despite being assessed a two-stroke penalty, Johnson won finally

Johnson won despite being assessed a two-stroke penalty for failing to restore his ball to its original position after marking it on the 18th hole. That left him with a two-over-par 72 and a one-stroke victory over Jason Dufner.

Johnson moved his ball mark out of the discount golf clubs line of Dufner’s putt on the 18th green. But he forgot to move it back to its original position before rolling in his final 5-foot putt.

After winning last week at the Byron Nelson Championship, Dufner was trying to match Ben Hogan, his hero, as the only players to win both PGA Tour events in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the same year. Hogan did it in 1946, when the tournaments were not played in consecutive weeks.

In what was essentially a match-play final round for the winner’s plaid jacket, Johnson took command at the 414-yard 15th hole. Dufner’s approach shot hit the left side of the green but rolled into a ditch, leading to a triple bogey that left him four strokes behind after Johnson made par.

It was the eighth PGA Tour victory Taylormade R11 irons for Johnson, the 2007 Masters champion, who won $1,152,000 even though his record streak of 15 consecutive under-par rounds at Colonial ended.

There had already been four two-stroke swings between Dufner and Johnson before the much bigger one at the 15th hole, where Dufner’s trouble began when he drove into a fairway bunker. His next shot trickled over a ledge on the green into the water. He then pitched his drop all the way over the green and missed a 4-foot putt for double bogey. Johnson had regained the lead with a 9-foot birdie putt at the 445-yard 14th after having blown a two-stroke lead.

Displaying his usual consistency with his driver and putter, Donald won the biggest event on the European Tour by four strokes. He shot a four-under 68 at Wentworth on Sunday for his fourth straight round under 70; he finished at 15 under.

Even with the penalty assessed before he signed his scorecard, Johnson’s total of 12-under 268 was enough to edge Dufner, who closed with a 74. Tommy Gainey was a distant third at seven under after a 67, one stroke better than Jim Furyk.

Dufner’s only two PGA Tour victories came in the last four weeks, a stretch in which he also married.

Dufner, who entered the final round with a one-shot lead, insisted fatigue was not a factor in his defeat. “I feel pretty good actually,” he said. “I just played really poorly today.”

“I’m going to focus on the positives, because I hit a really solid putt, and it’s a good thing I made it,” Johnson said. “No harm, no foul. It was my fault.”

Dufner was not as fortunate with his Taylormade R11 driver wayward drive, which settled under a tree. He had to punch a low shot around the branches before hitting his approach into a greenside bunker and two-putting from 23 feet for bogey.

At the 616-yard 11th, a straight par 5, Johnson’s drive to the left hit a tree and ricocheted back into the middle of the fairway. He took advantage with an 18-foot birdie putt to reach 15 under.