Don’t Worry, Scottie Scheffler Will Make His Tee Time. He Just Had To Get Arrested Real Quick

Current best golfer in the world Scottie Scheffler was in a bit of a rush to make his tee time at the PGA Championship this morning. Not because he slept in, or had some errands to run on the way, but because he got arrested outside of the course.

When Scheffler arrived at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky., he was met by a traffic jam caused by an accident that killed a pedestrian. Scheffler attempted to drive around the traffic jam, at which point he was stopped by a police officer. ESPN's Jeff Darlington, who just happened to be on the scene, described what happened next. "Scottie Scheffler has been detained by police in handcuffs after a misunderstanding with traffic flow led to his attempt to drive past a police officer into Valhalla Golf Club," Darlington wrote. "The police officer attempted to attach himself to Scheffler’s car, and Scheffler then stopped his vehicle at the entrance to Valhalla. The police officer then began to scream at Scheffler to get out of the car. When Scheffler exited the vehicle, the officer shoved Scheffler against the car and immediately placed him in handcuffs. He is now being detained in the back of a police car."

Darlington then posted video of Scheffler, in handcuffs, being led to a police car. At one point, Scheffler turns towards Darlington and says, "Can you please help me?"

Scheffler was booked at the police station at 7:28 a.m., and then released a little more than an hour later, according to ESPN. He was charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic.

Scheffler was seen arriving back at Valhalla Golf Club just after 9:00 a.m., leaving him about an hour to prepare for his 10:08 a.m. tee time. He probably didn't have time to squeeze in a bucket at the range, but he did have time to release the following statement:

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.

Scottie Scheffler