Indian descent players 22-year-old Akshay Bhatia from North Carolina, USA and 29 year old Aaron Rai of England created history by finishing tied 2nd at the US$ 9.2mn Rocket Mortgage Classic in Michigan.
Bhatia tragically 3 putted the final hole to miss going into a sudden-death playoff with eventual winner Cam Davis of Australia missing from 4’3″ despite not having missed from under 6 feet all week.
Watch his candid post-round interview here:
Back-to-back top 5s.
Four straight top 25s.
And a runner-up finish.@AkshayBhatia_1 keeps knocking at the door for win No. 3. pic.twitter.com/QSFNDuob8I— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 1, 2024
Akshay Bhatia’s missed putt –
#SEE IT — Akshay Bhatia misses a short putt on 18 to force a playoff pic.twitter.com/vilkOlEX5k
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) June 30, 2024
But with one win this year already under his belt and a 5th place the previous week, Bhatia now ranks an amazing 11th in the season-long PGA Tour’s FedExCup rankings, announcing his arrival at the highest level of professional golf along with other Indian American Sahith Theegala.
With 2 gloves on, Aaron Rai takes driver off the deck from 275 and landed 26 feet from the hole pic.twitter.com/RB3CVfY2Zv
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) June 30, 2024
Aaron Rai was also tied for the lead with Bhatia starting the final round but could only manage an even-par 72 to end at tied 2nd, his best finish ever on the PGA Tour. A two-time winner on the European Tour in his first full year on the PGA Tour, Rai has made 14 cuts in 18 events, with three top-10 finishes, and lies a creditable 58th in the FedExCup rankings.
Photo – FOX NEWS