PGA Championship: Scottie Scheffler began warm-up in jail cell after ‘chaotic’ pre-round arrest at Valhalla
Scottie Scheffler was arrested and charged by police ahead of his second round at the PGA Championship; Scheffler was released in time to return to Valhalla and card a second-round 65 to stay in major contention after an extraordinary day
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A look at the ups and downs of world No 1 Scottie Scheffler’s second round in the PGA Championship at Valhalla.
Scottie Scheffler admitted he was left “shaken” by a “chaotic situation” after being arrested and detained ahead of his second round at the PGA Championship.
Scheffler’s participation was under threat after a “big misunderstanding” saw him arrested by Louisville Metro Police outside of Valhalla Golf Club on Friday morning, having attempted to drive into the golf club during heavy traffic caused by a fatal accident.
The world No 1 was detained for just over 70 minutes before being released by police and escorted back to the golf course, where he arrived less than an hour before his tee time – delayed by 80 minutes due to the accident – of 10.08am (3.08pm BST).
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Sky Sports Golf’s Andrew Coltart explains what led to Scottie Scheffler being arrested and released by police ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship.
Scheffler birdied his opening hole and impressed with a five-under to send him into the weekend on nine under, leaving him in prime position to challenge for back-to-back major titles and a fifth win in six starts.
“I feel like my head is still spinning,” Scheffler told reporters after his round. “I can’t really explain what happened this morning.
Image: Scottie Scheffler posted on his Instagram story ahead of his second round
“I did spend some time stretching in a jail cell. That was a first for me. That was part of my warm-up. I was just sitting there waiting and I started going through my warmup, as I felt like there was a chance I may be able to still come out here and play.
“I started going through my routine and I tried to get my heart rate down as much as I could today, but like I said, I still feel like my head is spinning a little bit. But I was fortunate to be able to make it back out and play some golf today.”
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Kira K Dixon from the Golf Channel gives an update on Scottie Scheffler’s arrest on Friday at the PGA Championship.
What happened to Scheffler?
Scheffler was arrested just after 6am local time by Louisville police and taken to the Louisville Metropolitan Department of Corrections, with images quickly appearing on social media of him in his orange prison jumpsuit for his mugshot.
According to the police report, the detective stopped Scheffler’s car and “attempted to give instruction”, with the report adding that Scheffler “refused to comply and accelerated forward, dragging Detective Gillis to the ground.”
Image: Scottie Scheffler's mugshot appeared on Louisville Metropolitan Department of Corrections website
Scheffler faces charges of second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic, although was released around 8.40am local time and able to return to Valhalla.
The American released a statement on social media ahead of his second round, then told reporters afterwards: “My situation will get handled. It was a chaotic situation and a big misunderstanding. I can’t comment on any of the specifics of it, so I feel like y’all are going to be disappointed.
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Speaking after his second round at the PGA Championship, Scottie Scheffler detailed his arrest and detainment before being released in time to make his tee time at Valhalla Golf Club.
“I was pretty rattled to say the least. The officer that took me to the jail was very kind. He was great. We had a nice chat in the car, that kind of helped calm me down.
“I was never angry. I was just in shock, and I think my body was just – I was shaking the whole time. I was shaking for like an hour. It was definitely a new feeling for me.
“I was sitting there waiting to kind of go in and I asked him, ‘hey, excuse me, can you just come hang out with me for a few minutes so I can calm down?’. He [officer] came out and we had a nice chat and then the officers inside the jail were tremendous.
“A couple of them made some jokes I think when they figured out who I was and what happened and how I ended up there.”
How Scheffler stayed in major contention
Scheffler – starting on the back nine after a shortened warm-up – fired a wedge close to birdie the par-five 10th and responded to a missed par save from five feet at the next by draining a 25-footer at the 12th, then took advantage of the par-five 18th to reach the turn in 34.
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Scottie Scheffler birdied the first hole of the second round of the 2024 PGA Championship following his arrest earlier in the morning.
The reigning Masters champion holed from six feet the second and added another from even closer at the fourth to temporarily get within one of the lead, before rolling in from 20 feet at the par-five seventh and negotiating his final two holes with pars.
“I didn’t really feel like I would make my tee time until one of the officers at the jail came by my holding cell and knocked on the window and said ‘let’s go’,” Scheffler explained.
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Scottie Scheffler arrived and prepared to tee off on Friday at Valhalla Golf Club after earlier being detained by police at the PGA Championship.
“He said ‘get ready’ and motioned to start rolling up my mat. Then I poked my head at the TV and I was like, ‘oh, might be able to get there’, we’ll see how bad the traffic is getting in and out.
“I didn’t know what was going on out here. I didn’t know how long the delay was. At the time I couldn’t even remember what my original tee time was. I was just trying to do my best to stay calm.
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“When they took me out and we got in the car on the way here, I figured it was ready to play and my manager asked me if I wanted to. I was like, of course. Then we just came here and got ready to go play.
“As far as best rounds of my career, I would say it was pretty good. I definitely never imagined ever going to jail, and I definitely never imagined going to jail the morning before one of my tee times for sure! It was definitely a nice round of golf. My heart goes out to the family.”
Can Scottie Scheffler add to his major tally at the PGA Championship? Watch throughout the week live on Sky Sports! Live coverage continues on Saturday from 2pm on Sky Sports Golf.
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