After a 2025 season that featured a third-place finish at THE PLAYERS Championship and a second straight TOUR Championship appearance, Akshay Bhatia began 2026 with the same momentum. Now, as he is strongly positioned inside the top 15 of the FedExCup standings, he is seemingly concentrating on building relationships that might help him flourish in his career. And one of the most important names has been Tiger Woods. 

“But once you get to know Tiger, he’s like a brother. It’s really cool for us to experience that, that different side, not him as a golfer but him as a person. It’s really cool for us,” said Bhatia at the presser of  TGL that was scheduled on March 1 at the SoFi Center.

Being a part of the Jupiter Links GC in the TGL league, Bhatia has built a bond with Tiger Woods. Through that connection, Bhatia has found himself in rare company, gaining proximity to one of the sport’s most valuable figures. However, it began as a professional relationship but has evolved to a personal bond.

Bhatia was spotted instructing Woods on using a broomstick putter. Reports have also revealed how Bhatia has chosen the PGA Tour over LIV specifically for the “proximity to legends” and mentorship within Woods’ inner circle. Woods, too, once created a buzz by jokingly referring to Bhatia as “ashtray” during an interview. Speaking recently about Woods’ presence, Bhatia revealed that the bond extends beyond competitive strategy and into genuine camaraderie.

“I think obviously being with Tiger is really, really cool. Not many people get the opportunity to be around greatness. For us, it’s really cool, I think, especially for TK and I being really young and obviously admiring him,” Bhatia further added while answering how Woods boosts him during the match-play.

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The two also created headlines together a few weeks back. After rejecting a lucrative offer to join LIV Golf in early January, Bhatia signed as an official alternate for Woods. And following that he received an unprecedented invitation from Tiger Woods.

How Tiger Woods welcomed ‘lefty’ Akshay Bhatia to TGL

In the very beginning of the year, Akshay Bhatia received an offer from Phil Mickelson‘s HyFlyers GC. It was an attractive deal. However, he chose to bypass the heavy check from the PIF-backed league. Just hours after that, it was announced that he was going to be a part of TGL and represent Jupiter Links GC.

But that was not all. His entry to the tech league turned out to be special as the golfing maestro himself welcomed the 24-year-old left-hander into his team as their official alternate.

“Lefty has arrived,” said Woods in an announcement video welcoming ‘Ashtray’ to TGL.

With that, he became a part of a team where he would be hitting balls alongside Tiger Woods, Max Homa, Tom Kim, and Kevin Kisner. Although LIV offered a lucrative deal and he had previously been a mentee to Phil Mickelson, he still chose the PGA Tour and a close proximity to the names that would help him achieve his dreams.