As Jerry Bruner stood over his two-foot putt to win the Bermuda Open, the sense of anti-climax was palpable.

Up until that moment the Senior Tour professional had endured a titanic 36-hole struggle with Brennan Webb that seemed destined for a play-off.

Over the course of nine hours of enthralling golf the two battled back and forth, sometimes level, sometimes behind, but never really separated until the very last on a day that began in the dark and ended in the twilight. The wind that battered the Island on Saturday forced organisers to play the final two rounds yesterday.

Level for much of the final round, the pair both reached the last green in two, and while Webb was below the hole with a 30-foot putt, Bruner was above it facing a similar distance.

Having both rolled the ball to within two-feet with their third shots, all that remained was for them to do what they had for the majority of the previous 35 holes and match each other shot for shot.

A play-off beckoned, but not this time. This time Webb's putt slipped agonisingly right, flirting with the edge before staying out. The grimace on his face said it all. Faced with a similar distance Bruner made no mistake.

In the end Bruner's final-round one-under-par 70, was enough to take him to level-par for the tournament, and give him a one shot lead over Webb (71). Chris Parra made a late final round charge, carding a closing one-over 72 to finish third, on four-over.

Leader from start to finish Bruner was a worthy winner, and while he might have the distance of the younger players, his short game was second to none, and his up and down at 16 may well have won him the Open.

Webb was on the green in one, Bruner in the right-side bunker, in the end they both left with pars, still neck and neck.

"It was a very long day, but in the end everything worked out ok," said Bruner. "Sixteen was a big up and down for me, when I got to the 16 tee, the most important thing for me, was to par the last three holes, regardless of what he was going to do.

"When I got in the bunker, I knew the ball wouldn't be running away from me that fast, so I could go and get it, and the rest I just tried to hit 17 and 18, two-putt and see what happened."

Bruner still had to make that two-putt on 18 to win, and said afterwards that his task was made no easier by seeing his opponent miss.

"I don't think it made a difference to me," he said. "If he had made his, I gotta make mine to tie, once he missed, I still had to putt mine. It was a straight in putt, I just had to get over it, set myself and knock it in the back of the hole."

The thrilling finish was more than the organisers might have hoped for following the loss of a day's play on Saturday that turned a 72-hole marathon into a two-round, 36-hole sprint on the final day.

Yesterday began with the early groups chasing the sun, and once it had been caught the players then had to sprint to stay ahead of it, as the threat of finishing in the dark hung over the tournament like the black clouds that kept the sun hidden for much of the day.

The speed was too much for some, especially defending champion Brian McCann who was only a shot behind Bruner and Webb midway through the first 18-holes, but eventually finished fourth after a disastrous three holes that saw him drop four-shots.

A bogey at ten was followed by a double-bogey at 11, and another bogey at 12, it took him from three-over, level with Webb by then, to seven-over, and it was a blow he never really recovered from.

Bruner was three-shots clear at that stage, having started the day with the same healthy lead, however, slowly but surely, Webb reeled him in, shooting a three-under 68 in the process, and they finished the third round tied for the lead at one-over.

From then on it was a tussle between the two, which Webb might have won if he had taken his chances on the greens. The Nationwide Tour player missed a five-footer at two for birdie, when Bruner needed a good up and down to rescue par.

While all this was going on Parra was quietly picking up two-shots to move into a share of the lead, but his challenge didn't last long and eventually petered out on the back nine with a run of bogeys.

So it was left to Bruner and Webb to shoot it out. Bruner moved ahead with a birdie on six, and stayed in front as Webb missed makeable putts on seven and eight. He finally caught up on 10 when he rattled one in from eight-feet, but then missed a similar one at 11 to take the lead.

That lead changed hands twice more until they set-off up the last in the gathering dusk, and Webb's woes on the greens eventually cost him $10,000.

"I think I played really well all day long, I think I played great, but I just didn't get the putts to go in when I needed to," said Webb. "What else can you ask for except to have a chance at the end, and I did, I'll just go on and learn from it. But Jerry played great, and I couldn't shake him.

"I had a few chances to get ahead there, and I missed some five-six footers for birdie late in the third round, and then just didn't get anything going on the last 18. But I played pretty well, but looking back the nine holes in the second round where I shot seven-over cost me the tournament.

"I'm very, very happy with the way I played, and am very excited for the rest of the year. I wish I had won, obviously, but what are you going to do."

Eric West was the top Bermudian carding a 304 while young local Daniel Augustus shot an excellent final round 73 in his first professional tournament to finish on 317.