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ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL PRESENTED BY MASTERCARDMarch 10, 2019Francesco MolinariOrlando, Florida JOHN BUSH: Like to welcome the 2019 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard champion, Francesco Molinari. Francesco, there's been a lot of dramatic winning putts on that 18th hole throughout the years, but that one, to cap off an 8-under par 64 will be one that will be remembered for a long time. If we can get some thoughts on your third PGA TOUR victory and the way you did it today. FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, obviously super happy the way I did it today, I tried to be aggressive from the start and it was nice to see quite a lot of putts dropping for, especially for my standards. So I think it's been the best putting round ever in my career. And it's nice to do it, obviously in those circumstances, at Arnie's place, yeah, just tried to stay aggressive until the end and then obviously 18, that flag kind of tempts you in but my caddie was more to tell me to go a little left and just give myself a long putt. And I don't know, there must be something going on with that line, because it seems that a lot of guys winning the tournament make that putt. But I'll probably say I was the first to make it with the flag in. JOHN BUSH: It is your third PGA TOUR victory in your last 12 starts, you move up to number 20 in the FedExCup standings and it sets you up really with a lot of momentum heading into next week's PLAYERS championship. FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, obviously THE PLAYERS next week is one of those weeks that you circle in the calendar at the beginning of the year. I had quite a long off season but I was hoping to hit form around THE PLAYERS and things have gone even better than I thought, so obviously when you do stuff like today it kind of drains you a little bit from the energy point of view, but I'll try to get ready for next Thursday. JOHN BUSH: We'll open it up to questions. Q. What club did you have in on 18? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: It was between a wedge and a nine and I hit a soft nine. Q. When you, I can't imagine you were actually thinking about making the putt as you stood over it, but when it went in, what did you think it was for? Was there any part of you that thought it would hold up? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, well I thought that 11-under had a chance, to be honest, and would have been enough at the end. So, yeah, that putt obviously you try to lag it as close as possible to the hole, but I think it's a putt that's pretty hard to leave short and just came out on a perfect line, maybe a little firmer than my intention, but the line was great and it went in and on those occasions you never know if it's enough or not, but obviously I thought 11 had a chance, but 12 was going to give me a little more margin and you put more pressure on the other guys out there as well. Q. The fact that you thought 11 had a chance, did that affect the way you played the 9-iron? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yes and no. I mean obviously if you're one behind standing on the fairway you go more aggressive at the flag, but the intention was still trying to make three. Obviously you can make three hitting it to two feet or holing a putt like I did. So I just didn't want to take the risk of going at the flag, it's a very small landing area and it would have been a bit silly in that position to drop shots at that point. Q. How long have you been using your current putter and if you had to pick the one thing that Phil Kenyon's helped you the most with, what would it be? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: The putter I've been using since end of last year, December. I was practicing with it at home, it's actually the first putter that the Tournon guys made from me and it's been great from the beginning. I tried a couple of different things since but decided to stick with that one. And Phil, he helps me in so many ways, it's hard to pick one thing. Obviously I think my technique is more repetitive now and a lot more of my putts start on the line that I pick. Before I was picking a line, but not many times the ball was starting on that line. So then it's hard to make putts that way. Q. Wonder, at the start of the day, knowing how talented Rory is, I think a lot of people thought this was his tournament even though he was one shot back. Did you think he was catchable at the start of the day and were you surprised that he didn't move ahead? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I mean, I didn't think particularly about Rory, I was thinking about him and the other guys at the top of the leaderboard. I thought there was a chance, yes, because playing in the last, third to last group yesterday I saw how difficult the course was the last few holes. So I thought, go out and try to make a few birdies and just keep pushing and obviously made a great putt at the first, great putt at the second for par, birdied the third and then you just build on momentum and everything was going my way kind of. But, yeah, I think yesterday was massively important because I didn't play, I was nowhere near my best, but I fought hard, I got the ball up-and-down when I had to, two really good up-and-down, 17 and 18 yesterday, to leave myself five back, which is, I thought at the time, still in position to get it done today. Q. Your last few worldwide wins have included significant runs of bogey-free golf over the weekend. What is it about your game that makes those stretches easier to come by, even on some difficult courses? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: It's never easy, but I think what makes the difference is the, is my mental approach is a lot better than what it was three, four years ago and, yeah, it's just, I practice at home to do this sort of stuff in tournaments and it's not happened overnight, it's taken a lot of time, especially for a cut for me that maybe wasn't naturally enjoying those situations as much and now I'm just more prepared to deal with the whatever comes my way and I think that's why when I get into contention you see a few bogey-free rounds, yeah. Q. So what did you do while you were waiting all that time and is that pretty unusual to have to sit there for at least two hours, I think. FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I just went to the locker room and watched the golf, to be honest. Yeah, it, I find it a lot more nerve wracking sitting there than being out there playing. It's easier to keep some sort of control when you're hitting the shots. When it's not up to you it's not a very nice feeling. I said this after I won the Open Championship last year, I didn't enjoy it that half an hour at all and I didn't enjoy today at all watching the other guys. But obviously when you get it done, then at the end it's a great feeling. Q. The longest you waited for a win? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I don't know, that I remember, yes. Q. The first part isn't entirely serious, but if someone had said a few weeks ago when you were lying in bed with the flu and couldn't move that you were going to have this trophy in your hands, what would you have thought or said? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, it wasn't even remotely in my mind, it was just trying to get well enough to travel to Mexico and not faint on the golf course altitude. So, yeah, it wasn't ideal that the preparation was great up to that point and then something, sometimes things just happen and you need to deal with it. But fortunately I feel a lot better now and it's funny, yeah I've never been a fast starter in my career, so to get a win in what really is the second start of the season is pretty unusual for me, but it's nice, especially after last year, obviously a lot of people were asking me how are you going to follow-up last year and the way was just to work hard and keep improving what we thought, myself and my team, that we could improve, and obviously this shows that we did a good job during the winter. Q. Over the last 10 months with what you have won worldwide that really sets you in an elite group of players at the top of the world. Do you accept that, do you think that of yourself, you seem very modest as if you wouldn't think that way and how do you deal with that? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, I don't think I'm ever going to think that way, but you know, it's personality, I'm definitely more confident, I'm not scared about going out on the golf course playing against anyone, but it's just really hard for me to picture myself where I am at the moment. Hopefully some day I'll be able to, I think maybe it's the background as welcoming from Italy there's a few, very few guys getting on TOUR, so let alone doing this sort of stuff. But I'll just keep doing what I'm doing and hopefully things will follow suit. Q. How does the red cardigan feel and also the Claret Jug was on display up by the press area up there, did that bring you good luck? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, I kind of see the Claret Jug every day when I'm at home, so I'm used to seeing it. Yeah, the red cardigan is great. Obviously it's a symbol of what Arnie was and who he was and I've said it outside, coming from Italy, we weren't exposed to that much golf, obviously Arnie was such a global icon that he was there and this tournament was one that we watched, my brother and myself, at home many times. Watching Tiger making that putt on 18. So it's still a bit unreal to think that I've done kind of the same today. Q. On those same lines what would be your attitude about wearing the sweater in public or even maybe for play? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, that's not going to happen. But I'll keep it with the hidden away with the other trophies and I'm, I don't need to show off what I've won. All the things, all the trophies at home are not really in site and it's just the way I am. I don't do it to show off with other people, I do it for the satisfaction that I get when that 18th putt goes in the hole and hopefully I can keep the same motivation that I had last year and during the winter this year going for a few more years and then I can sit down at home and have a look at the trophies. Q. Given Arnie's style of play, being a sort of an aggressive player, is it fitting that Rory last year and you this year have won this tournament the way you have? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, I think so. I hope so. It's always a pleasure for us to come back here to his place, it was obviously even better when he was around, but even now you can feel his presence and, yeah, hopefully he saw Rory last year and he saw me this year and he's proud of what we did out there. Q. I wanted to ask you about the participation in the Palmer Cup back in 2004. As a student of University of Turin how was your experience and also a question about how good were you at junior golf and were you ever recruited by a U.S. university? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, the Palmer Cup was an amazing experience at the time, I made a few very good friends that are out on TOUR with me now and we managed to beat the Americans, so it was kind of the perfect week. For me at the time it was a huge highlight to be selected and to play with some of the best amateurs in the world. And, yeah, I was pretty close to coming here to college after I did a couple of years at the University of Turin and then my golf was kind of getting better and I started to get in touch with some of the colleges over here and in the end of 2004 it was really between going to Augusta State or turning pro and then I made the decision to go to TOUR school and fortunately managed to go through stage one, stage two and qualifying school and went on TOUR and never looked back. But it was pretty close at the time to go to Augusta State. Q. You mentioned I think being scared. Have you in your career is there times when you were scared with the competition or being on the golf course? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, I mean not scared, it's golf, maybe that's not the right word, but probably looking back a few years ago I wasn't remotely confident enough and comfortable enough at being out with some of the guys. But I think it's just been part of the process of, as a junior golfer I wasn't even the best golfer in Italy, so it's been a long journey since and step by step and a few years ago I think that was a big step that I needed to make and with the help of the people around me I've definitely improved on that side and I think it shows when I'm out there in contention in tournaments. Q. Two things, first, where do you keep the Claret Jug and where have you taken it publicly? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I don't think I've taken it anywhere publicly. I travelled with it the first few weeks after winning it, but it was in the case, not really -- it was quite as anonymous as possible. Q. Never took it out of the case? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, well, I did when I was on my own, but not like on airplanes or stuff like that. Q. Where is it in your house? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, it's in the living room, it's not in the middle of the table, it's just like in kind of a book case in between the books and, yeah, that's the only one that is out there and it's nice to look at it sometimes. Q. Secondly, there was some talk earlier in the week that for considering the year you had, which was right up there with Brooks worldwide for all you accomplished, your first round pairing is this week were not with some of the bigger names that other people get and I just maybe wonder if you notice things like that or if you feel like you get the respect that you've earned for all that did you last year? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, I mean, I don't really -- I mean obviously I see it, but I don't pay too much attention to it. I mean, I was playing with two tournament winners anyway, but, yeah, no, I mean, I go about doing my own stuff and minding my own business, it's not really bothering me, wherever they put me in the tee times, as long as it ends up like this. Q. You mentioned leaving the flag stick in at 18. Your brother was pretty out spoken that he thinks that's better. Did he have to convince you that that was the right way to go? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, no, he actually thinks that you need to leave it out, so he's probably going to tell me off when I speak to him later. But, no, I usually always take it out, but when you have a 43, 45 foot putt, I don't think it has a massive influence one way or the other, especially if you hit it at a decent pace it's going to go in no matter what. So I thought for a second to take it out, but then I thought maybe it was going to help me to judge the lagging better, so it worked out all right. Q. Two-part question. First of all, what was access like to golf growing up in where you did in Italy? Access to courses, the cost of playing. FRANCESCO MOLINARI: It was, depends to what you compare it to. It wasn't, it wasn't too easy. It was easy for us because our grand parents played and my mom and dad played and it was just the way -- so as kids, every weekend during the winter and we played golf every weekend in the summer. So it was just a way to spend a weekend together as a family and, but, yeah, it wasn't particularly cheap or particularly easy, we were just lucky that our family was into golf and that's how we got into it. Q. Secondly, Arnie was seen as popularizing the game of golf, particularly in the United States. Do you hope that your play, especially the last 10 months has that sort of similar affect in Italy? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I hope so, yeah. We got the Ryder Cup coming in a few years and I'm doing my best, so hopefully they can make the most of it and kids watching me like I was watching Costantino many years ago and just loving the game and hopefully a few years from now I'll be sitting on the couch watching some other Italian kid playing on the PGA TOUR. Q. This is like your 62 at Quicken Loans, your 64 here and I think you and Justin and Brooks have the most rounds of 64 or lower, final round on TOUR in the last year. Do you look at yourself that way? Do you look at yourself as the kind of player who can rip off a 63 or a 62? FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, I know that I can shoot low scores pretty much on every golf course, yeah. That's -- I'm not scared to say that or I'm not shy of confidence in that way. So I know I can shoot low scores on any golf course, I just don't really pay attention to stats like that, but I know I can do it, yeah. JOHN BUSH: Francesco, congratulations once again, best of luck the rest of the season. FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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