Scottie Scheffler, the world’s top ranked golfer, issued a statement on Friday morning, hours after his arrest by police in Kentucky stunned fans of the sport.
Scheffler was handcuffed and booked by the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department as he attempted to enter a gate at Valhalla Golf Club for the second round of the PGA Championship.
Police had blocked off a street after a man was killed by a shuttle bus just after 5 a.m. Scheffler was pulled from his vehicle and placed into handcuffs and said he did not know there had been an accident.
The 27-year-old was later booked into jail on charges of second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic, ESPN reported.
He was released from jail hours later without bail.
In a comment shared on the social media platform X by the PGA Tour, Scheffler spoke out:
Scottie Scheffler’s statement prior to Round 2 @PGAChampionship. pic.twitter.com/x26RFOqCIa
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 17, 2024
“This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers. It was a very chaotic situation, understandably so considering the tragic accident that had occurred earlier, and there was a big misunderstanding of what I thought I was being asked to do,” the two-time Masters Tournament champion said.
Should the charges against Scottie Scheffler be dropped?
“I never intended to disregard any of the instructions,” he added. “I’m hopeful to put this to the side and focus on golf today. Of course, all of us involved in the tournament express our deepest sympathies to the family of the man who passed away in the earlier accident this morning.”
Scheffler, who ended Thursday four under par, concluded, “It truly puts everything in perspective.”
Video of Scheffler’s arrest went viral on social media:
Here is video that I took of Scheffler being arrested: https://t.co/8UPZKvPCCf pic.twitter.com/9Tbp2tyrJh
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) May 17, 2024
According to ESPN’s Jeff Darlington, Scheffler used a median to drive around the crash scene.
He drove between 10 and 20 yards after a police officer told him to stop.
After Scheffler rolled down his window to talk to the officer, he was grabbed by the arm and detained.
An attorney for the golfer told ESPN that his client had no idea there had been a death near the entrance of the golf club.
Scheffler was released from jail at 8:40 a.m., less than 90 minutes before his scheduled 10:08 a.m. tee time.
The star golfer made that tee time to an uproarious response from onlookers and fans.
As of this publication, he is one-under through the first three holes.
