When the PGA Tour and LIV Golf locked horns in 2022, it felt like golfers playing LIV may never come back to the PGA Tour. The message from the PGA Tour was as blunt as it could be. It was clear, play even a single event on LIV Golf and risk being suspended from the tour. However, a new jolt of energy has hit the golf scene, sparked by a comeback that few saw unfolding this fast. And Phil Mickelson favors it.

Mickelson has been one of the most vocal supporters of LIV Golf from the very beginning. In fact, he is even said to have helped LIV recruit PGA Tour members. He has expressed his feelings vocally, yet again. However, it is not to get someone involved with LIV this time. Instead, he has shared feelings about ex-LIV golfer Laurie Canter making it back to the PGA Tour.

Laurie Canter’s return to the PGA Tour has become one of the standout stories of the season. NUCLR GOLF announced the news with an X post that read, “🚨👀🔙 #RETURN — Laurie Canter, a former LIV golfer and member of the Cleeks GC becomes the first to officially re-gain a PGA Tour card after finishing in the Top 10 on the DP World Tour.” Phil Mickelson, who played with Laurie Canter during their time in LIV Golf, replied to the post and said, “He has worked endlessly on his game and his success is well deserved 👏👏”

Phil Mickelson is right to say that the English golfer has worked on his game. Canter first teed up at a LIV Golf event in 2022 as a founding member of the Cleeks GC. Within a week, Jay Monahan issued a statement saying anyone playing the league’s event will face a one-year suspension from the PGA Tour. This affected the non-PGA Tour member Canter, too.

Canter played in LIV Golf events until 2023, before being replaced by Anthony Kim in 2024. With $5.6 million in winnings from LIV, Laurie Canter headed back to the DP World Tour. Steady growth and a late surge powered Laurie Canter’s rise into the top tier of the DP World Tour standings. He first won the European Open in June 2024 and then the Bahrain Championship in March 2025. This earned him a spot in the Players Championship field.

“It hasn’t been orthodox or, in that respect, it hasn’t been by design,” Canter said about his journey during the Players Championship debut. “It’s just how it worked for me with the opportunities that were in front of me.”

Canter played in 22 events, including four majors, this season. He won the 2025 Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship and finished runner-up at the Investec South African Open Championship. Besides that, he was T2 at the Genesis Championship and solo 3rd at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic. He also had a T7 finish at the BMW International Open. With all the Race to Dubai points accumulated through all these events, he became eligible to play in the DP World Tour Play-Off events.

The 2025 Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship winner carded rounds of 69-65-69-70 to finish T23 at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. And in the season finale, he fired rounds of 68-68-68-67 for a T3 finish. With this, he finished 2nd, only behind Marco Penge, on the list of non-exempt golfers to receive a PGA Tour card for 2026. Overall, Canter was 7th on the Race to Dubai rankings, with 2,899.75 points.

As Phil Mickelson pointed out, Laurie has worked hard on his game and improved it. However, he is not the only one worthy of accolades. Nine other DP World Tour golfers who are not already exempt will join him on the PGA Tour next season.

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Other golfers who earned a PGA Tour card for 2026

Marco Penge, who ranks 2nd on the Race to Dubai rankings, will play on the PGA Tour. The Danish golfer had a breakout 2025 season, winning three times on the DP World Tour. In fact, he was the only one till the very end who had a real chance of denying Rory McIlroy his 7th Race to Dubai title. The Norwegian golfer Kristoffer Reitan will also join Laurie Canter. He showed consistency with a DP World Tour win at the Soudal Open. With 2,762.05 points, he stands 8th overall in the rankings, just below Laurie Canter.

Next on the list is the French golfer, Adrien Saddier. He won the Italian Open in 2025 and finished 2nd at the BMW PGA Championship after a playoff loss. His standings show how 2025 became the best season of his career. While he was 4th among the non-exempt players, he ranked 9th overall and had 2,643.13 points in his name. The 5th name to get a PGA Tour card is Alex Noren. He ended a seven-year winless drought with wins at the British Masters and BMW PGA Championship.

England’s John Parry, China’s Haotong Li, Japan’s Keita Nakajima, Denmark’s Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, and England’s Jordan Smith are the remaining five members to get a PGA Tour card. Jordan Smith, the last to get the card, was 16th on the Race to Dubai standings. He had earned 2,203.32 points.