The Molinari brothers may have been seeing each other for the first time in 18 months this week but they looked very much in sync as both Francesco and Edoardo enjoyed an impressive first day of the 2021 U.S. Open Championship.
With Francesco based in California and Edoardo living in Turin, the Covid-19 pandemic has meant the Italian duo - like many other families around the world - have been kept apart in recent months.
Edoardo had tweeted earlier this week that he was looking forward to seeing his younger sibling and the reunion looks to have done both men the world of good as they rediscovered their Major Championship form at Torrey Pines Golf Course.
Francesco carded a three under 68 after withdrawing from last month's US PGA Championship with a back injury, as he searches for a first top ten in one of golf's big four since the 2019 Masters Tournament.
It’s been a long time since I played major golf…my kids weren’t even born! 😂
— Edoardo Molinari (@DodoMolinari) June 7, 2021
So happy to make it to Torrey for various reasons…to have my wife watch me play again, to be able to spend time with @F_Molinari and to see a few more people in the US that I missed a lot! @usga
“The times I’ve been healthy I was playing well and hitting the ball well at home, but then I seemed to struggle recently with injuries here and there and struggling really to get some continuity,” said the 2018 Open Champion.
“I was playing well yesterday, but it doesn’t mean a lot really until you do it, you prove it in a tournament. It’s definitely nice for my confidence to play a solid round like that in tough conditions.”
He added: "We are both staying in the hotel. It's been since Christmas 2019. Wasn't expecting the U.S. Open maybe to be the occasion but it was great to see him play well and qualify and nice to spend some time with him.
"Hopefully I can go back to Europe this summer and spend some time with the rest of the family, too.
“When Covid first hit I was here (in California).
“I managed to fly back to London but then obviously I couldn’t fly from London to Italy, and then we moved here and he couldn’t fly here. It’s just a weird year and a half.
“We text and we talk pretty often, but obviously it’s not the same, especially after such a long time. It’s definitely the first time that we’ve been apart for so long, so nice to see him.”
Edoardo, meanwhile, carded a 70 in his first Major round since the 2015 Open Championship after qualifying via the U.S. Open Qualification Standings.
"I came a day early and I went to visit him Sunday in LA where he is now living with the family and we just had a good time," he said. "Then we played a practice round together on both Tuesday and Wednesday and we are going to go and have dinner tonight together.
"It's just nice to get the chance to speak with him, see him again and just spend time with him."
