DA Weibring wins after replay

When D.A. Weibring made the putt to win the Bruno's Memorial Classic on Sunday, he looked to playing partner Tom Kite for confirmation, not congratulations.

``I said, 'Did you see what I saw?''' Weibring said. ``He said, 'Yeah, it moved.'''

The ball moved slightly before Weibring tapped in his final putt for victory on No. 18, delaying his celebration until Champions Tour officials ruled that his putter didn't touch the ground before the shot. That violation would have cost him a two-stroke penalty and forced a three-way playoff with Kite and Tom Jenkins.

Weibring shot a 3-under 69 Sunday to finish at 15-under 201, two strokes better than Jenkins and Kite. But the triumphant stroll off the 18th green was replaced by confusion and uncertainty before television replays cleared him.

``As I stepped in there, the ball kind of turned over backwards,'' said Weibring, who hadn't seen a replay. ``I lost track of what was happening, it shocked me so much.

``I never, for that reason, ground the putter anywhere near the ball for a tap-in.''

He didn't this time, either. Even if Weibring hadn't completed the 4-inch putt, it would have cost him at most a one-stroke penalty, not enough to foil his third Champions Tour win.

Rules official Ken Lindsey reviewed the putt using three camera angles.

``I feel very confident that he did not address the ball so he did not get a penalty,'' Lindsey said.

Weibring's round was steady, leaving the dazzling shots to Jenkins and the costly missteps to playing partners Kite and Dana Quigley. He was the only one of the contenders without a bogey in the round.

Jenkins eagled the par-4 12th hole with a 125-yard sand wedge shot from the fairway and then sank an 18-footer for birdie on No. 14 but couldn't push any closer. He shot a final-round 66 after birdies on four of the first five holes.

``When you start like that, it's easy to think that this could be a magical day and everything might go your way,'' Jenkins said. But he couldn't come up with magic on any of the three par-5s among the final six holes.

``I figured if I could birdie those three par-5s, I would probably win. I didn't do that,'' Jenkins said.

Weibring moved to 15 under with an 8-foot putt for birdie on 15 and would have won without drama if not for the 18th-hole controversy.

``I would probably have given myself a two-shot penalty'' if the replay had shown any violation, Weibring said. ``That took a little bit of enjoyment off the 18th green, but I'm glad we got it right.''

Quigley came in tied for second with Kite, but had a bogey and double bogey on the first four holes and finished five strokes back. Quigley closed with a 73.

Kite tied the tournament record with a 63 on Saturday, but the 1992 U.S. Open champion missed a tap-in putt on No. 13 for bogey and finished with a 70.

It was likely the end of the Memorial's 14-year run at Greystone. The tournament is expected to move to Ross Bridge, a new golf course and resort being completed this summer in Hoover.

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