Edoardo Molinari

He claimed the title by holing a 25-foot birdie putt on the 33rd hole to win 4 & 3 over the American Dillon Dougherty.

Molinari holed a 50-foot putt on the 17th hole of the final round that was selected as "Shot of the Day" by NBC, the US network covering the tournament.

Edoardo Molinari (born 11 February 1981) is an Italian professional golfer who plays on the European Tour, where he is a three-time winner.

He was also the 2005 U.S. Amateur champion; 2009 Challenge Tour Rankings leader; winner, with his brother Francesco, of the 2009 World Cup; and a member of the 2010 European Ryder Cup winning team.

He has won professional tournaments on four of six continents on which golf is played: Europe, South America, Africa and Asia.

He is a Vice-Captain for the 2023 Ryder Cup in Marco Simone, Italy.

Molinari was born in Turin to Micaela, a now retired architect, and Paolo Molinari, a dentist.

He began to accompany his father to the golf course at age eight.

Molinari speaks fluent English and Spanish in addition to Italian.

The undisputed highlight of his amateur career came in 2005, when he became the first Italian and the first Continental European to win the U.S. Amateur.

As a result of that victory, Molinari qualified to play in the 2006 U.S. Masters, U.S. Open and The Open Championship.

His younger brother Francesco, who is also a professional golfer, caddied for him at that year's Masters.

Molinari turned professional in 2006, after graduating from the Polytechnic University of Turin with a degree in engineering.

In 2007 he won the Club Colombia Masters and the Tusker Kenya Open on Europe's developmental Challenge Tour.

That success enabled him to play on the top level European Tour during the 2008 season.

Molinari's play was uneven during that season due to a wrist injury, and he was unable to retain his playing privileges in 2009.

Molinari returned to the Challenge Tour in 2009, where he was again successful, earning his third professional title at the Piemonte Open in May, in his home town of Turin.

He also won the Kazakhstan Open in September and the Italian Federation Cup in October.

He also came 2nd in the Club Colombia Masters, the Scottish Hydro Challenge, the Trophée du Golf de Genève and the ECCO Tour Championship.

He topped the Challenge Tour money list in 2009 with record earnings of €242,979, almost €100,000 more than the previous high total.

On 22 November 2009, Molinari won the highly regarded Dunlop Phoenix Tournament in Miyazaki by defeating 2008 European Tour Order of Merit winner Robert Karlsson of Sweden by sinking a four-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole after the two tied in regulation play.

Molinari was the first Italian winner on the Japan Golf Tour.

On 29 November 2009, Molinari partnered his younger brother Francesco to lead Italy to their first World Cup win at the Omega Mission Hills World Cup outside Shanghai, China.

During 2009, Molinari's Official World Golf Ranking rose from 753 to 48.

Roscio caddied for Molinari at the 2010 Masters Par-3 Tournament.

Denis Pugh, of London, serves as a swing coach to both Molinari brothers.

He postponed retirement to work with the Molinari brothers, and he helped to rebuild Edoardo's swing, moving from hitting predominantly draws to fading the ball.

Molinari is nicknamed "Dodo" because his younger brother, Francesco, could not pronounce "Edoardo" as a child.

He continues to live in Turin and to represent his home club, Circolo Golf Torino.

His interests include the Juventus Football (soccer) club and the Internet.

He is considered one of the most emotional players on the European Tour and one of the most attractive players on the tour.

He is also considered very popular with his fellow competitors on tour, many of whom advocated his selection to the 2010 European Ryder Cup team.

Molinari is now working with Irish caddie Colin Byrne, who has earned 20 wins with other golfers such as South African major champion Retief Goosen.

During a distinguished amateur career, Molinari won several national championships.

On 29 March 2010, Molinari earned his best finish on the U.S. PGA Tour, finishing second by two shots to South African Ernie Els at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and earning his then largest check of $528,000US.

On 11 July 2010, Molinari won his first European Tour tournament, claiming the Barclays Scottish Open at Loch Lomond by three strokes over Darren Clarke.

In spring 2012, he married his longtime girlfriend, Anna Roscio, at a church ceremony in Turin.

The two victories and his consistent play led to a 16th-place finish on the season-long money list.

Edoardo leapt joyously around the 18th green after sinking the winning putt.

This was the first win in the event by brothers and the first Italian victory in the event, generating significant coverage in the Molinari brothers' homeland.