Akshay Bhatia poured in nine birdies without a bogey Thursday to separate himself from the field and stake a three-shot lead at the Valero Texas Open at TPC San Antonio.
Bhatia’s 9-under 63 at the resort’s Oaks Course gave him a major head start toward winning his second PGA Tour title — which would come with a berth into his first Masters. This week’s winner will receive the final invitation into next week’s major, if not already qualified.
Bhatia won the Barracuda Championship last summer to notch his first PGA Tour win. Though just 22 years old, this marked Bhatia’s third start at the Valero Texas Open.
“Not many golf courses on the tour have been my third time, so I think understanding the golf course a lot more,” Bhatia said. “Yeah, I just played really solid, I got a couple really good breaks.”
He birdied four of his final five holes, including a 15 1/2-footer at the par-4 15th, to soar past Justin Lower, who set the early pace with a bogey-free, 6-under 66.
“I knew I had two tough tee shots coming in, 15 and 18,” Bhatia said. “If I could just get out of there with a par, maybe birdie 18, just play it how we planned to, it would all work out. I thankfully birdied 15 and then 18 got a very good break and happened to kind of hit in the right spots at the right time and made birdie there.”
Brendon Todd birdied four of his last five holes to tie Lower for second at 6 under at day’s end. Todd started and ended his round with some flair.
“I chipped in on my first hole, 10, and I chipped in on my last hole, 9, and I made (a 66-foot birdie putt) on No. 6, so when those things happen, you hope you capitalize and make it a low one,” Todd said.
Todd and Lower are veterans in the same boat as the youngster Bhatia — needing a win this week to qualify for the Masters. Lower celebrated his 35th birthday Thursday with his bogey-free round.
“I feel like it’s kind of weird playing on your birthday, but it’s just kind of the way it is. Kind of the nature of our job, I guess,” Lower said.
Max Homa opened with a 4-under 68 and is tied for fourth with Denny McCarthy, Tyson Alexander and Austin Eckroat. Just behind them is world No. 2 Rory McIlroy, the highest-ranked player in the field; the Northern Irishman posted a 69 consisting of three birdies and 15 pars.
Corey Conners of Canada, the defending champ, opened with a 2-under 70.
Jordan Spieth took a wild ride en route to a 1-over 73. After four bogeys and two birdies on his front nine, he added one more of each before an out-of-bounds tee shot led to a double bogey at the par-5 14th.
But Spieth turned around and aced the par-3 16th before adding one final birdie on the next hole. His tee shot at the 199-yard 16th took two big hops before tracking straight into the cup.
“I had to take some off of a 7-iron and so I lined up to hit like a 185(-yard) shot and hit a little fade with the wind that kind of was able to ride the slope,” Spieth said. “I hit it and I picked up the tee because I did what I wanted to do. And then as it landed and started to — everyone started to stand up, it was the people right in line with it so I thought maybe there’s a chance, and then it went in.”
–Field Level Media
