The 22-year-old Akshay Bhatia is the uprising golfer! He turned pro in 2019 and his PGA Tour debut was at the Valspar Championship that year. He sadly could not make the cut. His full-time journey on the Tour began last year. He came close to clinching the trophy on two occasions, the Peurto Rico Open (T2) and the Mexico Open at Vidanta (T4); he managed to grab the trophy at the Barracuda Championship.

Came the 2024 season, and he won the Valero Texas Open. Bhatia is currently ranked 31 on the OWGR list, a great feat for a 22-year-old. His career did see all kinds of moments in just a short time frame, but there was one thing that remained constant. The rock-solid support from the love of his life, Presleigh Schultz.

He even dedicated his first victory on the Tour to her. After the game, he got emotional when asked about Presleigh Schultz and said, “I couldn’t imagine my life without her. I couldn’t imagine being on this journey without her. She is a huge part of this win.” But what exactly led to them dating?

The couple’s love story began with an Instagram message that Akshay Bhatia sent to Presleigh. When they met for the first time, Schultz had little knowledge of golf. Reflecting on the moment in 2022, Bhatia shared, “I was playing in the Valero Texas Open, so I said, ‘Hey, let’s meet up.'” They hit it off and have been together ever since. After their first meeting, Schultz continued to caddy for Bhatia on multiple occasions, particularly during his time on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Reflecting on her first time caddying for him, Bhatia said, “You know, she’s never watched golf. Her little brother plays a little bit, but she didn’t really know what was going on. And so we met there, and now she’s caddying in my first Korn Ferry event as a member, which is awesome.” Even Schultz was surprised to see herself as a caddie., expressing the surreality of the situation, “I don’t know anything about golf and now I’m caddying for him,” she said laughingly at the time.

She was also by his side to witness his first victory at the Bahamas Great Exuma Classic in January 2022. What started as a meet cute is now an everyday thing. Even Presleigh Schultz’s Instagram bio says, “I’m somewhere watching Akshay Bhatia golf.” As it turns out, she did indeed turn out to be the one. That was why, in just a year of knowing each other, the couple decided on forever.

Akshay Bhatia’s magical proposal to Presleigh Schultz 

On the date when Akshay Bhatia knew he could not imagine a life without his girlfriend Presleigh Schultz, he decided to make her his fiancée. In September, he took her to the Napa Valley Wine Country, went down on his knees, and popped the question. Well, it was of course a yes! On September 10, 2023, the couple shared the news with their fans on their official Instagram account. It was a magical one indeed.

She wore a beautiful white gown and looked stunning standing beside the love of her life. The third picture was of them kissing each other, which was followed by a picture of her keeping Bhatia out of focus and the beautiful engagement ring in the frame as they celebrated with a bottle of champagne at lunch. They captioned the post, “Here’s to forever💍🍾.” Although they have yet to announce the wedding date, Schultz continues to be the biggest cheerleader for Akshay Bhatia, both on and off the course.