MoliWood: Molinari and Fleetwood make European Ryder Cup history

Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari made history at the Ryder Cup on Saturday, becoming the first European partnership ever to win four matches in a row

Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari helped their side to a 4 point advantage over the USA heading in to the final day of the Ryder Cup after becoming the first European partnership to win each match of the first four sessions. 

Open Champion Molinari came in to his third Ryder Cup having never won a full point, while Fleetwood entered as a rookie, but the pair combined seamlessly to win all four of their matches 3&1, 5&4, 4&3 and 5&4. 

When they were first paired together, Fleetwood said he was delighted, and couldn’t have chosen a better partner than Molinari. Molinari echoed his sentiments, and the pair showed throughout each of their matches that their combination of personalities and golf games worked particularly well in a Ryder Cup pairing capacity.

“He’s one of my best friends, not just on Tour but in life,” Fleetwood said of Molinari after their third win on Saturday. “I’ve been very, very lucky to get partnered with Fran. We knew we wanted to play together.”

Not that pairings who combine the best of friends always work, but this one certainlty did. It was a threatening duo that dove-tailed well, barely missing a fairway and making a huge amount of putts, leading Captain Thomas Bjorn to decide to play them in all four sessions – the singular European pairing to do so. 

When told they had made history, Fleetwood turned and hugged Molinari, and admitted he was a bit emotional about his Ryder Cup debut.  

“A little bit emotional right now,” Fleetwood responded when asked how he was feeling. “We’re only on Saturday. We were really, really good this afternoon. We played really solid, we played really well.

“But yeah, about the piece of history together, it’s very special. And just glad that, you know, we’ve done our job for the team. And team’s doing really well at the moment. But for us, we’ve had a great time.”

Molinari added that the adrenaline rush of the Ryder Cup was even higher, and ‘nowhere near’ being comparable to how he felt when he became a major champion for the first time, although he was keen to focus on tomorrow’s singles matches. 

“Nowhere near,” he said. “Nowhere near. It’s been absolutely amazing. But, you know, we came here — like we said yesterday, we came here to do a job, and it wasn’t to go in the records books or anything like that, it’s about the team, it’s about getting to 14 1/2.

“We’re getting closer, but those 4 1/2 points we’re going to need tomorrow, we’re going to have to fight hard for them. You saw them today, you know, they’re obviously 12 great players. It’s not going to be easy. But we’re doing it properly. We’re doing it the right way.”

The only other time the feat was achieved? 1979, by American duo Larry Nelson and Lanny Wadkins.

Here’s how it happened. 

Friday Fourballs

Francesco Molinari & Tommy Fleetwood defeated Patrick Reed & Tiger Woods 3&1

Securing the only point of the opening morning for Europe, Fleetwood and Molinari combined to beat the much hyped pairing of Captain America Patrick Reed and 14-time major champion Tiger Woods. 

It wasn’t the start Reed would have predicted, finding the water with his second while Tiger was unable to convert an off-the-green birdie and the pair found themselves one down after Molinari made birdie.

But the European’s blinked on the second, both finding the bunker as Woods hit his to within four feet and the match was quickly back to all-square. Another move for Europe on four put them ahead for a couple of holes, but both Fleetwood and Molinari struggled while Tiger and Reed easily found themselves close to the flag with their second.

It was back to all-square, and the momentum moved in favour of team USA, moving ahead by two holes after 10. Yet that would be the end of any more American birdies, and Europe quickly responded.

Molinari holed a length birdie putt on the 11th and followed it with a birdie on the 12th before another on the 15th moved them ahead.

On the par-three 16th it was Tommy Fleetwood who holed a lengthy putt for birdie, and Molinari matched him on the next to claim the first point for Europe. 

Friday Foursomes

Francesco Molinari & Tommy Fleetwood defeated Jordan Spieth & Patrick Reed 5&4

Thomas Bjorn decided to keep them together for the afternoon – a move that proved an inspired one as they took down Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas 5&4 in the eighth match of the day.

Spieth and Thomas had impressed in their morning match but couldn’t find a rhythm in the afternoon, which was something Molinari and Fleetwood – both players with success on this course- had an abundance of. 

They first moved in to the lead with a birdie on the par-five 3rd, and by the sixth that lead was three. Spieth and Thomas would win the eighth with a par, but they would lose the next two with back-to-back bogeys before a win on the par-three 11th thanks to a Jordan Spieth tee shot converted into a birdie from Thomas. 

That would be the final hole the American’s would win though. Fleetwood and Molinari won both 13 and 14 to finish the match 5&4 and put the final point on the board during an afternoon where Europe dominated the strong American side. 

“We enjoy playing together, and obviously spending time together,” Molinari said of Fleetwood. “He’s played amazing this morning and this afternoon.

“I think we just combine really well. But you know, the boys that went out early this afternoon made an unbelievable job. Very, very different from this morning, the atmosphere, and we needed it.”

Saturday Fourballs

Francesco Molinari & Tommy Fleetwood defeated Patrick Reed & Tiger Woods 4&3

Off in the third group of the day, Fleetwood and Molinari made it three wins from three after beating Tiger Woods and Patrick Reed in convincing fashion for the second consecutive fourball session. 

Woods seemed to be out there alone as Captain America failed to find fairways and pushed his drives in to thick rough, out of bounds or in to water, and the dynamic pairing of MoliWood kept making putts and putting themselves ahead. 

Woods and Reed were lucky to find themselves just one down at the turn having been two-down after three, and there was a shift in momentum as they pegged it back to A/S after 10. But it wouldn’t last long. 

Molinari’s tee shot on the 11th was so good he began to run after it, and it began a run of three birdies in a row for the Italian, which suddenly flipped the match firmly back in favour of the Europeans, aided by both American players finding the water on the 13th hole. 

In the end a par was good enough to win the 15th, their final hole, as the European duo cemented themselves as the most successful pairing of this year’s contest so far with a 4&3 victory. 

“He’s one of my best friends, not just on Tour but in life,” Fleetwood said after their win. “You know, he has a lot of experience. He’s an amazing golfer, but you know, on top of that — I’ve been very, very lucky to get partnered with Fran. We knew we wanted to play together.”

“I mean, yeah, we gel great, and he’s — like I say, I could give him all the compliments in the world, but we played very well. Today we were solid, and just started riding that wave again on the back nine when Fran started playing great, and I just kind of stood by his side and tried to hit decent golf shots and stay in the hole and let him go free. Just a great morning.”

Saturday Foursomes 

Francesco Molinari & Tommy Fleetwood defeated Bryson DeChambeau & Tiger Woods 4&3

It felt very much like business as usual for this pairing as Molinari put his approach to within a few feet on the 1st hole and Fleetwood converted for birdie to move one ahead – laying down foundations for what would become the start of a historic match for the two men. 

Woods and DeChambeau struggled as a pairing, and the newly dubbed MoliWood partnership moved to three-up thanks to winning pars on both the third and sixth holes. 

Two birdies on the eighth and ninth made that lead five at the turn, and it was only then the American duo began a short-lived fightback of consecutive birdies which saw them back to three-down by the 11th. 

Fleetwood and Molinari would then immediately reply with a birdie on the 12th, ending the match with a final gain on the par-five 14th to complete their historical debut as a partnership.