Scottie Scheffler detained by police, handcuffed after 'misunderstanding'

Scottie Scheffler has been detained by police after 'a misunderstanding' ahead of his US PGA Championship second round.

The world number one, who is competing in his first tournament since his partner Meredith gave birth to their first child on May 8, shot a four-under-par round on Thursday to put himself in contention, five shots back on Xander Schauffele.

However, Scheffler's participation in the rest of the tournament is now in some doubt after he was detained by police following what has been described as a misunderstanding.

As per ESPN reporter Jeff Darlington, Scheffler attempted to drive past a police officer in order to enter the grounds at Valhalla, which is in Louisville, Kentucky.

A fatal traffic accident in the vicinity of the course led to a restricted traffic flow, and Scheffler allegedly attempted to make his way into Valhalla without authorisation from the police to continue.

That subsequently led to the 27-year-old being stopped by police, pushed against a car and handcuffed upon leaving his vehicle and then being put into a police car.

Here is video that I took of Scheffler being arrested: https://t.co/8UPZKvPCCf pic.twitter.com/9Tbp2tyrJh

— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) May 17, 2024

Police provide update on incident

The Louisville Metro Police Dept have since provided an update on what happened prior to Scheffler's arrest in a statement on
News Radio 840 WHAS.

It read: "About 5:00 this morning, the LMPD responded to a call of a vehicle collision involving a pedestrian and a bus.

"Our preliminary investigation found that an adult male pedestrian was crossing Shelbyville Road south to north when he was struck by a shuttle bus that was traveling eastbound in the compulsory center lane dedicated for buses.

"As a result, the pedestrian received fatal injuries and was pronounced dead on the scene. The LMPD Traffic Unit is investigating."

© Reuters

What now for Scheffler?

As of now, the start of the second round has been pushed back until 8.35am, local time, which is a delay of one hour and 20 minutes.

However, it remains to be seen whether Scheffler will be in a position to continue the tournament. In the video above, a police officer is shown telling Darlington that Scheffler will "be going to jail and there ain't nothing you can do about it".

Scheffler's second-round tee-time is now due to be 10.08am (3.08pm, BST), creating a scenario where a withdrawal has become realistic unless a resolution is found with authorities.