With a win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, four top-10 finishes, and over $8 million in official earnings, Akshay Bhatia’s 2026 season was objectively strong. But his own assessment remained far harsher. He called it a mediocre season despite making it comfortably to the Tour Championship and finishing 18th in the FedExCup standings. That self-criticism is part of a broader mental struggle for the 24-year-old, who has spoken about anxiety, subconscious pressure, and the need to change the way he talks to himself.

On the Smylie Kaufman show, he revealed how harsh he can be on himself and why he needs to change.

“You know, 30 guys only make it. This year was an easier pathway than last year. I think Joe [Greiner] and my first year together was great. There were a lot of changes this year. But I asked him this week, because I’ve left East Lake disappointed almost every year, and he was like, I don’t think disappointed is the right word, but definitely room for growth,” Akshay Bhatia told Smylie Kaufman.

“I think that was something that I needed to change the dialogue on because each year I’ve left East Lake so disappointed in myself, and he was like, ‘Do you realize how great making it three years in a row to East Lake is, that chances you’ve had to make it?’ And I was like, ‘I don’t realize it.’ I think, again, being hard on myself is something I need to work on, or be kinder to myself. But yeah, it’s always kind of on the list of goals for that and making teams, and obviously can’t control winning, but contending is an important thing too. If you can contend a ton and have an opportunity to win, then you can say it’s a successful year.”

Bhatia began 2026 with uncertainty, missing cuts at the American Express and Farmers Insurance Open. When he appeared on The Smylie Show in March 2026, he said he had started the year nervous.

His wife, Presleigh Schultz, helped him confront that anxiety after his missed cuts. Bhatia said he was giving anxiety “too much power” by repeatedly describing it as something that was holding him back. The couple decided to change the language he used internally. Akshay Bhatia said he would either avoid the word “anxiety” or replace it with terms such as “energy.”

This did wonders for him, and he began to feel much calmer. This helped him at the WM Phoenix Open and the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The results improved immediately, as he finished T3 and T6 at those two events, respectively. He even went on to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational a couple of weeks later.

Though he overcame anxiety early in the season, his harsh self-assessment reveals a deeper pattern.

Caddie Joe Greiner and analyst Smylie Kaufman both reinforced the same message: making East Lake three years and counting is a significant achievement.

The Tour Championship admits only the top 30 performers annually. And as Akshay Bhatia admitted, this year was even easier than 2025. Unlike this year, he didn’t win any PGA Tour events and won only $4.88 million in official money in 2025.

His stats also show a better 2026 campaign. Last year, his SG: Total was 0.638 (36th), which increased to 0.644 (30th) this year. His SG: Putting went from just 0.277 (35th) last year to 0.483 (12th).

Yet Bhatia’s own bar remains higher. He missed the cut in seven of his 21 starts so far. Finishing 14th in Presidents Cup rankings cost him automatic qualification—a stated annual goal.

Many fans and professionals would argue Bhatia’s 2026 season was far from mediocre. His results, improved statistics, and third consecutive trip to the Tour Championship point to steady progress. The bigger challenge may now be changing how he evaluates that progress.