Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg confirmed Saturday that there is no body camera footage of the hectic scene that led to the arrest of top-ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship, according to WDRB.
Hours ahead of his scheduled tee time, Scheffler was arrested after what he later called a “very chaotic scene” and a “big misunderstanding” with Louisville Metro Police Det. Bryan Gillis over allegedly refusing to follow traffic laws outside the entrance of Valhalla Golf Club, where a fatal accident had occurred earlier on Friday.
Greenberg said Gillis either didn’t have a body camera on him or it wasn’t activated.
“The officer did not have a body cam footage turned on during the incident we will release the footage that we have,” Greenberg said. “We did not have any … to my knowledge. We have not discovered any video of the initial contact between Officer Gillis and Mr. Scheffler.”
The mayor added that there is footage available from a fixed camera across the street from the incident that should be released soon.
Scheffler was booked and processed around 7:30 a.m. on Friday and charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and disregarding traffic signals.
The two-time Masters winner was eventually released and returned to the golf club to tee off just after 10 a.m.
Scheffler went on to shoot 5-under 66 to get to 9-under, putting him only three shots behind leader Xander Schauffele to begin play on Saturday.
In a statement on Friday, Scheffler said “This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers. 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.”
Schauffele gave his thoughts on the event after the second round.
“First off, the fatal accident is definitely the worst thing. I’m sure Scottie would agree with that,” he said on Friday during a press conference. “Anyone passing anywhere near golf tournaments, it’s never something that should ever happen. That for starters. Then you felt like it was sort of a prank or something when you see a mugshot of Scottie.
“I know Scottie pretty well; we share a physio and we’ve been playing golf for a few years now, and I know he’s a solid guy and there was no mal intent by him to anyone. So hopefully he goes out unscathed. But Scottie’s a good dude, so hopefully he’s fine.”
The incident saw Gillis taken to the hospital in pain and dealing with swelling in his left knee and wrist.
Scheffler is set to appear in Jefferson District Court on May 21.
