Lydia Hall received a big boost at Hilversumsche Golf Club last year as she finished in a share of second place.
The Welshwoman had been struggling earlier in the season but found some form over the summer which culminated in a T2 finish here in the Netherlands.
Hall is hoping that something similar happens this week as she tees it up at the 2024 Dutch Ladies Open.
“I have great memories coming back,” she said. “I love the golf course, it’s a beautiful part of the world and I’m really excited to be back.
“Last year was a bit of a struggle at the start of the season, I found a little bit of form at the Scottish Open which was a few weeks prior and came here had a really good feeling.
“I loved the greens, and it gave me a boost for the rest of the season. It was that second position that retained my card almost, it was a huge turning point in the season for me and hopefully, this can be a similar thing to kick on this season.
“I’m just trying to kick on, we’re in the peak time where we have the Scottish Open and the AIG Women’s Open coming up. Hopefully, it’s the right time to have a good finish here in the Netherlands.”
The tree-lined course is playing slightly differently this year due to the amount of rain the Netherlands has received which means it’s much softer than previously.
Even with this week’s warmer weather, Hall believes it will play differently but is looking forward to being on a golf course that visually suits her.
“It’s almost a different golf course,” she explained. “The firmness last year, we were allowing for 30 to 40 yards of run at times and this year, there is zero run, so they’ve had a lot of rain here over the past few months.
“We’re going to get nice weather and it will firm up a little bit. I still love the place. It’s beautiful, the scenery, it reminds me of something London way. The Berkshire and clubs like that. It reminds me a little of home.
“Visually I love this golf course, hopefully, that will give me a good boost going into the week and I’m really excited to get the week started.
“It’s going to be about driving it well here. As I said it’s a lot wetter, so you’re going to be more aggressive into the greens and hopefully, we can get some low numbers on the card.”
After watching Wimbledon over the past few weeks, Hall was inspired to take up the game and played a lot of tennis during her week off.
She added: “Everyone gets the bug this time of the year after Wimbledon, I started playing tennis last week. As most professional athletes, you don’t things by half.
“We were playing four or five times a week last week for three hours at a time. I’m really enjoying it, it’s great fitness.”
Hall will begin her title challenge at 9.14 am (local time) alongside France’s Anne-Lise Caudal and England’s Meghan MacLaren on Friday morning.
Follow all the action throughout the tournament on our socials – @LETgolf on Instagram, TikTok and X, and Ladies European Tour on YouTube and Facebook – #RaiseOurGame #DutchLadiesOpen.
