Akshay Bhatia delivered a timely hole-in-one in his Tour Championship quest, producing the biggest shot of his young career at the BMW Championship. The 23-year-old came into the week sitting on the FedExCup bubble but struck an ace on the 227-yard par-3 17th hole at Caves Valley Golf Club to ignite his playoff hopes.
Bhatia Shots First Ever Hole-In-One
The shot on the 227-yard hole was Bhatia’s first ever hole-in-one in PGA Tour competition, and it couldn’t have come at a better time as it pushed him into the top 30. Bhatia also won a new car in the process (a BMW iX), and BMW will provide a full four-year Evans Scholarship in his name to a deserving young caddie, presented by BMW of North America.
First ace of his career as he battles on the bubble!
Akshay Bhatia is now projected into the Top 30 in the FedExCup after a hole-in-one! pic.twitter.com/YbvU9rERlF
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 16, 2025
Bhatia shot a 5-over 75 in the first round on Thursday, which left him 13 strokes behind the leader. However, he shot a third-round 66 on Saturday to bounce back, holing out a sand wedge from 93 yards for an eagle on the par-4 seventh. He then moved to even par for the tournament after his 5-iron on No. 17 rolled into the hole. That performance lifted him back to even par for the tournament and, more importantly, gave him a much stronger chance of keeping his spot inside the top 30.
“…I told myself just don’t be afraid to hit it, execute it, because it’s easy to bail out there. When that golf ball goes in, it was the craziest thing in the world,” Bhatia said. “My caddie was pointing at the car and I’m like, don’t even know what to do. I couldn’t even feel my body.”
Bhatia Hoping To Make His Shot Count After a Difficult Season
Bhatia has struggled for much of the season and hasn’t recorded a top-10 since March, when he lost a chance to reach a playoff at the Players Championship by a single shot. He showed signs of turning things around with a blistering opening 62 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, which led to a tie for sixth in the first playoff event. At the 3M Open, the two-time PGA Tour winner carded a third-round 63 to reach the final group, but a closing 75 on Sunday dropped him into a tie for 25th.
“Every shot counts,” Bhatia said when asked about making most of his chances on Tour. “I don’t want to just shrug it in and not make it to the finish line. I want to try everything I can.”
Bhatia ranked 29th in the FedExCup standings heading into the BMW Championship, right on the cut line for the season-ending Tour Championship. Only the top 30 advance to East Lake in Atlanta, where the FedExCup title and a record $18 million prize will be decided.
Main Photo Credit: © Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images
