Six people protesting climate change stormed the 18th green as the leaders lined up their putts on the final regulation hole of the PGA Tour Travelers Championship Sunday, delaying arrival by about five minutes.
Protesters sprayed white and red powder, leaving spots on the grass before Scottie Scheffler, Tom Kim and Akshay Bhatia have completed their tour. At least one member of the group wore a white T-shirt with the words “NO GOLF ON A DEAD PLANET” in black letters on the front.
Scottie Scheffler won the championship in a playoff, awaiting an upset for his sixth victory of the year. It’s the most wins in a PGA Tour season since Tiger Woods had six in 2009. And Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked player, still has two months to play.
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“I was scared for my life,” Bhatia said of the protesters after finishing tied for fifth, four shots behind Scheffler, who earned his sixth victory of the year. “I didn’t even really know what was going on. … But luckily the cops were there and kept us safe, because it’s, you know, it’s just weird stuff.”
After the protesters were accosted by police and taken away, Scheffler left a potential 26-foot impact from the fringe on the right edge of the cup, then tapped in for par. Kim, who trailed by one stroke going into the final hole, sank a 10-foot birdie putt to tie Scheffler and send the tournament to a sudden-death playoff.
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Kim said the protest took his mind off the pressure.
“It kind of slowed things down,” he said. “It took on the meaning of putting for a second. Because for the last 17 and a half holes, all you think about is golf, and suddenly when that happens, your mind goes into a complete state – like you were almost no more even playing golf I thought it was a dream for a second.
The crowd surrounding the 18th green heckled the demonstrators, shouting insults and applauding the police who intervened.
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After the regulation removal of players, workers equipped with leaf blowers came out to clean up the remaining powder, and the location of the hole was moved for the playoffs, which began at No. 18. Scheffler beat Kim with a par on the first playoff hole.
“They left a lot of marks on the greens, which is not acceptable for us players, especially when two guys are trying to win a golf tournament,” Kim said. “But I’m very grateful to the tour and tour security for handling this very well and making us players feel a lot safer.”
Scheffler’s victory came weeks after prosecutors dropped criminal charges against him on May 29, less than two weeks after his arrest outside the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky.
Scheffler was initially charged with second-degree assault on a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving and failure to obey signals from officers directing traffic when he was arrested outside from the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, which hosted the tournament.
Jefferson County Prosecutor Mike O’Connell told a judge his office cannot move forward with charges against the world’s best golfer based on evidence and he moved to dismiss the case.
After the charges were dropped, Scheffler said on social media that he held no ill will toward the detective who arrested him.
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