Francesco Molinari is the only player in the top 50 in the world who has yet to return to competitive golf following the close of the coronavirus pandemic, and he retired from the US Open in two weeks.
But the Italian star, who won the Open in 2018 and was the leader of the 54 holes at the 2019 Masters won by Tiger Woods, said on Tuesday that he is not injured, nor are there any burnout issues stopping him from playing.
In a series of tweets written in Italian, Molinari, 37, said it was more of a family move to California that kept him away.
“I see a lot of questions,” he wrote. “I didn’t hang up my bag. I took a break to manage a life change with my family. I have no physical problems. I don’t feel exhausted, but only time will tell.
“It will be difficult to get back to 2018 levels, no doubt; it wasn’t easy the first time. I’m the only one who hasn’t returned. I know this well, but it’s not the first time I’ve made different or unpopular choices (see Rio 2016 ). “
Molinari withdrew from the Italian Olympic team for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, also citing family reasons.
Molinari reached fifth place in the world after winning three events in six tournaments in 2018, including The Open and the BMW European Tour Championship. He also went 5-0 for Europe at the Ryder Cup, then won the Arnold Palmer Invitational a few weeks before the Masters last year.
But it was not the same after losing the lead at Augusta National and drawing in fifth place. Since then, he hasn’t finished in the top 10 and earlier this year lost three consecutive cuts before a draw for 53rd place in the WGC-Mexico championship. He retired from his defense of Arnold Palmer due to back problems and played the first round of the players’ championship before it was canceled due to the pandemic.
Molinari, who fell to 50th place in the world, thanked the fans for their patience. It is unclear whether he will return for the Masters, where he is sacked due to his win at the 2018 Open.
“I’ll be back in a while, I won’t tell you the exact time because I just haven’t decided yet,” he said. “And yet it will depend on the program / preparation. As soon as I decide when to return, you too will know. I hope it will be as soon as possible. Thanks again to those who support me in these moments”.
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