From a crushing collapse at Torrey Pines to an eight-shot comeback victory a week later, this golfer experienced both extremes of professional golf in the space of seven days.
When a player reaches Sunday with a commanding lead, the expectation is simple: finish the job. But history shows that closing out a first PGA Tour win is rarely straightforward, and even the biggest cushions can suddenly feel fragile under pressure.
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Golf is full of stories where disappointment becomes part of a longer journey. For some, the pain lingers for years; for others, it becomes fuel. One golfer in particular lived both realities in consecutive weeks, producing one of the most dramatic short-term turnarounds the Tour has ever seen.
A collapse that seemed impossible to recover from
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
At the 2012 Farmers Insurance Open, Kyle Stanley appeared firmly in control heading into the final round. Just 24 years old at the time, he started Sunday with a six-shot lead and even managed to stretch that advantage during the round.
Despite some late pressure from Brandt Snedeker, Stanley stood on the 18th tee with a three-shot cushion and the trophy seemingly within reach. What followed, however, was a brutal reversal. A wayward third shot found the water on the par-five closing hole, and a costly three-putt led to a triple bogey.
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That single hole wiped out his advantage and forced a playoff. Stanley would go on to lose on the second extra hole, turning a near-certain victory into a devastating near miss.
Redemption arrives just one week later
Rather than stepping away, Stanley chose to tee it up again the very next week at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Starting the final round eight shots behind the leader, he was far from contention on paper.
What followed was a stunning response. Stanley fired a closing-round 65 at TPC Scottsdale, applying pressure from the early groups. As others faltered, he surged up the leaderboard and finished one shot clear of his nearest challenger to secure his first PGA Tour title.
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The win proved to be the defining moment of his career. Stanley would add a second Tour victory in 2017, but that two-week stretch — from a heartbreaking collapse to an improbable comeback — remains one of the most extraordinary fortnights the PGA Tour has ever witnessed.
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