“Makes one mistake, people will crucify them for that” - Scottie Scheffler breaks silence on Louisville arrest as he builds ‘new perspective’
Scottie Scheffler finally opened up about his arrest by the Louisville police ahead of the second round of the 2024 PGA Championship on May 17. The American golfer was arrested for reportedly breaking traffic rules and injuring an officer.
Later, it was revealed that Scheffler was charged with second-degree assault. However, the golfer was released from jail the same day, and last week, all the charges against him were dismissed.
Days later, Scottie Scheffler finally opened up about the case in an interview with the media ahead of the 2024 Memorial Tournament. At a press conference on Tuesday, June 4, Scheffler broke his silence on the incident.
He mentioned that if somebody is accused of something, it doesn't necessarily mean "they did do it," highlighting that "maybe they just made a mistake." He expressed his dismay at how people accuse someone if they make a mistake in life. Scheffler said (via Ten Golf's YouTube channel):
"I think I try to believe in people are innocent until proven guilty. And so when somebody's accused of something I never really see someone or I try not to see people for kind of their bad sides. Just because somebody's accused of something doesn't mean that they actually did it or maybe they did do it and maybe they just made a mistake. I think forgiveness is something that's lost in our society. And just because somebody made a mistake at one point in their life doesn't mean that they're a bad person.
"And I think sometimes in society people are expecting perfection out of everybody. And just because somebody makes one mistake, people will crucify them for that. And I've never really believed in that. I believe in forgiveness, I believe in grace, and I try to give that out as much as possible because of how much grace I've been given." (9:51-10:44)
Scottie Scheffler stated earlier that the incident was all due to confusion, as on May 17, a pedestrian was killed by a bus, causing a chaotic situation and heavy traffic. Later, videos of the incident involving Scheffler were released, but due to insufficient evidence against him, the charges were dropped on Wednesday, May 29.
Jefferson Court Attorney Mike O'Connell opened up about Scottie Scheffler's case during the hearing. He said (via ESPN):
"Based upon the totality of the evidence, my office cannot move forward in the prosecution of the charges filed against Mr. Scheffler. Mr. Scheffler's characterization that this was a 'big misunderstanding' is corroborated by the evidence.
"The evidence we reviewed supports the conclusion that Detective Gillis was concerned for public safety at the scene when he initiated contact with Mr. Scheffler. However, Mr. Scheffler's actions and the evidence surrounding their exchange during this misunderstanding do not satisfy the elements of any criminal offenses," he added.
Leaving aside the legal troubles, Scottie Scheffler has been focused on his golf and is looking forward to the forthcoming Memorial Tournament 2024. It'll start on Thursday, June 6.
When will Scottie Scheffler tee off at the Memorial Tournament 2024?
Scottie Scheffler will tee off for the first round of the 2024 Memorial Tournament at 10:30 a.m. ET. He will pair up with Ryder Cup Hero Ludvig Aberg on the first tee hole of the Muirfield Village Golf Club for the event's first round on Thursday, June 6. For the second round on Friday, June 7, they will tee off at 1:40 p.m. ET.
The 2024 Memorial Tournament is scheduled to start at 7:40 a.m. ET with Davis Thompson taking the first shot of the day. The tournament includes some of the top-ranked golfers in the world, including Rory McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele, and Viktor Hovland.
McIlroy will pair up with Justin Thomas for the first round and tee off at 1:20 p.m. ET, while Schauffele and Hovland playoff together at 10:20 a.m. ET.