Pencil thin and razor sharp

It was the poet Robert Frost who famously put into words the challenge and the potential reward of choosing an uncommon path:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – 
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
 
It may stretch the bounds of academia to apply Frost’s famous words to 21-year-old Akshay Bhatia, but the fundamental message fits.
After taking his own path and procuring special temporary member status on the PGA Tour, Akshay Bhatia might feel like he has the world in the palm of his hand. Darren Carroll, USGA
Bhatia, who recently earned special temporary member status on the PGA Tour by virtue of a second-place finish in the Puerto Rico Open and a fourth-place finish at the Vidanta Mexico Open, has arrived at his intended destination by walking his own path.
Before he completed a spectacular junior career, Bhatia decided he would not play college golf. Being home-schooled, he also forsook high school golf.
Never mind that Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, et ...