2023 3M Open: Top 10 Power Rankings at TPC Twin Cities

We go from the rugged links land of England to the lush, green prairie of the midwestern United States. A handful of players are making the trek across the pond from last week’s Open Championship to this week’s PGA Tour stop at the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota.

The course is located just north of the Twin Cities.

This tournament was once a PGA Tour Champions event known as the 3M Championship at this same host site, which has hosted a PGA Tour event since 2019.

The course is an Arnold Palmer design with consultation from Tom Lehman. Lehman was instrumental in the course undergoing renovations to make it more suitable for the PGA Tour.

It’s still a very scorable layout that plays to a par 71 at 7,431 yards.

Every winning score at the 3M Open has been 15-under or better.

TPC Twin Cities is relatively bomber friendly as long as you avoid water that lurks on 15 holes, including on the par-5 18th.

Even though they’re man-made bodies of water, it still makes sense that the Land of 10,000 Lakes would feature some sort of aquatic obstacles.

We’ve got a 156-player field seeking to make the 36-hole cut of top 65 and ties.

A lot of big names are sitting out this week in favor of rest. For those who are on the bubble of making the top 70 next month in order to qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs, this is an important week.

Four of the top 25 players from this week’s edition of the Official World Golf Ranking are teeing it up in Blaine.

It’s expected to be a sweltering hot weather week with temperatures in the 90s for most of the week, with triple digits not out of the question Thursday. It will cool slightly into the weekend, but without any rain in the forecast, the course could bake out and play firmer than what we’re used to seeing.

Let’s see who can take the heat and pick up some momentum heading into the postseason:

Akshay Bhatia has about as much golf mileage on him as any 21-year-old in history.

The former can’t-miss junior golfer who turned pro at 17 has been steadily ascending. He took his lumps early on since playing for cash, but his decision to eschew college looks like it’s working out.

Last year, the wiry lefty won on the Korn Ferry Tour. He didn’t finish high enough on the KFT money list to earn his PGA Tour card, but he was still able to land some starts on the PGA Tour as a non-member.

Bhatia made the most of his opportunities, taking T-17th in his 2022-23 PGA Tour season debut at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. He earned Special Temporary Membership after posting a solo second at the Puerto Rico Open.

That allowed Bhatia the opportunity to receive unlimited sponsor exemptions for the rest of the season. He later took solo second at the Mexico Open at Vidanta where he battled the likes of Jon Rahm and Tony Finau almost until the end.

Fast forward to today and Bhatia is a PGA Tour champion. He showed good form in recent weeks to take T-35th at the John Deere Classic and T-9th at the Barbasol Championship before netting his first big league win last week at the Barracuda Championship.

"“I can’t even talk. I mean, I knew that if I got in a position like this I could do it,” Bhatia was transcribed by ASAP Sports. “I’ve done it at every level. Man, that felt uncomfortable out there. I made a really bad double. I hit some really bad shots. But then I just kind of made some really nice putts on 8 and 9. Then started hitting really good shots coming in.”"

Bhatia sunk a 15-footer on the 72nd hole for birdie to get into a playoff with Patrick Rodgers. Rodgers’ bad luck finding a divot in the fairway on the first playoff hole led to a bogey, allowing Bhatia to comfortably two-putt for the victory.

There’s no time for Bhatia to kick back and relax, though.

The win now gives him full PGA Tour membership and makes him eligible for the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Under the old system that invited the top 125 in the standings to the first playoff event, Bhatia would be just fine at No. 91.

Now, he has two weeks to try to vault inside the top 70.

Bhatia is making his 3M Open debut.

He leads the PGA Tour in approach proximity from 200-225 yards (34’4”). Bhatia is gaining strokes in every category except for around-the-green. He’s 20th per round in approach (.552) and 33rd tee-to-green (.748).

It can be tough to play well after a win, but I like Bhatia’s youthful energy to propel him to another high finish this week at TPC Twin Cities.