Vikki Laing has long been regarded as one of Scotland’s top talents – but she has never quite managed to get a proper foothold on any of the top professional circuits.

However, she hopes her fortunes will take a turn for the better next week when she lines-up in the Ladies’ European Tour qualifying school at La Manga in Spain.

Laing, now 27, won a record four Scottish Girls’ Championships and had a couple of relatively unsuccessful seasons as a non-exempt player on the LPGA Tour.  She then enjoyed a boost two years ago when she became the first Scot to win a tournament on the US Futures Tour.

But she suffered a massive downer last month when she was well placed after three of the five rounds before being disqualified at the LPGA Final Qualifying School in Florida. She signed for a wrong score.

Vikki, from Musselburgh, has twice tried and failed to get an LET card, and had always hoped to base her professional career in America – she is a sociology graduate from the University of California. 

“But, at the moment, I think the LET is the best place for me to be,” she said. “If I get my card next week, I’ll definitely play in Europe for the whole year. The prize money is much better than on the Futures Tour. “

Laing is one of ten Scots trying for LET cards – and she has to go through the pre-qualifying next week before, hopefully, making it into the final qualifying just days later.