logo
Scottie Scheffler's craziest day at the PGA Championship: Handcuffs, jail, no appetite and a 66

Scottie Scheffler's craziest day at the PGA Championship: Handcuffs, jail, no appetite and a 66

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler is not someone who likes to rate anything over the other, whether it's a tournament he won or a round he played or a shot he hit.
He can let the facts speak for themselves on the craziest day of his career, which occurred at the PGA Championship last year.
Scheffler was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police car outside the gates of Valhalla Golf Club in the morning darkness. He had his fingerprints taken, stared into a camera wearing an orange jumpsuit for his mug shot and was put in a jail cell. He got out of jail and arrived back at the golf course 56 minutes before his tee time.
All this in just over three hours. He shot 66.
'Pretty good,' Scheffler said with a smile. 'It was definitely one of my best performances, for sure. I think it would have been a really easy scenario to get frustrated with the situation or have a 'Woe is me' type of moment and be like, 'I can't believe this has happened.'
'Hit a few balls, got on the course, birdied the first hole and got into the round,' he said. 'I used whatever I had in the tank for good.'
One year later, the scene is no less surreal.
The red-and-blue lights from police cars flashing like strobes in the dark rain. The images on ESPN — courtesy of reporter Jeff Darlington, who also was stuck in traffic — showing the Masters champion and No. 1 player in handcuffs being led away.
Police were investigating a traffic fatality involving a pedestrian, 69-year-old tournament volunteer John Mills. Scheffler was arrested for not following police instruction. The felony charge for assaulting a police officer and three misdemeanors were later dropped.
Scheffler said when his round was over, 'I feel like my head is still spinning.'
Also in disbelief were Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark, who played alongside him. Harman figured an ice breaker was in order.
'I said: 'Yesterday was your first round as a father. Today it's your first round as a convict,'' Harman said. 'He laughed. We poked some fun to lighten the mood. When something like that happens, I can't imagine how stressful it is. It's bizarre.'
He might not have seen a 66 coming from Scheffler.
'It was a clean 5 under, too,' Harman said. 'Got him back in contention.'
In the four hours since his arrest, which included a rain delay, some spectators already were wearing 'Free Scottie' shirts. The best player in golf, Scheffler had never had this much attention or heard so much support.
'He was visibly shaking on the first tee,' Clark said. 'And then perfect Scottie fashion, he pipes it down the middle and birdies the first hole. I just remember Harman and I — because we're buddies with Scottie and we knew it was a crappy situation — we said: 'Let's get it out of the way. What happened?' He told us down the 10th hole. I think it calmed the nerves for him.
'That was a crazy day for golf.'
Scheffler crashed the next day, which was to be expected. He fell back with a 73 — his first round over par all year — and eventually tied for eighth.
'The craziest thing of that day is I didn't eat basically the whole day,' Scheffler said. 'I didn't feel the need to eat. I had a couple of eggs for breakfast, but at that point I couldn't really take it down, just shoveled it into my mouth.'
What about the sandwich he was offered in jail?
'No, I wasn't going to eat that,' he said with a laugh.
'I'm a big eater. I eat a lot of food,' Scheffler said. 'That was the weirdest part. Looking back on it, that's how much adrenaline and fight or flight you had in your system. I didn't even feel like eating. Crazy.'
Scheffler is fond of saying what happened in the past has no bearing on what he does today, though that's usually related to scores and results. He can only hope for a smooth week in Charlotte, especially off the course.
A year ago, he came into the PGA Championship having won four of his last five tournaments, including The Players Championship and the Masters. But he had taken three weeks off before Valhalla to be home for the birth of his first child, a boy named Bennett.
Winnipeg Jets Game Days
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.
This year is entirely different on so many levels — the freak hand injury on Christmas Day, not winning until after the Masters. But he at least arrives at Quail Hollow coming off a victory — instead of a three-week break — when he won by eight shots in Dallas two weeks ago.
'It will definitely be different in terms of preparation,' he said. 'I would not want to take that much time off before a big tournament like that, especially in the middle of the year. My preparation will be more in my normal routine this year.'
Normal. After last year at Valhalla, that's all he should want at this PGA Championship.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Austria falls silent for a minute as questions remain about the motive for a deadly school shooting
Austria falls silent for a minute as questions remain about the motive for a deadly school shooting

Toronto Star

time13 minutes ago

  • Toronto Star

Austria falls silent for a minute as questions remain about the motive for a deadly school shooting

GRAZ, Austria (AP) — Austria fell silent for a minute on Wednesday in memory of the 10 people killed in a school shooting in Graz, which ended with the gunman taking his own life. The man's motive remained unclear. Austria has declared three days of national mourning following what appears to be the deadliest attack in its post-World War II history. At 10 a.m. on Wednesday, marking the moment a day earlier when police were alerted to shots at the school, the country stopped for a minute of silence.

Farewell letter found at the home of the Austrian school shooter but motive remains unclear
Farewell letter found at the home of the Austrian school shooter but motive remains unclear

Toronto Star

time2 hours ago

  • Toronto Star

Farewell letter found at the home of the Austrian school shooter but motive remains unclear

GRAZ, Austria (AP) — Investigators found a farewell letter and a non-functional pipe bomb when they searched the home of a man who opened fire at his former school in Austria, killing 10 people and taking his own life, police said Wednesday. As Austria mourned the victims of what appeared to be the deadliest attack in its post-World War II history, with a national minute of silence planned Wednesday morning, questions remained about the motive of the shooter.

Russian attacks kill 3 as drones hit Kharkiv and other parts of Ukraine
Russian attacks kill 3 as drones hit Kharkiv and other parts of Ukraine

Toronto Star

time2 hours ago

  • Toronto Star

Russian attacks kill 3 as drones hit Kharkiv and other parts of Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian forces launched a fresh drone assault across Ukraine overnight Wednesday, killing three people and wounding 60 more, Ukrainian officials said. One of the hardest-hit areas was the city of Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine, where 17 attack drones struck two residential districts, said Mayor Ihor Terekhov. Emergency crews, municipal workers and volunteers worked through the night to extinguish fires, rescue residents from burning homes, and restore gas, electricity and water services.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store