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THE 148TH OPEN

July 21, 2019

Francesco Molinari

Portrush, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

Q. Just ask you to reflect on your defense of the Open.
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Well, in general obviously not what I was hoping for. But at the same time I think it's understandable, it's never easy to defend the championship, and especially so in a major.

So, yeah, it's been an interesting week. Obviously it gave me a sense of closure coming back here and defending and getting the week done. And happy the way I played today. Hopefully next time I'll be mentally more ready to defend another major.

Q. Can you take any satisfaction out of this?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yes, my preparation was really good. In a way that harmed me because the expectation went up. I didn't do a good enough job of just really enjoying the week, staying calm, enjoying the emotions that I felt through every day.

Q. What made the difference today?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Just embracing a bit more of the emotions. We had a chat last night with Dennis and the rest of the team just to try and play with a bit more passion.

Obviously Friday I played better because I wasn't liking the idea of missing the cut and that gave me a little bit extra. And yesterday was back to just playing golf but not really with enough heart in it.

So, yeah, we just said today to go out and just enjoy and leave all the emotions I was going to feel and put a bit more passion into it, and it seemed to have made the difference.

Q. This was a harder week for you mentally than you expected it to be because of defending?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yes and no. It's been hard but I was expecting a hard week. I wasn't expecting to win again. I was expecting to maybe play better just because, like I said, the preparation the last few weeks went very well. And I think myself and all my team, we're seeing how good I was playing and we were expecting a lot.

But it's been a hard week, definitely. I wouldn't say harder than I expected but I knew it was going to be hard. That's why I didn't play the last three weeks, that's why I'm not going to Memphis next week. So we recognized how tough it was going to be. I think we only missed the last piece of the puzzle that was keeping the expectations lower.

But it's never going to be easy in these circumstances.

Q. So whoever wins today, what advice would you give them for how to handle, now that you've had that experience?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I don't know. Everyone is different, obviously, and individually reacts differently to situations. So whoever wins is going to have a tremendous feeling this night, this afternoon, and is going to enjoy a lot having the Claret Jug at home.

I think obviously it's going to sound obvious, it's better to win one year and play badly the other year, rather than finishing 5th both years. So I'll take that and I'll take the experience from this week and try to learn from it.

Q. (Inaudible.)
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: No, I mean, I can't lie, no. Some bits of it, yes. Some bits of it, no. But, yeah, it goes back to what I was saying, not managing my expectations well enough.

Unfortunately, the first day it was a massive difference between the first day how I approached the day and today, just playing more freely and enjoying more the support of the crowds and trying to enjoy the bad shots as well. I missed a few fairways today but it was a challenge to make par in a way. It's little things, but many times in golf that's what makes a difference.

Q. Have you enjoyed the overall experience of being Open Champion?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yeah, I've enjoyed that massively. And I've worked so hard to get there. So I've enjoyed seeing more recognition and seeing obviously expectations from the outside.

But for me, as long as I can manage my own expectation it's not a problem. And I think you saw that last year in many different weeks. So this week, from that point of view, was a new challenge because I never defended a major title before. And making the cut was massive, I would say, after Thursday and finishing with a round like today in these conditions. It's going to hopefully give me some momentum going forward.

Q. When you look ahead to next year, it's not just the four majors, but you have the games in Tokyo. What level of importance do you give the Olympic Games next summer?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I don't know. It's going to be a lot this week already. I felt like majors were coming almost too fast, one after the other, and to add the Olympic Games, too. It's not going to be an easy year for anyone. The schedule is what it is. We all have to adjust.

Q. That being said, what is the level of importance to do well and have a chance to play in the Olympics?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: I think of the five events, they're going to have the same importance. Right now that is my thinking. It's a year away and things can change. But right now it's obviously five massively important weeks, tournaments, plus the Ryder Cup plus everything. So that's how golf is right now and we just need to make the most of it.

Q. First time back here in 60 years. How did it handle for you?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Very good. Very good. I think we got lucky-ish with the weather the first three days. Probably today is going to be a different test.

But, yeah, the most -- the greatest compliment I think is all the feedback that I've heard from the players has been positive and especially on a links course that's not something you hear every year. So that's been great. The crowds obviously have been amazing.

So hopefully we will be back in the near future.

Q. What's next in your projects?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: The FedEx playoffs. I have a few weeks off and then hopefully the playoffs, the three events going all the way. And, yes, it will be back to Europe. So the majors are over but there's still a lot...

Q. And the Italian Open?
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yes, of course.

Q. You have the last major of the year now.
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: Yes, for everyone it's been a big change, like I said. It seems yesterday we were playing in Augusta and all of a sudden the four majors are gone. So I think it's something that hopefully next year we will get more used to it. But this year it's been a big change for sure.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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