At the 2019 Masters, Francesco Molinari played 49 holes without a bogey (from the 12th hole in the first round through the sixth hole in final round), one off the record set by Stuart Appleby in 2001.
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Molinari led the tournament after 54 holes before finishing T5 behind champion Tiger Woods, with whom he was grouped in the final round.
Now Molinari, 39 –the first Italian to win a major at the 2018 Open Championship — is making his 11th Masters appearance.
His first trip to Augusta was in 2006 as a caddie for his brother, Edoardo, winner of the 2005 U.S. Amateur.
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Molinari has been in the top 100 of the World Rankings continuously since the end of 2008. Playing with his brother Edoardo, they won the 2009 Omega Mission Hills World Cup, Italy’s only win in the event.
Molinari won the 2010 WGC-HSBC Champions and has represented Europe in three winning Ryder Cup teams, in 2010, 2012 and 2018.
Molinari earned his European Tour card for 2005 through qualifying school. He finished in 86th place on the tour’s Order of Merit in his rookie season.
In May 2006, Molinari claimed his first European Tour victory, becoming the first Italian since Massimo Mannelli in 1980 to win the Telecom Italia Open.
This victory helped him finish 38th on the Order of Merit. He did not win on Tour between 2007 and 2009 but during that time he recorded twenty top-10 finishes including three runner-up finishes.
He finished 60th on the Order of Merit in 2007, 24th in 2008 and 14th in the Race to Dubai in 2009. In October 2009, Molinari reached the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time.
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