Booth ready to take centre stage again

Golf Correspondent

Thursday 3 May 2012

Carley Booth has plenty to be positive about as she heads into today's Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies Scottish Open at Archerfield Links.

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nick rodger golf correspondent nick.rodger@heraldandtimes.co.uk Nick Rodger

It has taken her a while to find her feet in the professional ranks, but the Perthshire teenager is finally making some significant steps in the right direction. And that's not just because she was involved in some pre-tournament promotional twirling with Brendan Cole, the Strictly Come Dancing shoogler who will also compete in the celebrity-infused Pro-Am contest.

This week is strictly about the golf for Booth and the 19-year-old will take to the floor in purposeful mood over the Fidra Links as she looks to build on her first pro victory in France recently.Her success in the Dinard Ladies Open may have been on a level down from the main Ladies European Tour but a win is a win and that morale-boosting triumph on the developmental circuit has galvanised Booth."I feel I am now getting to grips with tour life, which maybe wasn't quite what I was expecting when I turned professional," said Booth, who turned pro in 2009 with a hefty weight of expectation on her shoulders after a glittering amateur career. "As an amateur, I won a lot and was on a high. When you turn pro, you start at the bottom again and have to work your way up. I also had more pressure on me due to the expectation levels"I think it was a bit overwhelming, but it's been a great experience and I definitely feel as though I've turned a corner and I'm moving in the right direction again. The win has given me a big boost and I feel I can go out and do it again."Booth will have to be at her best in East Lothian over the next three days if she is to mount a challenge against an impressive field that is headlined by the defending champion Catriona Matthew.The 42-year-old from nearby North Berwick waltzed to a superb 10-shot victory in last year's event but the former Women's British Open champion is not anticipating a similar procession this week." I think last year was just one of those events where everything went well and there are a few bigger names here this week," said the modest Matthew, who finished 15th in her last competitive outing at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, the first major of the women's season, at the start of April. "I wouldn't mind another 10-shot win mind you, but those kind of weeks are more of an exception."Matthew's former Solheim Cup partner Janice Moodie, the Windyhill player who has won twice on the LPGA Tour, has made the journey from her Florida base to compete while the English veteran Laura Davies, a four-time major winner, also tees-up.The Scottish professional posse is completed by Lynn Kenny, Kylie Walker, Vikki Laing, Gemma Webster and Heather MacRae from the professional ranks, while Kelsey MacDonald, Pamela Pretswell, Eilidh Briggs and Jane Turner are the SLGA amateurs who will get a valuable taste of European Tour competition.

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Booth ready to take centre stage again

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