Janice Moodie has always known what she wants out of life. Determined to follow her dream, she worked in seedy Glasgow nightclubs in her desire to fund a top-class amateur golfing career and was duly rewarded with a Scottish Championship title and a couple of Curtis Cup caps.

After four years at San Jose University in California, she then stepped straight onto the LPGA Tour and joined an elite band of Scottish winners in the US - Kathryn Imrie and Catriona Matthew are the others - with triumphs in the 2000 ShopRite Classic and the 2002 Asahi Ryokuken International.

Off the course, her life has also been equally well ordered. She married American accountant, Tim Carneval, six years ago, and they now have an 18-month-old son, Craig.

But after the break to start her family - and thanks to the assistance of her Scottish nanny, Nicola - Janice is now once again fully committed to her playing career. She would love to add to her list of titles, and another Solheim Cup cap to set alongside victories in 2000 (at Loch Lomond) and 2003 (in Sweden) is also high on the wish list.

"Adjusting to life on Tour with Craig has been easier than I expected," she said. "Craig and Nicola travel with me as much of the time as possible, and sometimes they stay at home with Tim.

"There are day care facilities at every tournament with a lot of kids and he loves that as well. He's just beginning to talk - and having him around does give you a different perspective.

"Now I've got someone other than myself to think about. He's a distraction from golf, but a good distraction. This year, I'll be playing a full schedule in the States and a few in Europe."

Unfortunately, her list of European events will not include the Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies' Scottish Open at the Carrick, Loch Lomond, at the start of May. It is in the midst of a run of LPGA tournaments, and she explained: "It's just a bad time on the schedule. My career is based in the States and that has to take priority.

"We have a couple of tournaments in Florida in April and then a really big event  - the Michelob ULTRA Open in Virginia - the week after the Scottish. It's really disappointing, but I just can't fit it in."

She did play in the tournament last year, finishing in the top five, and she was heartened by the show from the next generation of rising Scots, notably 15-year-old Carly Booth and 16-year-old Sally Watson.

On the final day at the Carrick, Janice was paired with Sally, who played all four rounds in last year's Ricoh Women's British Open at St Andrews, and she was mightily impressed.

"Sally is already a very talented player and a good thinker. She had her Dad as caddie and they worked really well together. I think she has a great future in the game."

But in an era when Michelle Wie has suffered traumas as a teenage phenomenon, Janice also advises all youngsters to tread warily towards the professional arena.

"Someone such as Sally could go to Stanford, or one of the other major universities in America, and have a great college career. I think it is the best way to prepare for life on the LPGA Tour."

As for her own future, golf and success on the LPGA Tour will be her goal at least fro a few more years. She doesn't want Craig to be an only child, but a wee brother and sister won't be coming along in the foreseeable future. "We would love another one, but we want to wait until Craig is about five," she continued.

As for Scottish women's golf - and she has done her bit by setting up the annual Janice Moodie trophy event at her home course of Windyhill - she hopes the future remains bright. "I think we drag behind England because there isn't so much money in our game but I think it looks in pretty good shape."

EB
© Copyright In The Winning Zone, MMVII, All Rights Reserved