Molinari on the hunt for The Open: “Here it’s special, you need imagination”

From our correspondent Matteo Dore

July 14
– St. Andrew’s (Scotland)

You say Scotland and you think of… Sure, there are kilts and bagpipes and indomitable warriors fighting for freedom. And there is whiskey of course. But in the founding myths of the Scottish spirit there is also – perhaps we should say above all – golf. A sport invented in these parts in the Middle Ages, played by kings and queens, by nobles and shepherds. Scotland has around 550 courses, what for us is football for them is golf, there is always a place close to home where you can play it. Well, in this country there is an Italian who is revered and admired. A glove of him is displayed, like a relic, in the golf museum which is behind the tee of hole 1 of the Old Course, the oldest course in the world. We are in St. Andrews, where the 150th edition of the British Open begins this morning at dawn, or simply TheOpen as it is more appropriate to call it.

four years later

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Francesco Molinari is not just anyone here because he won the Open. It happened in 2018 in Carnoustie, about half an hour drive from St. Andrews. It was a historic day, an undertaking that seemed unthinkable for Italian sport. That year Chicco contributed in a decisive way – with 5 points in 5 games – also to the conquest of the Ryder Cup by the European team. After those extraordinary months, however, Molinari stopped. The Masters 2019, lost in the last holes, was the last ring, then between a laborious move from London to the United States, a ferocious and prolonged back pain and in addition, let’s also put the pandemic, his career slowed down. He was number 5 in the world, he slipped past the 200th position. Today he is 183. But here in Scotland they rightly treat him as a myth. On Monday he participated with Padraig Harrington in the race of past winners and there was no shortage of applause. “These days have helped me to fix a few things. I love St. Andrews, even if I only learned over time to play this type of golf, to adapt to links. The first times I arrived from Italy I struggled a lot. Then with time and practice I improved and yes, now I feel competitive. Even if it remains a field on which I have always struggled. ” The Old Course is beautiful, looking at it from the outside it looks easy, with large spaces and no obstacles in evidence. But then when the wind picks up, everything changes. The sleeping monster wakes up and chews its victims. Molinari explains with a smile: “These are fields in which imagination is very important. They give you space to interpret the single strokes as you prefer, nothing is ever the same. You need imagination. As you require a different style than usual, you know that it can happen. of everything. Form is a little less important than in other places. This course lets you play enough from the tee, you have to have a little luck to avoid the bunkers when you are wrong… I’ll try to do my best “.

long putts

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These last few months have been difficult for Chicco. He has passed the cut a few times, the best result dates back to the end of January, at the America Express. The memories of Carnoustie, the thrill of being in St. Andrews, being able to play golf in the purest essence of him could help him. “Unfortunately I lack a bit of confidence and I know I’m not at the top. But St. Andrews is always a special place. The pitch is in the village, there is an atmosphere that is not found anywhere else. short game and long putts: being the greens so big we find ourselves with putts from distances that we normally do not have “.