Detroit, US, June 28: Indian-American Akshay Bhatia, already a two-time winner on the PGA Tour at the age of 22, continued his rise on the Tour, as he shot 8-under 64 at Detroit Golf Club to take the lead at the Rocket Mortgage Championship on the PGA Tour.
The wiry left-hander, who won the Valero Texas Open this season just before the Masters, was Tied-fifth last week at the Travelers and played in the final group alongside World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who won the event in a play-off with Tom Kim of Korea.
Bhatia, who missed the cut in Detroit last year, had a fantastic finish with birdie-eagle-birdie in his last four three holes.
On his birdie-eagle-birdie finish, Bhatia said, “Yeah, it’s always nice to finish like that. This tournament’s always kind of a birdie-fest, so birdies and eagles help a lot. It’s nice to finish that way.”
He went on, “I putted great. I missed one green today, so I got that up and down. All in all, I hit it pretty nice with the irons and I made some putts. Driver, 3-wood didn’t feel too good, but I’ve got some time to go work on that.
On his recent run, he said, “I’ve been playing good the last three weeks. I feel like the results haven’t been where I’ve wanted them to be, but I’ve been playing pretty solid. I’ve been right there for, you know, over 40 holes I would say the last couple weeks. It’s just I’m having some hiccups either Saturday or Sunday.”
The highlight for Bhatia was the chip-in for eagle from 83 feet on the 17th hole and he closed with a birdie for an 8-under 64.
England’s Aaron Rai, whose parents have an Indian-Kenyan connection, shot 66 and was Tied-fourth.
Tom Kim, playing his ninth straight week he shot 73 and was T-115 needing a strong second round to make the cut.
Taylor Montgomery and Michael Kim were a stroke behind Bhatia. Montgomery had a 6-under 30 on his front nine and added one more birdie on the back in a bogey-free round. Defending champion Rickie Fowler shot 66, closing with three straight birdies. Will Zalatoris, Eric Cole, Matti Schmid and Rai also were at 66.
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