Akshay Bhatia reflects on ‘crazy journey’ to earn playing rights on PGA Tour

Akshay Bhatia’s journey to the PGA Tour has seen its fair share of twists and turns but his decision to skip numerous college offers to turn professional in his teens has seen him reach his destination, with a runner-up finish in the Puerto Rico Open earning him temporary membership status for the rest of the season.

The left-hander got something of a rude awakening on first dipping his feet into the water, playing on sponsor’s exemptions and missing the cut in each of his first six professional tournaments and then living life on the Korn Ferry Tour, the secondary circuit in the United States, until finally – at the ripe old age of 21 – earning status on the PGA Tour in finishing runner-up to Nico Echavarria in Puerto Rico.

“It’s been a crazy journey,” said Bhatia, who is not in the field for The Players but will continue on his ways at next week’s Valspar Championship, a tournament where he once played as a 17-year-old amateur on a sponsor’s invite.

Disability golfer Juan Postigo Arce secures Ping deal

In a further sign that disabled golfers have their own marketability, Spain’s Juan Postigo Arce – who was born without much of his right leg and no knee – has been announced as a Ping ambassador on a multiyear contract.

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The 25-year-old is currently ranked fourth in the world ranking for golfers with disability (WR4GD) and intends to play a full schedule on the tour which is run in conjunction with the DP World Tour, at the same tournament venue and in the same week as the main circuit.

“I was born with a malformation on my right leg. The way my parents educated me was very brave and they encouraged sports to be a very important value in my life. I started sailing, then skiing and, at the age of 12 and thanks to my grandfather, I discovered golf. From the very start it caught my attention as the only sport that would allow me to compete against others – with or without disability,” said Arce, who claimed a maiden win in the Hero Cup in Abu Dhabi last month.

Word of Mouth

“It’s going to be big momentum for me in my life” – Jin Young Ko after successfully defending the HSBC World Championship in Singapore. The 27-year-old suffered a wrist injury last year which impacted hugely on her season and took a longer than planned winter break in order to aid the healing process. Ko shot a final round 69 to beat American Nelly Korda by two strokes and extend her sequence of at least one win on the LPGA Tour in a season to six straight years.

By the Numbers: 3+1

There are three Irish players in the field for the Magical Kenya Open in Nairobi for this week’s DP World Tour stop: Tom McKibbin, Gary Hurley and John Murphy; there is one Irish player in the Investec South African Open on the LET, with Olivia Mehaffey playing.

On this day: March 7th, 1982

“You can call it naive, ignorance,” is how Beth Daniel would later describe her presence in the field for the Sun City Classic, a $100,000 limited field tournament she won on the LPGA Tour but which would have consequences.

After completing the 72-holes event on 10-under-par 278, Daniel was tied with Carole Jo Callison and then sank a five-foot birdie putt on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff to claim the title. Tatsuko Ohsako, who’d held a four-stroke lead heading into the final round, closed with a 78 to finish four strokes adrift of the duo.

In her time there, Daniel had gone on safari among other tourist outings but, subsequently, her agent received a letter from the United Nations informing her that Daniel had been blacklisted because of the country’s apartheid policy.

“I didn’t realise going over there the apartheid policies and how if affected the people of that country. When I went over there and saw some of it, I was mortified by it,” Daniel admitted.

In the Bag: Kurt Kitayama (Arnold Palmer Invitational)

Driver: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus (10.5 degrees)

3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (16.5 degrees)

7-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (21 degrees)

Irons: TaylorMade P7MC (4-6), TaylorMade P7MB (7-PW)

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind 3 (52 and 56 degrees), Titleist Vokey SM9 WedgeWorks (60 degrees)

Putter: TaylorMade Spider X HydroBlast

Twitter Twaddle

Game is in good shape after 3 weeks in Asia. Peace out Singapore @HWWCGolf Ready for two weeks off, recharge and get ready for our west coast swing #SinaPour – Leona Maguire getting away from the rain for a fortnight’s break before defending her Drive On Championship in Arizona on the LPGA Tour.

Dreams do come true … I’m lost for words to have gotten my first LET win after lots of heartache last year. I can’t believe this moment has come in my first @letgolf event of the year. Thank you to everyone for the overwhelming support I appreciate all of you!! – Lily May Humphreys after winning the Joburg Open, a breakthrough win on tour for the 20-year-old English golfer.

In mid 2018, I bogeyed the last hole in back to back events in Germany and Ireland to M/C by 1 shot. It killed me. I went home, thought about shit, and then came 2nd in the Scottish Open and (nearly) won the Open at Carnoustie (with a hangover..). A year on in 2019, thanks in part to those two good performances in Scotland, I recall playing poorly in both the WGC’s in Mexico and Memphis, and not caring about anything during the final round. Missing cuts is essential for growth as a professional golfer. We could argue that the top guys who will be playing the elevated events in 2024 have already done all their ‘growing’. But you’d be surprised how much it means to make a cut when your backs up against the wall and you’re struggling. It’s a mini win, and it breeds great things. So whether it’s LIV or now the PGA Tour, as someone who has played competitively for years now, removing the cut is one of the worse things to happen to the game in the last 12 months. Rant over – Eddie Pepperell on the virtues of the cut!

Know the Rules

Q: In match play, a player observes a breach of the rules by his opponent but decides not to act on it. What is the ruling?

A: There is no penalty. Such a situation is covered by Rule 3.2(d)4 – if a player knows that the opponent has a breached a rule that has a penalty, the player may choose whether or not to act on the breach. (However, if the player and opponent agree not to apply the rules or a penalty they know applies, and either of those players has started the round, they are both disqualified under Rule 1.3b.)