Fellow golfer Michael Kim defended Scottie Scheffler after he was arrested and handcuffed Friday for apparently driving around the scene of a fatal crash on his way to the PGA Championship, saying it's "something I've done countless of times."
Scheffler, ranked the No. 1 player in the world, was arrested wearing gym shorts and a T-shirt around 6 a.m. after he drove past a police officer on his way to the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky, although he was pictured in an orange jumpsuit in his mugshot shortly after his arrest.
Police said a pedestrian had been struck by a bus while crossing the road near the golf club.
"I will never drive around other cars in traffic driving into a golf tournament ever again... something I've done countless of times," Kim said on the social media platform X.
In a posting about an hour later, Kim asked "Assault???" in response to the charges Scheffler faces because of his arrest.
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, the Associated Press reported.
Scheffler, in a statement, said he "never intended to disregard any of the instructions."
"This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers," he said in a statement released as he was warming up on the range. "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," he said, the AP reported.
Scheffler made it back to the golf club in time to tee off in the second round.
