How Did Indian-American Akshay Bhatia Reach Tied-4th in the Charles Schwab Challenge?

Synopsis
Key Takeaways
- Akshay Bhatia rises to tied fourth place despite a challenging round.
- Co-leaders Ben Griffin and Matt Schmid maintain consistent scoring.
- Scottie Scheffler makes a significant leap to tied seventh.
- Bhatia's resilience shines through his performance.
- Fowler's strong round places him in contention.
Fort Worth (USA), May 25 (NationPress) Akshay Bhatia recorded a third-round score of 69 at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Texas, despite a challenging finish that saw him incur three bogeys in four holes. Nevertheless, he climbed one position to tie for fourth place, trailing co-leaders Ben Griffin and Matt Schmid by five strokes. The duo, maintaining consistency, posted identical scores for the third consecutive day, adding a 68 to their earlier 66-63, totaling 13-under.
Bhatia shares the fourth spot with Robert MacIntyre (64) and Nick Hardy (67), each with a cumulative score of eight under par. Standing alone in third place is Rickie Fowler (67) at 9-under.
World No.1 Scottie Scheffler made significant progress with a 6-under 64, moving up to tied seventh and currently seven shots behind the leaders. Scheffler aims for his third consecutive victory following the CJ Cup and PGA Championship.
Bhatia's round began strong with birdies on the first two holes, but he lost a shot on the sixth. He regained momentum with more birdies on the 10th and 11th holes, reaching 3-under. However, from the 14th to 17th holes, he faced difficulties, dropping shots on the 14th and 15th but recovering one on the 16th, only to bogey the 17th, finishing the day at one under par.
Griffin's front nine featured a mix of three birdies, but he stumbled with a double bogey on the fifth and a bogey on the sixth. He rebounded with birdies on the eighth and 10th, maintaining a clean slate for the final seven holes.
Matti Schmid mirrored his co-leader's start with three birdies but faced a setback with a bogey on the 11th. He regained that shot on the 16th but dropped it on the 17th, concluding with a score of two under par.
Fowler surged into third place with a solid three-under-par round, which included one bogey and three birdies, currently just four shots behind the leaders.
Scheffler's impressive performance propelled him 42 places up to tied seventh with his 64. He began with four birdies on the front nine, maintained momentum on the back nine with a birdie on the 10th and an eagle on the 11th, but faced setbacks with consecutive bogeys on the 12th and 13th. He bounced back on the 16th and 17th, finishing strong despite a bogey on the 18th.