Francesco Molinari To Swap London For California

The Italian has lived in London for 11 years, playing and practising at The Wisley in Surrey

Francesco Molinari To Swap London For California
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The Italian has lived in London for 11 years, playing and practising at The Wisley in Surrey

Francesco Molinari To Swap London For California

Francesco Molinari has announced that he is leaving London after 11 years living in England's capital city.

The Italian says he is moving to California after the Covid-19 break gave a him and his family a chance to sit back and thing about things.

The 2018 Open champion is swapping London for the Golden State to spend more time with his wife and children.

Molinari has lived in London for over a decade and played and practised at The Wisley in Surrey, where his coach Denis Pugh is based.

It remains to be seen whether he will remain with Pugh.

The 37-year-old split with his caddie Pello Iguaran late last year to team up with Justin Rose's former bag man Mark 'Fooch' Fulcher.

"It's been a very strange few months for everyone lately, facing challenges that we never thought possible," Molinari said.

"As many of my colleagues, this forced break gave a chance to sit back and think about many things.

"It mostly made me think about the future and what I want to achieve in the coming years, from a professional point of view but mostly from a family standpoint.

"This is why we've decided to leave London after 11 happy, intense, satisfying and consuming years.

"The next chapter of our life is going to be in California, where we hope to be safe, happy and spend more time together as a family.

"This is what's keeping me busy now and away from tournament golf, the hope is to be back for the US PGA Championship."

Molinari currently ranks 30th in the world, having been as high as 5th in September 2018.

His last victory came at the 2019 Arnold Palmer Invitational and he is without a top-10 since his T5th at the 2019 Masters where two back nine double bogeys cost him a chance at the Green Jacket.

Tiger Woods went on to win his fifth Masters title that day.

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Elliott Heath
News Editor

Elliott Heath is our News Editor and has been with Golf Monthly since early 2016 after graduating with a degree in Sports Journalism. He manages the Golf Monthly news team as well as our large Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. He covered the 2022 Masters from Augusta National as well as five Open Championships on-site including the 150th at St Andrews. His first Open was in 2017 at Royal Birkdale, when he walked inside the ropes with Jordan Spieth during the Texan's memorable Claret Jug triumph. He has played 35 of our Top 100 golf courses, with his favourites being both Sunningdales, Woodhall Spa, Western Gailes, Old Head and Turnberry. He has been obsessed with the sport since the age of 8 and currently plays off of a six handicap. His golfing highlights are making albatross on the 9th hole on the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa, shooting an under-par round, playing in the Aramco Team Series on the Ladies European Tour and making his one and only hole-in-one at the age of 15 - a long time ago now!


Elliott is currently playing:


Driver: Titleist TSR4

3 wood: Titleist TSi2

Hybrids: Titleist 816 H1

Irons: Mizuno MP5 5-PW

Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 50, 54, 58

Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5

Ball: Srixon Z Star XV