Double joy for Molinari

Edoardo Molinari won a dramatic Johnnie Walker Championship with three closing birdies at Gleneagles today – and then an hour later was jumping with joy again when he learnt that it had earned him a Ryder Cup wild card.

The 29-year-old Italian, whose brother Francesco was already in the team, was two behind Australian Brett Rumford with three holes of the final counting event to play.

He two-putted the long 16th, sank a curling 30-footer at the 194-yard 17th and then hit a chip to within 18 inches of the final hole to add the title to the Scottish Open he won at Loch Lomond last month.

Cup captain Colin Montgomerie called it one of the best performances he had seen under pressure in all his 24 years on the European team – and was delighted to announce the first brothers in the match since Bernard and Geoff Hunt in 1963.

Being chosen ahead of world number nine Paul Casey and double US Tour winner Justin Rose clearly meant the world to Molinari, who last season was on Europe’s “second division” Challenge Tour.

“I would have been happy a year ago to have enough money to keep my card by this time,” he said.

“Colin told me he was proud of what I had done and I said ’thank you very much and I can’t wait to get to Wales.’

“It was quite an emotional moment for me because this means I will be playing with my brother and that is something that is almost unreal.”