Golf 2025 Player Profile: Akshay Bhatia

Most professional U.S. golfers follow the traditional path to get to the PGA Tour, going through college golf, and slowly making their way up the ranks. Others take a more unconventional route. Akshay Bhatia falls into the latter category. Forgoing college to turn professional as a teenager, Bhatia has had to develop his game on the fly, and, in recent years, his dedication has started to pay off. With a smooth, left-handed swing and fearless approach, he has steadily climbed the ranks and is now a legitimate threat on the PGA Tour. Will 2025 be the year he takes the next big step? Is he one of the favorites to win one of the Major Championships?

Current Official World Golf Ranking: 29th

Career Wins: Two

Career Major Wins: Zero

Career Summary

Bhatia turned professional in 2019 and joined the PGA Tour in 2023. He has a total of two career wins, zero of which is a Major Championship or International win. His two tour wins came at the 2023 Barracuda Championship and the 2024 Valero Texas Open, both of which were playoff wins. In the 75 tour events played, the young American has made the cut 46 times, finished runner-up twice, zero third place finishes, has six top-five finishes, and 11 top-10 finishes. He has no Major wins, but he’s only competed in four events. The 23-year-old’s Major record currently is ho-hum. In 2024, Bhatia finished tied for 35th at the Masters, missed the cut at the PGA Championship, tied for 16th at the U.S. Open, and missed the cut at the Open Championship. He currently has no appearances for the U.S. Ryder Cup Team or the U.S. President’s Cup Team. Bhatia is currently ranked 26th in strokes gained total, 84th in strokes gained off the tee, 52nd in strokes gained on approach shots, 120th in strokes gained around the green, and 14th in strokes gained putting. He is currently the 29th-ranked player on the Official World Golf Rankings.

2025 Expectations

Bhatia has played in five events so far in 2025. He finished tied for 32nd at the Sentry in Hawaii, tied for 22nd at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in California, tied for 32nd at the WM Phoenix Open in Arizona, and finished ninth at the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld. The 23-year-old still has some room to grow for sure, but he’s certainly proven that he belongs and can be a force on the PGA Tour. If he can improve his driving accuracy and continue to develop his short game, he has the potential to contend at any event he tees it up at, including at the Major Championships. The expectations for Akshay Bhatia in the rest of 2025 are a PGA Tour victory, multiple top-25 finishes in the Majors, will be in consideration for the U.S. Ryder Cup Team at Bethpage in New York via Captain’s Pick, and will finish in the top-20 on the Official World Golf Rankings.