Magical 65s: Irwin runs away from Bruno's field
Associated Press
Sunday, April 29
HOOVER, Ala. -- Hale Irwin wasn't perfect in the Bruno's Memorial Classic. He had a bogey on the seventh hole -- on Friday.
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Irwin shot his third straight 7-under 65 to pull away from Gil Morgan and win the Bruno's Memorial Classic on Sunday, shattering the tournament scoring record and just missing the senior mark.
Even Irwin seemed a tad mystified by his pristine performance.
"Three 65s, it's pretty amazing golf," said Irwin, a three-time U.S. Open champion who picked up $210,000 and his 31st Senior Tour victory, adding to his record total. "I just hit some really wonderful golf shots."
Irwin's 21-under 195 total was six shots better than the previous tournament record set by Jim Dent in 1994 and matched by Graham Marsh in 1995. He came up one stroke shy of Raymond Floyd's Senior Tour record of 22-under set in the 1993 Gulfstream Aerospace Invitational.
Irwin was the third player to come in at 21-under, doing it for the second time. He was happy with his haul, record or no.
"I'll take this check and this little piece of crystal. Somebody else can have the record," said Irwin, who began the round tied with Morgan at 14-under.
He had eagles on Friday and Saturday and his only bad hole was the three-putt on Friday.
Stewart Ginn closed with a 67 to finish second, four shots behind Irwin.
"I thought if someone could shoot 16-under, it would be good enough," said Ginn, who didn't have a bogey in the final round. "To push (Irwin) like that, I'm very pleased."
Morgan shot a 72, hitting two shots into the water on the 18th hole for a double-bogey. Irwin took the lead with a birdie and Morgan's bogey on the eighth hole, then padded it to three strokes with two birdies in the next three holes.
"Any time you make a two-shot swing, it's critical," said Morgan, who lost a playoff to John Jacobs in last year's tournament.
Irwin returned from a 91-minute rain delay with a short birdie putt on the 12th and played conservatively with four straight pars to close the round.
"It's kind of fun to play the last few holes with that kind of lead," Irwin said.
Tom Kite and Allen Doyle tied for third at 15-under, both shooting 68s in the final round.
Kite holed a 40-foot bunker shot for eagle on the 18th.
Irwin has four straight top-three finishes, and has at least two victories in seven straight years.
Divots
Kite was a popular figure on the course; his daughter Stephanie is a gymnast at the University of Alabama. "Roll Tide," said a fan as Kite left the 18th.
The 18th is Morgan's albatross, costing him first place with a bogey on Saturday and the playoff last year. He refused to sign the ball after a fan went into the water to get it on the 18th.
Ginn had to catch a flight shortly after the tournament, skipping a media session. The Australian lives in Malaysia.
