Belgium will forever hold a special place in Darcey Harry‘s heart with the nation being the site of the Welshwoman’s maiden victory on the Ladies European Tour (LET).
The now 23-year-old secured a three-shot victory at last year’s inaugural Hulencourt Women’s Open firing a final round 68 (-4) to hoist the trophy and qualify for a home AIG Women’s Open at Royal Porthcawl.
Twelve months on and Harry returns to Belgium where she will be drawing on fond memories to help reignite her spark following a disappointing 2026 season to date.
“It’s pretty amazing being back,” the Welshwoman said.“It feels like it was just yesterday that I won. I just came off the 18th green now and was remembering the last putt I had. I was replaying it in my mind. It’s pretty surreal but it’s so nice to be back. Nothing has really changed – maybe the rough has grown up a little more.
“The win definitely made more relaxed for the rest of the [2025] season. I have my card secured for the next two years so you’re able to go out there and be more free and try some new stuff out on the course. It opened so many doors for me too like allowing me to play at my home course at the AIG Women’s Open. That was amazing and kickstarted a lot of confidence for me.”
Harry was aided by boyfriend and DP World Tour player Jacob Skov Olesen last time out as the left-handed star caddied for the rookie en route to victory.
“I think I just came here to enjoy the week with my boyfriend on the bag for the first time,” Harry recalls. “I just happened to play really well and I think everything just clicked and it all fell into place. I wasn’t even thinking about winning. That’s kind of my goal this week. To go out there, enjoy it and play to the best of my ability.“
As for this season, Harry admits she has had an “average” year by own high standards. The Royal Porthcawl member finished T7 at the Women’s Australian Open back in March but has since struggled for form making five of her next nine cuts to sit 66th on the LET Order of Merit.
“It’s been a very average season so far,” Harry said. “Since the Australian Women’s Open I haven’t really had any fireworks on the golf course. I’ve had some putting struggles which I definitely didn’t have last year. But it’s all about staying patient. I have been playing some really good golf and striking the ball well. I do believe it will all click soon. I’ve been patient enough. Hopefully this is the week.”
Despite missing the last two cuts at the Dutch Ladies Open and Tipsport Czech Ladies Open, Harry has been enjoying her euro summer on the LET road-tripping with English star Annabell Fuller.
“The past few weeks have been fun,” Harry said, who also toured with Fuller while in Australia and South Africa. “Me and Annabell have done a massive road trip. We started in the UK, went to the Netherlands, then Czechia and now we’re back here in Belgium. It’s been a lot of driving but it’s been amazing. It’s great to be able to experience a road trip with your best friend. I think it’s definitely made this three week stretch go so fast. We’ve had so many laughs and the driving has been super fun. We stopped over in Frankfurt too. I’m sad that this is the final week doing it!”
Defending her crown, Harry gets underway at the 2026 Hulencourt Women’s Open at 9:13am on Thursday playing alongside Sweden’s Kajsa Arwefjall and Belgian amateur Savannah De Bock.
“It was kind of weird seeing the trophy just now,” the 23-year-old said on the task at hand. “There’s a lot of pressure going into it. It would be sad not getting to hold it at the end of this week again and not being the champion again. So I guess there’s a little bit of pressure which comes with that. But at the same time, you’ve got to be able to look back and be proud at how far you’ve come.
“I think because I’ve had a pretty average season I don’t want to say that I’m super confident. But I have a few mini goals this week which would just be to come out here and enjoy it, play some nice golf and make some birdies. Just being here as the defending champion means a lot to me. Hopefully the weather stays great and it’s a fun week.”
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