Maryland [US], August 17 (ANI): Akshay Bhatia kept his hopes of qualifying for the Tour Championship alive with a gritty finish at the BMW Championship. The Indian-American carded a 1-under 69 in the second round to move from tied-46th to tied-37th at the midway stage.

With rounds of 75 and 69, Bhatia sits at 4-over for 36 holes, just outside the coveted Top-30 who advance to the season-ending finale, according to a release from BMW Championship.

Bhatia, the Hero golfer, who finished sixth at last week's FedEx St. Jude Championship, endured a mixed round at Caves Valley. He dropped three bogeys against a lone birdie on the front nine and remained 1-over through 16 holes.

However, he staged a late rally with clutch birdies on the last two holes--sinking putts from six and twelve feet--to rescue his round and remain in contention. Currently projected at 32nd in the FedEx Cup standings, he must climb into the Top-30 to secure a second consecutive Tour Championship berth.

At the top, Scotland's Robert MacIntyre continued his blistering form. Following an opening 62 that included six straight birdies, he backed it up with a bogey-free 64 to reach 14-under 126. That gave him a commanding five-shot lead over World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (66-65) heading into the weekend.

The 27-year-old MacIntyre, who won the RBC Canadian Open earlier this season, set a career-best 36-hole score and tied the largest halfway lead at the BMW Championship since Jason Day's five-shot advantage in 2015, when Day went on to win by six.

Scheffler, despite a hot afternoon, maintained steady momentum with a 65, while Sweden's Ludvig Aberg surged with a 64 to sit six shots behind the leader. Japan's Hideki Matsuyama, remarkably bogey-free over 36 holes despite feeling unwell, posted a 64 and is in solo fourth, seven shots back.

Michael Kim (66) and Tommy Fleetwood (69) shared fifth place, eight behind MacIntyre, while Rory McIlroy battled back from an early double bogey to sign for 66. The Northern Irishman trails by ten shots. (ANI)