Scottie Scheffler: Golf star ‘rattled’ and ‘in shock’ after being arrested by police
World number one golfer Scottie Scheffler says he was “rattled” and “in shock” after he was arrested and charged by police this morning.
The 27-year-old reportedly tried to get around a traffic jam caused by a fatal accident near the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, at around 6am local time (11am UK time) on Friday.
He is due to appear in court on Tuesday after being charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding signals from officers directing traffic.
Scheffler was released at 8:40am local time (1:40pm UK time) this morning and allowed to return to the golf course to play his second round of the PGA Championship, where he currently sits two shots off the lead.
Speaking to reporters after his round, Scheffler said: “It was a chaotic situation and a big misunderstanding. My head is still spinning.
“I spent some time warming up in a jail cell, which was a first for me.
“I was pretty rattled, to say the least… I was never angry, I was just in shock. I was shaking for about an hour.
“Coming out here and trying to play today was definitely a challenge, but I did my best to control my mind and control my breathing… just try to play golf.
“I knew there was going to be a lot of distractions… but to be honest, it was great having the fans behind me. I felt they were really glad to have me out here competing today.”
Police earlier released a mug shot taken of Scheffler while he was wearing an orange jailed-issued jumpsuit.
The fatal crash occured this morning when a bus struck and killed a man as he was crossing the road near the front gate of the Valhalla Golf Club.
Scottie Scheffler tees off hours after being detained and handcuffed. Pic: AP
Tournament officials said they were “devastated” by the death of local man John Mills, who was working for an on-site vendor at Valhalla.
Scheffler, who was not involved in the accident, was allegedly trying to drive around the crash site when he failed to stop for a police officer.
An officer is then said to have grabbed on to Scheffler’s car.
The golfer drove around 10 to 20 yards before stopping his vehicle at the entrance to Valhalla, according to an ESPN reporter Jeff Darlington who was on the scene.
Mr Darlington said: “At that point the police officer instructed Scheffler to get out of the car.
“He rolled down the window, the police officer grabbed his arm and started pulling at it. He reached inside, opened the car door, pulled Scheffler out, pushed him up against the car, immediately placed him in handcuffs.”
According to the police report, Detective Gillis stopped Scheffler’s car and “attempted to give instruction”.
The report continued: “Subject refused to comply and accelerated forward, dragging Detective Gillis to the ground. Detective Gillis suffered pain, swelling and abrasions to his left wrist and knees.
“He was transported to the hospital for further medical treatment by emergency medical personnel. Detective Gillis’ uniform pants, valued at approximately $80, were damaged beyond repair.”
Scottie Scheffler was given a roar of support as he teed off in the second round. Pic: AP
In a statement, Scheffler’s attorney Steve Romines said the player was proceeding as directed by a traffic officer and is alleged to have disregarded signals from another officer “in the confusion”.
“Multiple eyewitnesses have confirmed that he did not do anything wrong but was simply proceeding as directed,” the statement added.
“He stopped immediately upon being directed to and never at any point assaulted any officer with his vehicle. We will litigate this matter as needed.”
Speaking after a second round which left him two shots off the clubhouse lead held by Collin Morikawa, Scheffler expressed his sympathies to the family of Mr Mills.
“I can’t imagine what they’re going through this morning,” Scheffler said.
“My situation will get handled… I can’t get into what transpired… my heart goes out to the family.”
World
Trump criticises Putin after potentially ‘historic’ meeting with Zelenskyy before Pope’s funeral
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Follow live updates: 200,000 mourn at Vatican
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish armed forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening.
“The nature of the incident indicates that Russia is testing the readiness of our air defence systems,” they said in a post on X.
On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
Leaning forward hands together in their laps, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy stare at each other in one photo.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.
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