Today's Edition
Abu Dhabi (Aletihad)
Francesco Molinari is hoping to unleash his inner football manager this week as he seeks a second win as Continental Europe captain in Abu Dhabi at the Team Cup, an internal dress rehearsal for European golfers for the prestigious Ryder Cup.
The Italian has supported Serie A giants Inter Milan in his native Italy since he was a child but also follows West Ham’s fortunes in the Premier League.
While many footballers play golf, most weeks the two sports could not be more different, although the team match play format this week at Abu Dhabi Golf Resort brings them closer together.
Molinari has countryman Matteo Manassero, five Danes and three Frenchman to skipper this week and after having seven nationalities in his team for the 14½-10½ victory over Great Britain and Ireland in 2023, the 2018 Open champion feels his job has never been closer to that of Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and co.
“The team dynamics always fascinated me,” he said. “I’m a huge football fan so always dreamt of being a football player and a football manager. So this is probably as close as it gets.
“Compared to two years ago, it’s a little bit different because we only have three nationalities. So on one hand, it should be easier, probably, to get some of the guys to gel but at the same time, you don’t want to have three groups of people not gelling with each other. It’s interesting.” Incidentally, his team West Ham is faring badly and announced on Thursday that Graham Potter will take over as manager from Julen Lopetegui.
Two of Molinari’s charges in 2023 in Nicolai Højgaard and Sepp Straka went on to be part of the victorious Ryder Cup team in Rome and Højgaard returns this year alongside 2018 Ryder Cup player Thorbjørn Olesen.
Not only does Molinari have that experience to call upon but he also has Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald and his brother Edoardo, the vice-captain. Edoardo’s insights into statistics and analysis is seen by many as a key weapon in Europe’s arsenal for Bethpage Black later in the year and Francesco is keen to utilise everything at his disposal this week.
Meanwhile, Justin Rose is hoping to use all he has learned from 17 years of Ryder Cup battles when he leads Great Britain & Ireland against Continental Europe at the Team Cup this week.
The Englishman is getting his first taste of captaincy in team match play having been a player in six Ryder Cup - with four wins - under Sir Nick Faldo, José María Olazábal, Paul McGinley, Darren Clarke, Thomas Bjørn and Luke Donald.
Donald will be overseeing both teams this week as he reprises his role as Ryder Cup Captain for Bethpage Black later this year and as a player still in the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Rose will no doubt be looking to impress inside the ropes in search of a seventh appearance in New York.
But the spotlight will shine brightest on him as captain at The National course in Abu Dhabi and it is a role that Rose is not taking lightly. “It’s a honour, first and foremost,” he said. “I think it’s been something that’s sort of been on my mind. But when you have something like this looming large, you start thinking about it months in advance: what do I want to say? Are there any good ideas I have? What have I learned from previous captains?
“Once you get here on site, you see the players and you start to get more comfortable with the whole thing. But it’s very different, I’m out of my comfort zone for sure but that’s always good to challenge yourself.”
