Scottie Scheffler had to wait out and Tom Kim鈥檚 tying birdie on the last hole of regulation.
Those events only delayed what seems to be inevitable on the PGA Tour this season: the best golfer in the world walking off with the trophy.
Shrugging off a protest that interrupted the tournament on the 72nd hole while the leaders were lining up their putts, Scheffler won the Travelers Championship on the first hole of sudden death on Sunday for his sixth win of the year, the most in one season on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods had six in 2009.
鈥淲hen something like that happens, you don鈥檛 really know what鈥檚 happening, so it can kind of rattle you a little bit,鈥� Scheffler said.
Six climate protesters stormed the 18th green while the leaders were lining up their putts for the final hole of regulation at the PGA Tour's Travelers Championship on Sunday, spraying smoke and powder and delaying the finish for about five minutes.
The protesters waved smoke bombs that left white and red residue on the putting surface before Scottie Scheffler, Tom Kim and Akshay Bhatia finished their rounds. Some wore white T-shirts with the words 鈥淣O GOLF ON A DEAD PLANET鈥� in black lettering on the front.
鈥淚 was scared for my life,鈥� Bhatia said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 even really know what was happening. ... But thankfully the cops were there and kept us safe, because that鈥檚, you know, that鈥檚 just weird stuff.鈥�
The PGA Tour issued a statement thanking the Cromwell Police Department 鈥渇or their quick and decisive action鈥� and noting that there was no damage to the 18th green that affected either the end of regulation or the playoff hole.
Scheffler, who , also praised the officers.
鈥淔rom my point of view, they got it taken care of pretty dang fast, and so we were very grateful for that,鈥� said Scheffler, the world's No. 1 player, for his sixth victory of the year.
鈥淭hat can be a stressful situation, and you would hate for the tournament to end on something weird happening because of a situation like that," Scheffler said. "I felt like Tom and I both tried to calm each other down so we could give it our best shot there on 18.鈥�
Extinction Rebellion, an activist group with a history of disrupting events around the world, claimed responsibility for the protest. In a statement emailed to The Associated Press, the group blamed climate change for an electrical storm that injured two people at a home near the course on Saturday.
鈥淭his was of course due to increasingly unpredictable and extreme weather conditions,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淕olf, 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.鈥�
After the protesters were tackled by police and taken off, Scheffler left a potential 26-foot clincher from the fringe on the right edge of the cup, then tapped in for par. Kim, who trailed by one stroke heading into the final hole, sank a 10-foot birdie putt to tie Scheffler and force the playoff.
Kim said the protest took his mind off the pressure.
鈥淚t kind of slowed things down,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t took the meaning of the putt away for a second. Because for the past 17 and a half holes all you鈥檙e thinking about is golf, and suddenly when that happens your mind goes into a complete 鈥� like, you鈥檙e almost not even playing golf anymore. I thought it was a dream for a second.鈥�
The crowd surrounding the 18th green heckled the protesters by yelling profanities and cheered the police who intervened. After the players putted out in regulation, workers with leaf blowers came out to clean off the remaining powder.
The hole location was moved for the playoff, which was also on No. 18. Scheffler parred the first hole of sudden death to win.
鈥淭hey left a lot of marks on the greens, which is not right for us players 鈥� especially when two guys are trying to win a golf tournament,鈥� Kim said. 鈥淏ut I鈥檓 very grateful for the tour and the tour security for handling that really well and making us players feel a lot safer.鈥�
