Despite fighting for victory at the Travelers Championship on Sunday, Scottie Scheffler and Tom Kim looked out for each other when the tournament was threatened by protestors on the 18th green.
Just as Scottie Scheffler, Tom Kim and Akshay Bhatia were completing their final round which would determine the Travelers Championship winner, six climate protesters stormed the 18th green while waving smoke bombs. The commotion only lasted a matter of minutes, but in a high pressure environment it could have drastically altered the final result.
Scheffler went on to win the competition following a playoff against Kim, issuing the perfect response after a disastrous US Open. It was a challenging moment for both Scheffler and Kim, but they ended up supporting one another. "From my point of view, they got it taken care of pretty dang fast, and so we were very grateful for that," said Scheffler.
"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."
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The Cromwell Police Department were thanked by the PGA Tour for their quick and efficient response to the trespassing, which resulted in the protestors being taken into custody. Some of the protesters were wearing white shirts with "NO GOLF ON A DEAD PLANET" printed on the front.
The green also had to be cleaned as residue from the smoke bombs stained the surface, and fans chanted "USA, USA" when the protestors were led away by police. Golfing events are often affected by the weather, with pauses needed for rain delays, which inspired the protest.
Activist group Extinction Rebellion claimed responsibility, and sent a statement to the Associated Press to explain their reasoning. "This was of course due to increasingly unpredictable and extreme weather conditions," the statement read.
"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."
Kim was frustrated with the condition of the green after the protest had occurred, but conceded that the safety of the players and the way it was handled by authorities was the most important factor. "They left a lot of marks on the greens, which is not right for us players - especially when two guys are trying to win a golf tournament," Kim said.
"But I'm very grateful for the tour and the tour security for handling that really well and making us players feel a lot safer." Scheffler took home £2.85 million for winning the Travelers Championship, while Kim settled for £1.7 million after coming second.
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