Akshay Bhatia defeated Daniel Berger on the first playoff hole to win the 2026 Arnold Palmer Invitational. This is Bhatia’s third career win and first since the 2024 Valero Texas Open.
Berger was in the lead going into the final round and leapt even further ahead after Bhatia shot a 2-over-38 to fall four strokes behind. However, Bhatia put himself back into contention on the back nine with a 5-under-31. Berger shot an even-par 36 to lose his lead. On the 18th hole, Berger rolled in a 13-foot par putt to force the playoff.
This is the first time the Arnold Palmer Invitation has been decided by a playoff since 1999. Bhatia won the playoff with a par after Berger missed a short par putt at the famous Bay Hill. Bhatia led the field in strokes gained putting and around the green for the entire week despite Berger being on top of the leaderboard since his opening round of 63 (-9). Bhatia has had a strong start to the season, with top 6 finishes at the WM Phoenix Open and the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Berger was looking to become the first wire-to-wire winner in the history of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He led the tournament after every round thanks to his excellent approach game, where he gained the most strokes out of any player in the field.
All three of Bhatia’s wins have come from playoffs, so in the press conference he was asked why they tend to go so well for him. “I don’t know. I mean luck, obviously,” he answered. “But I feel like when I get into a playoff I feel less nervous. And I kept adding pressure, it felt like, to Daniel.”
Next on the PGA Tour schedule is The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass, where Rory McIlroy will look to defend his title against a field that includes Scottie Scheffler, Si Woo Kim and Tommy Fleetwood.
