It's funny because I think it was Feherty who was saying he would tackle Stanley if he didn't lay up on the second shot. After he layed up I kind of expected Feherty to say something like he would tackle him if he put the ball within 30 feet of the hole. I have watched it now, and honestly he hit a goot shot, and was unlucky, but really he had no business going for the flag there. He should have put that ball right in the middle of the green, or up on the back edge. He tried to do way more than he needed to with that shot
His mistake wasn't how far he hit that ball, it was hitting a club that would generate so much spin. I say this because even if he hit that shot well past the pin, the effect of the spin would have been amplified by the downhill and the ball still ends up in the water.
He needed to either lay up about 40 yards farther back so he wouldn't have had so much spin, or (and this may sound counter-intuitive) he should have gone for it in 2. Because contrary to the rantings of intellectual titans like Feherty. going for the green with the second shot pretty much guarantees victory if you have a 3 shot lead. Best case, you're over the water in 2 and now have 5 strokes to get up and down. Worst case, you go in the water and get to drop at whatever distance is most comfortable for the fourth shot, and
you'll still have 3 putts for the win after you put the 4th shot anywhere on the green.
Quite literally the only way he could have blown a 3 shot lead was to put his third shot in the water, and the only way to bring this into play is to lay up. I know that broadcasters always talk about laying up as if it's the safest option. But in this case, the odds were much better for him if he went for the green in 2.
