Shortly before his scheduled second round 10:08 a.m. ET tee time at the PGA Championship, Scottie Scheffler released a statement following his arrest Friday morning outside of Valhalla Golf Club.
“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. I never intended to disregard any of the instructions. 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. It truly puts everything in perspective.”
Scheffler was arrested following an incident with an officer outside the entrance to the golf course. He was not involved in a separate traffic incident outside Valhalla that ended in a pedestrian fatality.
Scheffler was charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, criminal mischief in the third degree, reckless driving and disregarding signals from officers directing traffic. The charges include two misdemeanors, one violation and one felony (second-degree assault of a police officer). According to the police report, an officer was hospitalized after being “dragged” by Scheffler’s car due to “pain, swelling and abrasions to his left wrist and knee.”
The incident was first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Darlington.
After being released from custody at 8:40 a.m. ET, Scheffler arrived back at Valhalla at 9:12 a.m. ET and headed to the practice area ahead of his second round tee time. He then teed off to start his second round, and birdied his openign hole.
Steve Romines, an attorney representing Scheffler, told reporters that Scheffler held out his media credential and was entering the golf course as players had been intrsucted to.
“Apparently, there had been a traffic accident, or maybe even a fatality down the road, and that had changed the traffic patterns, and he was unaware of that,” Romines said. “I think the officer that was directing traffic was maybe not part of the event traffic detail and so that’s where the miscommunication arose and that’s why we’re here.”
The start of the second round of the PGA Championship was delayed by 80 minutes due to the accident outside the entrance to Valhalla. In the rainy predawn hours, traffic around the course was at a standstill. Players were permitted to enter the course to prepare for the tournament.
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