Scotty Scheffler’s day was bananas.
The world’s top-ranked golfer was arrested early Friday morning before the second round of the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky, on suspicion of “refusing to comply” with local police.
Scheffler, 27, was eventually released by Louisville Metro Corrections and was able to play golf on Friday at Valhalla Golf Club, where he shot a five-under 66.
After a whirlwind day, Scheffler spoke about what happened after his arrest, where he was charged with second-degree assault on a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and failing to signal a traffic officer.
After one officer helped him calmly get out of the car before he was arrested and fingerprinted, another officer asked the golfer if he wanted to have the “full experience” in prison, Scheffler said. He asked.
“This older officer looked at me while I was doing fingerprinting or something and said, ‘So do you want all the experience today?'” Scheffler said on a confused morning. I remembered.
“I looked at him and was like, I don’t know how to respond.”
Scheffler said the officer offered him a sandwich, which he accepted.
“I hadn’t had breakfast yet. I mean, they were really nice,” Scheffler said. “We have such a strong police force and we are grateful that they are protecting us. As I said, we just found ourselves in a chaotic situation this morning. Really. That was it.”
Scheffler told reporters he was still “lightheaded” from Friday’s events.
As Scheffler was preparing for a round at the PGA Championship, the victim, who worked at a major vendor, was struck and killed by a shuttle bus.
Police said the golfer continued to drive toward the course after being told to stop.
According to the police report, Det. Brian Gillis was dragged to the ground by Scheffler, but Scheffler’s attorneys say he “stopped immediately when instructed to do so and did not enter the vehicle at any point.” “I have never assaulted a police officer.”
one Kentucky attorney told Yahoo Sports. Scheffler said the chances of him being convicted of a felony in the case are “nearly zero percent.”
Scheffler told reporters after the second round that he was initially driving to Valhalla to warm up and was unaware of what had happened near the course.
However, Scheffler was unable to get to the course as expected due to his alleged actions, nor was he able to prepare there as he had intended.
Scheffler said that because of his actions, he was unable to get to the course on time and had to prepare for his round in an unexpected location.
“I can’t explain what happened this morning at all. I spent some time in my prison cell stretching. It was a first for me. It was part of the warm-up,” Scheffler said. .
“I just sat there waiting and started warming up and I felt like I still had a chance to come out here and play. I started doing my routine and tried to get my heart rate as low as possible today. But like I said, I still feel like my head is spinning a little bit. But I was lucky to be able to come back and play golf today.”
Scheffler said some officers even joked with him during his arrest.
Follow the Post’s latest coverage of Scotty Scheffler’s morning at the PGA Championship
“I was shaking the whole time. I was shaking for about an hour. It was definitely a new feeling for me,” the golfer said. “[One officer] We came out and had a nice chat, and the police officers in the prison were great. I think some of them made some jokes when they realized who I was and what happened and how I got there. ”
Scheffler was booked just before 7:30 a.m. and was released a little more than an hour later, making time for his delayed 10:08 a.m. tee time.
After the round, Scheffler was seen on tournament broadcasts shaking hands with two Louisville police officers as he left the course.
Scheffler is tied for third on the leaderboard as the tournament prepares for its third round on Saturday.
