Akshay Bhatia withdraws from the 2025 Farmers Insurance Open: Field updates explored
Akshay Bhatia has officially withdrawn from the 2025 Farmers Insurance Open. The news was shared by PGA TOUR Communications on X. The post shared on Monday (Jan. 20) confirmed his exit which opens up a spot for Garrick Higgo, his fellow left-handed player. Here's the post:
Bhatia's withdrawal came after he played at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic over the weekend, where he stood in 37th place for a tie. Prior to this, he had a T32 finish at The Sentry at Kapalua. The rapid change from playing in the UAE to participating at Torry Pines, coupled with the event's start on Wednesday, might have influenced his decision.
However, the Farmers Insurance Open field has seen many withdrawals before him. Along with Bhatia, Nicolai Hojgaard, Colin Morikawa, Tyler McCumber, Mackenzie Hughes and Chesson Hadley have all withdrawn. This allowed replacements Hayden Springer, Wesley Bryan, SH Kim, Pierceson Coody and Carl Yuan to step in.
In addition, the overlapping schedule could be another factor affecting participation. The Farmers Insurance Open will take place at Torrey Pines, which will also host the Genesis Invitational, a PGA Tour event in February.
Bhatia's only performance at the Farmers Insurance Open came in 2024 when he finished T13. His absence will add to the reshuffling, giving a chance to Higgo, who recently withdrew from the Korn Ferry Tour's Bahamas Great Abaco Classic. Before his exit from the Farmers Championship, Akshay Bhatia was in the news as he highlighted the key difference between the DP World Tour and PGA Tour pros.
Akshay Bhatia on the DP World tour and PGA tour
After debuting on the DP World Tour at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, Akshay Bhatia offered his insights into the difference between the European circuit and the PGA Tour. In a clip shared by the DP World Tour on X, he participated in a Q&A session with the DP World Tour, where he discussed the habits of players on both tours and highlighted his long-time wish to play in Dubai.
"Yeah, guys practice a lot more than the PGA Tour,” Akshay Bhatia stated about playing in Dubai. “I mean, this golf course is really good. It’s a really good test and, you know, it gets really firm, so it’s a nice challenge. I didn’t want to miss this opportunity to play this event, you know, enjoy kind of the different tour and just playing in front of, you know, some amazing people.”
In addition, he also shared a personal thing about his experience in Dubai. He revealed that watching cars and admiring license plates was also a highlight of his tour. Bhatia mentioned his favorite cars as McLaren, Lamborghini and Bugatti.