Ex-LIV golfer Laurie Canter dubs himself 'more satisfied' after winning on the European Tour

England’s Laurie Canter is currently playing in the DP World Tour’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. The former LIV golfer comes into the competition on the back of a mixed season, which also saw him clinch his first-ever victory on the European Tour. The golfer has now revealed that he feel like a ‘more happy, satisfied person’ after his first win.

For the unversed, Canter won the European Open in June. The Englishman won the event, held at the at the Green Eagle Golf Course in Germany, after defeating South Africa’s Thriston Lawrence and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger by two strokes. Reminiscing his win, the 35-year-old said he ‘always wanted to win on tour.’ The former Saudi-backed series player said he is ‘very content’ with the ‘great’ result he managed this year.

Speaking about his maiden DP World Tour victory after Round 1 of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Laurie Canter said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:

“It's great that I've done it. I think once you win, you want to get back in contention and see how you feel. It was going okay in Ireland and fell away a bit on the weekend… Probably there's a part of me that really wants to get back in contention and have a chance on Sunday and see how I feel. But I definitely feel the satisfaction I got from it in a wider sense just not from golf, something I've always wanted to do was win on tour.

"To win a tournament like that that's got so many Champions Retreat great champion champions, it definitely in a wider sense, I feel a more happy, satisfied person. I think in golf, you're in between the kind of highs and lows of it but I feel very, very content and happy that I managed to do that this year.”

It is pertinent to note that Laurie Canter was spotted fighting back tears after his European Open victory in June. The golfer had then noted that the win was ‘all he’s wanted to do’ in his career.

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Laurie Canter's life after leaving LIV Golf

Laurie Canter was one of the first to join the controversial LIV Golf series in 2022. The Englishman was among the founding members of the breakaway tour as he sided with the Cleeks GC franchise in 2022. However, he lost his roster spot in 2023 and continued on the circuit as a reserve.

Having competed in 11 of the 14 events and finishing 44th in the standings, the golfer left the Saudi-backed series and returned to the DP World Tour.

According to him, Canter is trying to be the first player to leave LIV Golf and earn a spot on the PGA Tour. He is currently an active player on the European circuit and plans to amass more wins and put himself in contention for the American circuit spot.

However, the golfer, who reportedly paid off around $800,000 in fines to re-enter the DP World Tour, remains banned by the PGA. The European Open winner, who is yet to earn his PGA Tour card, had earlier been informed that he remains ineligible for PGA Tour competition for playing on LIV.

Notably, Laurie Canter has since dubbed the ruling ‘absurd’ as he was never part of the PGA Tour when joining LIV Golf. The Englishman has since backed the prospective deal between the PGA and LIV backers—Public Investment Fund (PIF)—as it could pave the way for players like him onto the American circuit.