Vikki Laing has fled Scotland’s winter and will spend the next month in sunny California. But she’s already looking forward to coming home to Musselburgh,  launching a serious bid to win the Ladies’ European Tour Rookie of the Year award and finally transforming her amateur brilliance into a glittering professional career. 

The record four times Scottish Girls’ Champion and 2002 Curtis Cup star has had a few years in the relative golfing wilderness. But having won her passport to the European circuit via this month’s Tour School at La Manga in Spain, she could finally be set to confirm her enormous potential.

Now in her sixth year as a professional – two seasons as a non-exempt player on the LPGA Tour and three on the US Futures Tour – the 27-year-old is looking forward finally being able to kick-start her career.

“I’m delighted and relieved to have got through qualifying,” she said after making it third time lucky in her bid for a European ticket. “Now I’m looking forward to a year when, hopefully, I can make a bit of money, see my coach (Morecambe-based Simon Fletcher) on a more regular basis and have some family time.

“Up until now, my professional career has been quite difficult, but it is nice to know that I will be guaranteed to play in 20 plus tournaments this year, and there will be a far better chance of getting into big events such as the Women’s British Open.

“I’m back at my rental home in California, and I’ll be staying here for the next few weeks. But it’s really just to tie things up before I return home for the rest of the year.”

Laing will be one of four Scottish rookies on the Tour this year – Krystle Caithness, Pamela Feggans and Michele Thomson are the others – and her first tournament will be the Turkish Ladies’ Open at the start of May.

Laing enjoyed a breakthrough a couple of years ago when she became the first Scot to win an event on the Futures Tour at the 2007 Gettysburg Championship, but she never viewed America’s second women’s circuit as a serious money earner.

“You can’t make a living on the Futures,” she revealed. “Everyone was really just chasing the five cards that were on offer for the LPGA Tour. But if you didn’t start the season well, then by halfway through the season it was all over.

“Europe is much better. There are a lot of great players, more tournaments and more money. It is a growing circuit and there is an opportunity to make good money.”

In fact, the 2009 LET has 27 tournaments and a record £11M prize purse (though it is unlikely for most players that they could play in all 27).  This year’s Futures offered just £1.13M for 16 events.

But if there are cheques to collect this year, Laing is also fully aware that flights, hotels and car hire will bite deeply into her winnings. And, at this time of economic hardship, it could be a tough year.

“I’m desperately looking for some sort of sponsorship,” she continued. “I had someone who supported me in the States, but if I don’t get any help over here then I’ll really be struggling.”

A sociology graduate from the University of California and a lover of all things American, the Musselburgh golfer still has dreams of becoming a top player on the world’s best women’s circuit, the US-based LPGA Tour.

Following in the footsteps of such as North Berwick’s Catriona Matthew, a multiple LPGA winner and a three-time Curtis Cup player, remains her ultimate goal.

“Europe is definitely the place I want to be this year,” she confirmed. “But I hope to be back at the LPGA Qualifying School in December.”

She suffered one of her many professional hiccups when she was disqualified from the 2008 LPGA School when she mistakenly signed for a wrong score. After so many disappointments, she’s hoping that the recent success at La Manga truly is the career turning point.

EB
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