He hangs up his clubs and it’s not due to an injury or anything like that. At 33, he has decided to put an end to his professional career. Victor Dubuisson once ranked 15th in the world and after thirteen years on the Tour, with two victories to his name (Turkish Airlines 2013 and 2015) and being a member of the European team at the Ryder Cup 2014, he has chosen to step aside.
In an interview with L’Equipe, the Frenchman, with a career as mysterious as it is incredible, confirmed the definitive end of his career the day after his withdrawal from the registration list for LIV Golf. “I’ve been thinking for a few years about the fact that I’ve been far from being a professional golfer for a while. It was becoming increasingly difficult for me to face life on the Tour. It’s great, but the loneliness had become extremely heavy. At least for me. I feel that I have reached my limits and I know that I can find pleasure elsewhere,” he admitted in the French newspaper, the player from Cannes.
“I’ve been through a lot in the last 15 years. I have 90% good memories because I only remember the positive. The last few years have not gone well but I needed this to turn the page. It’s life, for me it’s not the end,” argued Dubuisson, who evokes the sorrows he may have awakened among those who saw him as an extraordinary player, like when at the 2014 Ryder Cup he actively participated in Europe’s victory at Gleneagles (Scotland), where he was paired with Graeme McDowell.
“I understand these frustrations. I even agree with that. Yes, I could have done more. I was not at all predestined to have this career. Many people will say that I could have done more and that I could have been the Number 1 in the world. But my strength is being satisfied with what I had. I’m quite happy with that. I don’t live with regret,” he asserted.
His decision, as surprising as it may have been, comes after having managed to obtain an invitation to participate in the selection trials of the LIV. The dissident circuit funded by Saudi Arabia and that could have satisfied his desire to play less to dedicate himself to his other passions. “In fact, I received an invitation 10 days ago and I am flattered. It was a great opportunity, but I thought a lot about it and it’s not what I want deep down. I know this can be shocking, but I’m not a person who likes money. I don’t organise my life around that,” he explains.
“I started from scratch, so I’m very happy with what I’ve done. I didn’t play golf for myself, but for my family. I had to earn a living quickly for my mother and my sister. It was a huge pressure. I was 50 times less stressed at the Ryder Cup,” he maintains. Tired of the professional life that took him all over the world, he admits that he only felt pleasure with the results, although he had hardly achieved notable numbers lately except for his fourth place in Abu Dhabi in January 2022. That’s why, even if he had retained playing rights on the DP World Tour for 2024, he declares without hesitation that he would have made the same decision. “I’m happy and relieved about that. There’s no going back ever again,” he concludes.
