earned a dual membership, if he wanted it.
At the same time, LIV came calling back for Canter, now 36. He chose to join Majesticks GC in place of the relegated Henrik Stenson of Sweden. Canter will play with countrymen Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Sam Horsfield.
“The offer I had to go was brilliant,” Canter said of LIV. “You’re weighing up all these things: where am I going to play my best golf and how do I feel I can do that and be compensated in the best way that I can, but it is also the lifestyle.
“The PGA Tour schedule is still probably the pinnacle of tour golf but, truthfully, I enjoy playing in Europe and I’m still passionate about playing events on the DP World Tour.
“If you’re going out to play on the PGA Tour and you can live in America, that’s obviously achievable but, at this point, I don’t want a life like that.”
Canter added that his wife and two daughters are settled in their home in Dubai and traveling back and forth to the United States “isn’t sustainable.”
Canter and Frenchman Victor Perez are the two new free agent signings for LIV this winter. Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent and Japan’s Yosuke Asaji earned invites through the International Series Order of Merit standings. Two more players will be invited through the LIV Golf Promotions event scheduled for January in Florida.
–Field Level Media
