I have a complicated relationship with golf. Ever since my father used to take me out to the Sheridan Municipal Course when I was a wee lad, and I learned how challenging it is to bonk that tiny little ball with that misshapen stick, I have been in love with the game. But the culture of golf has always been problematic for me. Aside from some of the more blatant social and environmental issues the game presents, I never fit in with the golf crowd, especially when I moved to the biggest city in Montana, where they have a couple of country clubs. It doesn’t matter how big or small your town is, the people who belong to these clubs always treat the rest of us as if we’re second class citizens, and I developed a resentment toward that attitude from the time I was twelve and played in my first tournament.
So when I watch the PGA tournaments, and I rarely miss one, I find it hard to ignore the inherent entitlement that is present in the broadcasts.
Friday morning at 6:00 Eastern Time, the number one golfer in the world, Scottie Scheffler, was driving to Valhalla Country Club in Louisville, Kentucky to warm up for the second round of the PGA Championship, one of the four major tournaments. Traffic was backed up for a considerable distance leading up to the entrance because there had been a fatal accident right in front of the entrance. A volunteer got hit trying to cross the street, and died.
So after waiting in line for an undetermined amount of time, when Scheffler got close to the entrance, and there were still two vehicles ahead of him, he tried to go around them, and in the process went up on the median. We’ve all been there, right? After waiting for way longer than we want to wait, we just want to get this over with. But Scheffler encountered what seems to have been an overzealous cop, who instructed him to stop. Scheffler was apparently not in the mood to wait, because he did not stop. Golfers are notorious for being superstitious about their routines, and it’s easy to imagine that Scheffler was determined to get to the practice range and get his required practice time. By the way, this was four hours before he was scheduled to tee off, so the issue was not being pressed for time.
But when he kept going, the cop somehow attached himself to the driver’s door, and hung on while Scheffler continued driving for another ten years or so. Scheffler eventually stopped and rolled down his window, at which point the cop reached in and opened his door from the inside, forced him out the car, and arrested him.
By all accounts, Scheffler was cooperative with the officers who were there. The officer who grabbed the door claimed to have been seriously injured, but it was most likely from dragging along with the car. This part of the story led to the most serious of four charges against Scheffler, which was second degree assault of a police officer.
After taking Scheffler to the station, booking him, taking a mug shot complete with an orange jumper, the officers in charge eventually realized who he was (to Scheffler’s credit, he never played the ‘don’t you know who I am?’ card), they finally released him. Scheffler was given a police escort to the golf course, where he arrived just a little under an hour before his tee time, which the golf announcers talked about endlessly. Would an hour be long enough? Oh my god!
But Scheffler had plenty of time to change clothes, warm up for a while, and then go out and do what he does nearly every day of his life, which was to play a game. Scheffler, who always seems unflappable, shot a 66, which put him in fourth place at the end of the second round.
The question of Scheffler’s legal responsibilities, of course, will be hammered out over the coming days. But what was most striking to me over the next two days was a complete lack of accountability on Scheffler’s part that he was at least partially responsible for what took place. In his interview after the second round, he was not allowed to talk directly about the case, but his primary defense seems to be that he didn’t know. He didn’t know the guy was a cop, he didn’t know there was a fatality. All of which rings pretty hollow for someone who was forced to wait in line for a very long time. It sounds conveniently avoidant.
But here was the part that was particularly disgusting to me about the events that followed. For the rest of the tournament, the announcers have talked about how Scheffler overcame this ‘ordeal’ as if he had run into a burning building and rescued a dozen orphans. The fact that Scheffler at least in part brought this ‘ordeal’ upon himself has never once been mentioned.
I think it’s clear that the cop involved went overboard. He must have suddenly imagined he was guarding the entrance to the US Embassy rather than a country club. But that doesn’t change the fact that Scheffler refused to wait until he was waved through, and then refused to stop. Any of us would expect to be held accountable for this kind of behavior.
I suspect that once the good ol’ boys in Louisville put their heads together, they’ll figure out a way to either completely dismiss the charges, or reduce them to something minor. But to me, this was just one more example of how rich and powerful white men live in a different world that the rest of us, a world where cutting ahead in line is worthy of nothing more than a smirk and a nudge. Where the crowds cheer you on as if you’ve just come back from the war. And I couldn’t help but wonder how that scene would have played out if the golfer involved happened to be Tony Finau, one of a very small handful of black golfers on the tour. Would shots have been fired?
Russell--You capture the same contradictions I feel regarding golf. I enjoy the game, but recognize the environmental impacts and am troubled and put off by much of the culture surrounding the sport, pastime, pursuit, whatever we choose to call it. Almost every recreational pursuit is complicated or compromised on some level.
Good article! As someone who used to be in law enforcement, it is very hard for me to believe he didn't understand what was going on. There should have been emergency vehicles there with their lights flashing... and rarely do officers who are controlling traffic not have on uniforms. But as in all things, since we weren't there, it's unknown exactly how things transpired. But yes, I find it interesting as well that everyone keeps talking about what a raw deal he got... even my husband tried to defend him... as usual I played the devil's advocate because I've seen it from both sides. (Many times I've almost been run over by impatient motorists at BYU games, when I worked traffic for the school police department)