Just a week earlier, Kyle Stanley came off the 16th green dejected. He’d just blown a five-stroke final round lead, which included a heart-breaking triple-bogey on the 18th hole of regulation to force a playoff. It was hard not to utter the name of Jean van de Velde, who triple-bogeyed the 18th at Carnoustie in 1999 to force a playoff he’d eventually lose in the British Open.
What a difference a week can make.
In Scottsdale, people were extremely complimentary of Stanley through three rounds. He played with poise and confidence and was set to bounce back with an admirable Top 10 finish. Admirable, but not fulfilling. Heartbreak like that can only be erased by triumph, and with an eight-shot deficit to make up Stanley seemed relegated to another week of moral victories.
Then, something miraculous happened.
The 54-hole leader, Spencer Levin, began to slowly slide back to the field. It was a scenario that Stanley was all-to-familiar with having dropped a five-shot lead of h...
Original Story:
