Number one golfer Scottie Scheffler has been charged with second-degree assault of a police officer after a cop who was directing traffic outside of this week’s PGA championship was allegedly dragged to the ground and injured by Scheffler’s vehicle.
Scheffler, who is competing for a $20,000,000 purse at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, is also charged with third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer due to what the golfer referred to as a “big misunderstanding” on Friday morning.
Traffic outside of the busy golf club had been stopped due to a man being fatally struck by a shuttle bus earlier in the morning, with Detective Bryan Gillis directing vehicles on Shelbyville Road, according to a police report obtained by ESPN.
Gillis was standing in the westbound lanes of the road when Scheffler’s SUV pulled into them “to avoid traffic backup,” the outlet reported. Gillis was in his police uniform and was wearing a “high-visibility yellow reflective rain jacket,” the Louisville Metro Police Department said.
When the detective stopped Scheffler’s vehicle and tried to give instructions, “the subject refused to comply and accelerated forward, dragging Detective Gillis to the ground,” the report stated.
Police say the detective suffered “pain, swelling and abrasions” to his left wrist and knee after being dragged, and had to be taken to the emergency room by medical personnel.
The professional golfer was arrested but released a short time after at 8:40 a.m. without bail, returning to the golf club with less than an hour to spare before tee-off, ESPN reported.
Scheffler is due in court on Tuesday morning for an arraignment.
“This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers,” Scheffler said in a statement posted to his Instagram Stories. “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,” he claimed. “I’m hopeful to put this to the side and focus on golf today.”
He also added his “deepest sympathies” to the family of the man who died in the shuttle bus accident earlier that morning.
“It truly puts everything in perspective,” the golfer added.
Scheffler appeared to be trying to drive around the crash scene when Gillis was injured, ESPN’s Jeff Darlington, who was on the scene at the time of the incident, said.
At one point, the detective “attached himself” to the side of Scheffler’s SUV, the outlet reported.
Steven Romines, Scheffler’s attorney, told ESPN that his client was unaware of the fatal accident and was just “going into Valhalla to work out.”
“He was getting ready for his tee time. They were directing traffic. He held his credential out and was going in like they’d been instructed to,” he said. “Apparently, there had been a traffic accident, maybe even a fatality, down the road, and that had changed the traffic patterns, and he was unaware of that.”
Speaking to press outside the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections, Romines said
the miscommunication arose” due to Gillis not being part of the event’s regular traffic detail.
“They are allowed to go through, that’s why they have the credential and the wave-through,” the lawyer said. “[Scheffler] was unaware there had been a wreck, and he proceeded like they’d been instructed to. He did exactly as he was instructed to enter the premises.”
Romines added that his client is going to cooperate with police, saying “we’ll deal with it as it progresses.”
“Our primary concern today remains with the family of John Mills, who lost his life in a tragic accident early this morning while reporting to work,” PGA of America said in a statement obtained by ESPN. “As it relates to the incident involving Scottie Scheffler, we are fully cooperating as local authorities review what took place. While the legal process plays out, questions should be directed to Scheffler’s attorney or local authorities.”
Mills, a 69-year-old from Crestwood, Kentucky, was a worker with one of PGA’s vendors, the association said.
“This is heartbreaking to all of us involved with the PGA Championship. We extend our sincere condolences to their family and loved ones,” PGA of America said in a statement obtained by WAVE.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg also expressed his condolences to Mills’ loved ones on X.
“This morning, our city experienced a tragic accident that took the life of John Mills, a Louisvillian who will be greatly missed by his family and our community,” he wrote. “Our focus is on this family who lost their loved one. I have spoken with members of Mr. Mills’ family to convey our city’s condolences.”
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