Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 golfer in the world, was detained by authorities and placed in the back of a police car while he was trying to get to the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, for the second round of the PGA Championship Friday morning, ESPN reported.
Scheffler reportedly attempted to drive past a police officer directing traffic and angered the officer. The officer then “attempted to attach himself to Scheffler’s car,” according to ESPN reporter Jeff Darlington, who said he witnessed the bizarre scene. The golfer stopped his vehicle at the entrance of the golf club and was told by the officer to exit his car.
“When Scheffler exited the vehicle, the officer shoved Scheffler against the car and immediately placed him in handcuffs,” Darlington wrote. “He is now being detained in the back of a police car.”
A video posted on X by the ESPN reporter showed Scheffler being taken into custody before he was driven away in the back of the police car.
“Right now, he’s going to jail,” one officer told Darlington. “He’s going to jail, and there ain’t nothing you can do about it.”
Here is video that I took of Scheffler being arrested: https://t.co/8UPZKvPCCf pic.twitter.com/9Tbp2tyrJh
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) May 17, 2024
Dozens of police cars were on the scene outside Valhalla Golf Club in response to a fatal accident involving a pedestrian, according to ESPN. That accident was unrelated to Scheffler’s arrest.
What the heck is going on right now? Scottie Scheffler arrested trying to get into Valhalla?! pic.twitter.com/a3coox510t
— sam stone (@sam_rock_stone) May 17, 2024
Darlington added on the ESPN broadcast that police “had no idea” that the man they had arrested was the best golfer in the world.
“I say that because one police officer came up to me with his pad and said, pen in hand, ‘Can you tell me the name of the person we just arrested?'” Darlington reported.
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Scheffler finished the first round on Thursday at four under par, which placed him tied for 12th and safely into the second round of the PGA Championship. The golfer is coming off a victory at the Masters last month, and Scheffler and his wife also celebrated the birth of the couple’s first child, with Scheffler posting a picture of the newborn earlier this week.
After winning his second green jacket last month, Scheffler said that what defines him most is not his success in golf, but his faith.
“I feel like I’ve been given a platform to compete and show my talent,” he said. “It’s not anything that I did. I think I sat up here a couple years ago during the interview after the 2020 Masters and it’s like, yeah, I was underprepared for what was about to happen. I didn’t know what was going to happen. I didn’t. I was very anxious that morning. I didn’t know what to expect.”
“And it’s hard to describe the feeling, but I think that’s what defines me the most is my faith,” he added. “You know, I believe in one Creator, and I’ve been called to come out here, do my best to compete and glorify God and that’s pretty much it.”
