LOUISVILLE, Ky. — When the day’s chaos was over, it was hard to decipher what was more noteworthy.
• World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who shot a 5-under 66, posted a Valhalla post hours after he was arrested and locked up in jail, wondering if he would be able to play in the second round of the PGA Championship.
• Or a calm and candid post-round press conference in which he described his harrowing experience.
I’ve been covering major championships for the Post for more than 30 years, covering more than 100 games, and Friday has to be one of the strangest games I’ve ever encountered.
Imagine what it must have been like for Mr. Scheffler, who described himself as “upset” and “shocked” as he thought about what had happened to him.
“I was shaking with shock and fear,” Scheffler said.
The obvious element to point out here is that the worst thing that happened in Valhalla on Friday morning was that a 69-year-old man named John Mills was killed by a shuttle bus while traveling. That is. To work on the grounds of a tournament vendor.
This tragedy set in motion a chain of events that led to Scheffler’s arrest at the entrance of the club, where raw emotions were running high as law enforcement were heightened by the incident that had just occurred. .
The mysterious reaction to this incident is that Scheffler acted like a typical entitled athlete, simply trying to ignore authority and get his own way. But who Scheffler is is as good as you know.
“First of all, I would like to express my condolences to Mr. Mills’ family,” Scheffler said. “I can’t imagine what they’re going through this morning. I can’t imagine what they’re going through. My heart… goes out to them. I’m sorry.”
Scheffler then added: “My situation will be resolved. I think it was just a big misunderstanding and it will be resolved soon.” I couldn’t understand what happened at all. [with the fatal accident]”
Even after a great round, Scheffler said he was “still feeling light-headed.”
“I was sitting there in jail, and there was a television, and I could see myself on ESPN television,” Scheffler said. “It showed the time and said:” [the tee times] I got a late start and was thinking about tee time and I thought, “Well, maybe I can make it.” ”
Scheffler also revealed that he actually stretched in prison in hopes of being released in time for his rounds.
“It was a first for me,” he said. “I started doing a routine and tried to get my heart rate as low as possible.”
The irony of this is that Scheffler always seems so unaffected by outside factors that you wonder if his heart rate will spike.
“I was pretty upset, to say the least,” Scheffler said. “I was never angry. I was just in shock. The police officer who took me to the jail was very kind. We had a nice chat in the car, and I felt calm. I did.
“I was sitting there waiting to come in, so I asked him, ‘Excuse me, can I hang out for just a few minutes to calm down?’ He came out and we had fun. We had a chat, and the officers inside the prison were great.”
While being fingerprinted, an “older officer” asked him, “So do you want to experience the whole thing today?”
“I looked at him and thought, ‘I don’t know how to answer that,'” Scheffler said. “He was like, ‘Okay, do you want a sandwich?'” I thought, “Sure, I’ll have a sandwich.” I hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. ” They were really kind. ”
Scheffler was released from custody at 8:40 a.m. and driven to the golf course, arriving at 9:12 a.m. In other words, it was 56 minutes before the 10:08 tee time.
“It was definitely a challenge to come here and try to play today,” he said. “I tried my best to control my mind and control my breathing. [and] I guess I’ll just calm down and come out here and play some golf. ”
He did it.
And now he has more chances than anyone to win the tournament.
If successful, it would be Scheffler’s second consecutive major victory following last month’s Masters victory, and he would remain on track to win a career Grand Slam.
Only five players in the history of the sport have accomplished that: Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan, Gene Sarazen, and Gary Player.
But none of these legends won a major championship hours after being held in prison.
