Akshay Bhatia earned full status for 2024 with his PGA Tour win last year. He has already achieved success with that. For the second week in a row, the 21-year-old will be competing for the weekend. This time it's the Sony Open.
Last week, Bhatia entered Sunday one stroke behind the lead at Sentry, but had to settle for a T14 after shooting a 71. On Friday, the rising star shot a 6-under 64, putting him within two strokes of the leader. It is currently owned by three golfers.
Unlike in the past, this year I changed my mind for the 2024 season and did something I wouldn't normally do for myself: I set a goal.
“I have goals that I want to achieve this year,” Bhatia said after the second round. “There's a lot of things that are out of my control, but I think as I've gotten older I've learned to understand that. I'm OK with more things. I'm transitioning mentally…I've got to keep doing that. The season is going to be okay. It’s long.”
Akshay Bhatia was ranked 183rd out of 193 in SG: Pat last year. Among the people he consulted about switching to a long putter was Lucas Glover. What did Grover say?
“Remember, all the people you worry about criticizing you want to be you.”
— Sean Martin (@PGATOURSMartin) January 6, 2024
It's a little surprising to learn that setting goals is not something he has done before.
But breaking a habit can be difficult. So this young man decided to be kinder to himself when things weren't going well. Batia knows it's going to be a long season, so pacing himself and listening to his body is his priority.
“I think I'm always very hard on myself, to be more realistic with myself,” he said. “Like I said, switching up the way you talk to yourself and certain things you want to accomplish. It's not going to happen overnight. It's going to be a long process. I don't know, but it's going to help It frees me from certain things.'' In my mind, I think it's not very goal-oriented, but in a way it's achievable. ”
This new way of thinking seems to be working well for Bhatia so far. When Bhatia changed putters at The Sentry, he approached tournaments with a non-judgmental approach rather than setting results-oriented goals. Bhatia finished the week in third place in strokes gained putts.
He was five strokes better than he was in the first round this week. But it was the last four holes that made a difference for him, finishing at 4 under for that stretch.
The Wake Forest, N.C., resident shot 330 yards from the tee on the final hole, the par-5 ninth, leaving him with 177 yards to the green. He hit a beautiful approach shot that landed 11 feet from the hole. Bhatia then sank an eagle putt to gain momentum heading into Saturday.
His new approach to the game seems to be paying off, and he may be able to pick up his second career win on tour.
Savannah Lee Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation's Playing Through.For more golf information, please follow us @_PlayingThrough On all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirls and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.
