Francesco Molinari admitted to suffering from a back injury during the Ryder Cup at Le Golf National in France last month.
“I started to feel it on the Saturday morning at the Ryder Cup,” Molinari told ESPN at the British Masters this week. “It’s because of having a really long summer and not having much rest between Atlanta [the Tour Championship] and the start of the Ryder Cup, and it was just getting tired.”
Molinari, who finished with a record-breaking performance at the Ryder Cup, did not inform European captain Thomas Bjorn about the injury.
“I didn’t tell Thomas,” Molinari said. “At that stage it wasn’t enough to really compromise my golf. So I just started taking some anti-inflammatories. It’s a week that you’re sort of pumped up with adrenaline, anyway, that you could probably play on one leg.”
Molinari even admitted to not being able to tie his shoelaces on the Monday after the tournament.
It did not appear that the back injury had much of an impact on Molinari’s play in France. He became the first European player to capture a perfect five points in all five of his matches. Alongside European teammate Tommy Fleetwood, the duo became the first European pair to win all four of their ties.
The 35-year-old Molinari, who hails from Italy, is currently ranked No. 6 in the world. Along with helping Europe dominate the U.S. at the Ryder Cup, Molinari captured his first major championship this year when he won the British Open.
