Golf: Martin Laird of the manor at St Andrews

SCOTLAND'S Martin Laird does not have to think about where he will stay now that he has earned a place in July's Open Championship with a brilliant second qualifying round of 63 in Texas.

"It doesn't get any better than this," said the 27-year-old US Tour player. "My parents live 15 miles away from St Andrews – that's the place I always wanted to play as a kid."

Down in a tie for 25th after an opening 69, Laird charged up to fourth spot as the 60 players left in battled for eight places.

Six birdies in the first eight holes led to an outward 29, he was eight under after 13 and a bogey on the short 17th did not prove costly.

It will be a second successive appearance in The Open for the man who won his first US Tour title in Las Vegas in October.

Tim Petrovic won the event at Gleneagles in Plano with an 11 under aggregate, finishing one in front of Bo Van Pelt and two ahead of DA Points.

Three more Americans – Tom Pernice, Glen Day and George McNeill – also avoided the play-off on five under in which Cameron Percy edged out Bubba Watson and Charley Hoffman for the last spot.

Colombian Manuel Villegas, brother of Camilo, failed to get into that shoot-out by only one stroke, but Davis Love and Swede Fredrik Jacobson failed by five and England's Brian Davis by six.