Scottie Scheffler's craziest day at the PGA Championship: Handcuffs, jail, no appetite and a 66

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Scottie Scheffler's craziest day at the PGA Championship: Handcuffs, jail, no appetite and a 66

2025-05-11 21:44 Last Updated At：05-12 00:52

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler is not someone who likes to rate anything over the other, whether it's a tournament he won or a round he played or a shot he hit.

He can let the facts speak for themselves on the craziest day of his career, which occurred at the PGA Championship last year.

Scheffler was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police car outside the gates of Valhalla Golf Club in the morning darkness. He had his fingerprints taken, stared into a camera wearing an orange jumpsuit for his mug shot and was put in a jail cell. He got out of jail and arrived back at the golf course 56 minutes before his tee time.

All this in just over three hours. He shot 66.

“Pretty good,” Scheffler said with a smile. "It was definitely one of my best performances, for sure. I think it would have been a really easy scenario to get frustrated with the situation or have a ‘Woe is me’ type of moment and be like, ‘I can’t believe this has happened.'

“Hit a few balls, got on the course, birdied the first hole and got into the round,” he said. “I used whatever I had in the tank for good.”

One year later, the scene is no less surreal.

The red-and-blue lights from police cars flashing like strobes in the dark rain. The images on ESPN — courtesy of reporter Jeff Darlington, who also was stuck in traffic — showing the Masters champion and No. 1 player in handcuffs being led away.

Police were investigating a traffic fatality involving a pedestrian, 69-year-old tournament volunteer John Mills. Scheffler was arrested for not following police instruction. The felony charge for assaulting a police officer and three misdemeanors were later dropped.

Scheffler said when his round was over, “I feel like my head is still spinning.”

Also in disbelief were Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark, who played alongside him. Harman figured an ice breaker was in order.

“I said: ‘Yesterday was your first round as a father. Today it’s your first round as a convict,'” Harman said. “He laughed. We poked some fun to lighten the mood. When something like that happens, I can't imagine how stressful it is. It's bizarre.”

He might not have seen a 66 coming from Scheffler.

“It was a clean 5 under, too,” Harman said. “Got him back in contention.”

In the four hours since his arrest, which included a rain delay, some spectators already were wearing “Free Scottie” shirts. The best player in golf, Scheffler had never had this much attention or heard so much support.

“He was visibly shaking on the first tee,” Clark said. “And then perfect Scottie fashion, he pipes it down the middle and birdies the first hole. I just remember Harman and I — because we're buddies with Scottie and we knew it was a crappy situation — we said: ‘Let’s get it out of the way. What happened?' He told us down the 10th hole. I think it calmed the nerves for him.

“That was a crazy day for golf.”

Scheffler crashed the next day, which was to be expected. He fell back with a 73 — his first round over par all year — and eventually tied for eighth.

“The craziest thing of that day is I didn't eat basically the whole day,” Scheffler said. “I didn't feel the need to eat. I had a couple of eggs for breakfast, but at that point I couldn't really take it down, just shoveled it into my mouth."

What about the sandwich he was offered in jail?

“No, I wasn't going to eat that," he said with a laugh.

“I'm a big eater. I eat a lot of food," Scheffler said. "That was the weirdest part. Looking back on it, that's how much adrenaline and fight or flight you had in your system. I didn't even feel like eating. Crazy.”

Scheffler is fond of saying what happened in the past has no bearing on what he does today, though that's usually related to scores and results. He can only hope for a smooth week in Charlotte, especially off the course.

A year ago, he came into the PGA Championship having won four of his last five tournaments, including The Players Championship and the Masters. But he had taken three weeks off before Valhalla to be home for the birth of his first child, a boy named Bennett.

This year is entirely different on so many levels — the freak hand injury on Christmas Day, not winning until after the Masters. But he at least arrives at Quail Hollow coming off a victory — instead of a three-week break — when he won by eight shots in Dallas two weeks ago.

“It will definitely be different in terms of preparation,” he said. “I would not want to take that much time off before a big tournament like that, especially in the middle of the year. My preparation will be more in my normal routine this year.”

Normal. After last year at Valhalla, that's all he should want at this PGA Championship.

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Thousands of nurses go on strike at several major New York City hospitals

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of nurses in three hospital systems in New York City went on strike Monday after negotiations through the weekend failed to yield breakthroughs in their contract disputes.

The strike was taking place at The Mount Sinai Hospital and two of its satellite campuses, with picket lines forming. The other affected hospitals are NewYork-Presbyterian and Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.

About 15,000 nurses are involved in the strike, according to New York State Nurses Association.

“After months of bargaining, management refused to make meaningful progress on core issues that nurses have been fighting for: safe staffing for patients, healthcare benefits for nurses, and workplace violence protections,” the union said in a statement issued Monday. “Management at the richest hospitals in New York City are threatening to discontinue or radically cut nurses’ health benefits.”

The strike, which comes during a severe flu season, could potentially force the hospitals to transfer patients, cancel procedures or divert ambulances. It could also put a strain on city hospitals not involved in the contract dispute, as patients avoid the medical centers hit by the strike.

The hospitals involved have been hiring temporary nurses to try and fill the labor gap during the walkout, and said in a statement during negotiations that they would “do whatever is necessary to minimize disruptions.” Montefiore posted a message assuring patients that appointments would be kept.

“NYSNA’s leaders continue to double down on their $3.6 billion in reckless demands, including nearly 40% wage increases, and their troubling proposals like demanding that a nurse not be terminated if found to be compromised by drugs or alcohol while on the job," Montefiore spokesperson Joe Solmonese said Monday after the strike had started. "We remain resolute in our commitment to providing safe and seamless care, regardless of how long the strike may last.”

New York-Presbyterian accused the union of staging a strike to “create disruption,” but said in a statement that it has taken steps to ensure patients receive the care they need.

"We’re ready to keep negotiating a fair and reasonable contract that reflects our respect for our nurses and the critical role they play, and also recognizes the challenging realities of today’s healthcare environment,” the statement said.

The work stoppage is occurring at multiple hospitals simultaneously, but each medical center is negotiating with the union independently. Several other hospitals across the city and in its suburbs reached deals in recent days to avert a possible strike.

The nurses’ demands vary by hospital, but the major issues include staffing levels and workplace safety. The union says hospitals have given nurses unmanageable workloads.

Nurses also want better security measures in the workplace, citing incidents like a an incident last week, when a man with a sharp object barricaded himself in a Brooklyn hospital room and was then killed by police.

The union also wants limitations on hospitals’ use of artificial intelligence.

The nonprofit hospitals involved in the negotiations say they’ve been working to improve staffing levels, but say the union’s demands overall are too costly.

Nurses voted to authorize the strike last month.

Both New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani had expressed concern about the possibility of the strike. As the strike deadline neared, Mamdani urged both sides to keep negotiating and reach a deal that “both honors our nurses and keeps our hospitals open.”

“Our nurses kept this city alive through its hardest moments. Their value is not negotiable,” Mamdani said.

State Attorney General Letitia James voiced similar support, saying "nurses put their lives on the line every day to keep New Yorkers healthy. They should never be forced to choose between their own safety, their patients’ well-being, and a fair contract.”

The last major nursing strike in the city was only three years ago, in 2023. That work stoppage, at Mount Sinai and Montefiore, was short, lasting three days. It resulted in a deal raising pay 19% over three years at those hospitals.

It also led to promised staffing improvements, though the union and hospitals now disagree about how much progress has been made, or whether the hospitals are retreating from staffing guarantees.