Darcey Harry has every right to be ecstatic ahead of the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open after the Welsh rookie’s dream of qualifying for a home AIG Women’s Open came true last week.
In just her eighth Ladies European Tour (LET) start, Harry earned a maiden victory on the circuit winning the Hulencourt Women’s Open by three shots in Belgium.
With the victory, Harry earned a spot at the 2025 AIG Women’s Open which will be played at her home course in Wales, Royal Porthcawl, between July 31 and August 3. It will be her first appearance in the prestigious Major.
“It means everything,” the 22-year-old said. “I said at the start of the year that it would be a dream come true. It still is now, so I can’t believe I get to go and play in it. I’m feeling really, really good. It hasn’t quite hit yet. I’m sure it will probably will when I’m teeing up on my home course at the AIG Women’s Open.
“I thought I was going to have to go and try and qualify, and was getting a little bit nervous about having to do so if I didn’t have a good day at final qualifying. Now it’s made my life a lot easier, that’s for sure!“
Harry produced a brilliant performance at Hulencourt Golf Club carding rounds of 71-68-68-68 to claim the win with a final score of 13-under par.
On final day nerves, Harry said: “It wasn’t too much on my mind until probably the 17th and 18th holes. I was walking down and thought, ‘wow, I could be in the AIG Women’s Open at Porthcawl.’ I was really, really nervous inside.
“I think the putt on the last was probably the most nervous I’ve ever been over a ball. I didn’t really go out expecting to win on the last day. I just wanted to have another good score to prove to myself that I could have four days of good rounds in a row. That was the mindset going into it, but then the more birdies I had, the more momentum I got and that I really started to think about winning.
“The putting was the big key. Like with anyone winning on Tour, I think they would all say you have to putt well. It was very, very good last week. The greens really suited me, I’m better on quicker greens and I was rolling the putts really nicely. It all clicked.”
Having now achieved her big goal for the year, Harry will tee up at the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open at Royal Beroun this week where she will not be short of confidence.
On the challenge, she said: “It’s nice that I’ve got a competition this week straight after [winning] because it feels like I’m still in the flow of everything,” the Welsh rookie said. “I feel like I’m playing really well and I have a lot of confidence. But I just want to enjoy it. The weather looks great and the course is really nice. I’m looking forward to it.
“I definitely wanted to win this year. Sometimes you think that’s a big of an ambitious goal, because I’m very new to this and you don’t know what to expect. But that definitely was a goal of mine. The goal is to win again now. But just try to play well and shoot good scores.”
As for her time off the course, Harry, now eighth in the LET Order of Merit, has been loving her debut season on the circuit.
“I’ve found such a lovely friendship group this year,” she said. “The first event that was cancelled in Australia helped me find some lovely friends. It’s great travelling with Annabell Fuller and Amelia Garvey every week.
“It’s been such good fun. It’s blown my expectations to how I thought professional golf was going to be. It’s been great on and off the golf course. Whenever you don’t play well, it’s always nice to come back to friends. We all have a great laugh.”
