I am already bracing myself to be in the clear minority when I put forward the case that there is absolutely nothing wrong about the way Akshay Bhatia putts.

Akshay Bhatia‘s putting technique is back in the spotlight following his dramatic win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational this past week. The 24-year-old gained more than 10 strokes on the field on the greens throughout the week at Bay Hill.

Who do you think will win The Players Championship this week?

Scottie is the strong favourite…most likely other but let’s go Tommy. really looking forward to this one

With that, his putting technique is back under the microscope. There is no question at all that Bhatia pushes the boundaries with how close the top of his putter gets to his body.

Watching on television, there is no clear gap between his clothing and his putter. However, that does not mean that there are grounds to call for Bhatia’s technique to be outlawed.

It sets a dangerous precedent if Akshay Bhatia is not trusted

Golf is a unique sport. PGA Tour players have numerous opportunities to get away with cheating every time they play. There are not large galleries following every single group at most events.

However, players are trusted to be honest. Obviously, there have been some occasions when players have pushed their luck too far and been caught out. Call me naive, but most players seem determined to do the right thing.

Bhatia’s good friend Sahith Theegala displayed that at the 2024 Tour Championship. Theegala called a penalty on himself after feeling that he had brushed the sand in a bunker with his club during the third round.

What was amazing about that Theegala’s admission was that television cameras could not come close to conclusively showing that he had made any contact with the sand. Had he not said anything, there is a very good chance that no-one would have questioned his actions.

Given how golfers are trusted to police themselves, it is hard to imagine that Theegala is the anomaly.

If Bhatia says the putter is not anchored to his body, then he absolutely deserves to be given the benefit of the doubt.

Taking to X this week, Michael Kim suggested that most PGA Tour players are not at all worried about Bhatia’s putting.

If Bhatia is not going to be trusted, then the PGA Tour is going to have to send officials out with every single group and have every single shot closely monitored. You simply cannot say that you do not believe one player but trust the rest to do the right thing.

Anchoring concerns are not a justifiable reason to ban long putters

There has also been a lengthy debate regarding whether long putters should even be allowed. I have heard many insist that the putter should be the shortest club in the bag.

If the likes of the R&A and the USGA decide to introduce that rule, then that is fair enough. However, it should not be introduced simply because some world-class golfers may be just a little too good with a broomstick.

I was fairly vehemently against the ban of belly putters. Clearly, some players such as Keegan Bradley and Webb Simpson were able to win majors with belly putters in their bags.

Critics will point to the fact that neither has won a major in the last 13 years as proof that their putters gave them an unfair advantage.

But there were a number of players who could not use a belly putter successfully. It was a skill that some golfers could never get a grasp of.

The broomstick is exactly the same. Ultimately, if using a broomstick was so much easier then the likes of Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy would have switched to using one a long time ago.

Despite my opposition, I understand the decision to ban having the putter anchored to a part of the body. It was a clean way to wade through murky waters.

But I will not join the calls for something to be done about the way Bhatia putts.

One of the PGA Tour’s best youngsters produced a phenomenal putting performance on one of the toughest stages on the calendar to win a signature event.

So I will briefly rest my putter against my body as I applaud Bhatia for his sublime Sunday performance at Bay Hill.