PGA TOUR INCIDENT LEFT GOLFER 'SCARED FOR MY LIFE' AT TRAVELERS CHAMPIONSHIP

PGA Tour star Akshay Bhatia shared his thoughts on seeing protesters invade the 18th green at TPC River Highlands on Sunday.

After finishing the tournament in a tie for fifth, the Los Angeles native explained what was going through his mind as he saw various police officers chase and apprehend the protesters. The 22-year-old admitted that he was worried for his safety amid the chaos, even though security was able to de-escalate the situation soon thereafter.

"I was scared for my life," Bhatia said, per ESPN. "I didn't even really know what was happening. ... But thankfully the cops were there and kept us safe, because that's, you know, that's just weird stuff."

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Extinction Rebellion, an activist group, claimed responsibility for the interruption at the Travelers Championship. The group also believed the incident the night prior, which saw two people injured by a lightning strike near the course, was because of climate change and sought to raise awareness of the dire situation surrounding increasing temperatures.

"This was of course due to increasingly unpredictable and extreme weather conditions," Extinction Rebellion's statement to The Associated Press began. "Golf, more than other events, is heavily reliant on good weather. Golf fans should therefore understand better than most the need for strong, immediate climate action."

Tom Kim, who lost to Scottie Scheffler in a playoff, explained how the protest helped calm his nerves. "It took the meaning of the putt away for a second," Kim said of what was going through his mind after seeing the protesters before his putt.

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"Because for the past 17 1/2 holes, all you're thinking about is golf, and suddenly when that happens your mind goes into a complete - like, you're almost not even playing golf anymore. I thought it was a dream for a second."

Scheffler, for his part, praised the officers and explained the conversation he had with Kim as officers apprehended the protesters. "From my point of view, they got it taken care of pretty dang fast, and so we were very grateful for that," the world No. 1 said afterward.

"When something like that happens, you don't really know what's happening, so it can kind of rattle you a little bit. That can be a stressful situation, and you would hate for the tournament to end on something weird happening because of a situation like that.

"I felt like Tom and I both tried to calm each other down so we could give it our best shot there on 18."

Even with the interruption, Scheffler proved why he is the No. 1 golfer in the world. His win at TPC River Highlands was his sixth PGA Tour win this year and the 12th of his career so far.

He is the first player in PGA Tour history to have six wins before July since 1962, joining Arnold Palmer in the very exclusive group. Scheffler has not missed the cut in two years and has just two finishes outside the top-10 this season.

2024-06-24T01:21:16Z dg43tfdfdgfd