Protestors Storm 18th Green as Scheffler, Kim Battle for Travelers Championship Crown

Protestors stormed the 18th green at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut, as Scottie Scheffler and Tom Kim battled for the Travelers Championship Crown.

As Scheffler and Kim both had putts to either end or send the tournament to a playoff, a group of five protestors stormed the green with smoke bombs, throwing them onto the putting surface and damaging the grass.

Police officers subdued the protestors as they apparently were representatives of a “Just Stop Oil” movement. There are two different videos of the incident: the television version and the spectator version.

Here’s what spectators saw:

PROTESTORS STORM THE 18TH AT TPC RIVER HIGHLANDS@NUCLRGOLF @PGATUOR @GolfDigest pic.twitter.com/JSjcYidOaR

— TrackingScheffler (@SchefflerLegion) June 23, 2024

Here’s what viewers saw on television:

Here is the scene of the protestors rushing the green at the Travelers Championship right before Scottie Scheffler takes his potential winning putt. Wild scene pic.twitter.com/CWm4fwgKrH

— Fairway Updates (@fairwayupdates) June 23, 2024

The damage done to the green allowed Kim to move his ball as grounds crew members did their best to clean the mess. 

The Travelers Championship then went to a playoff, where tournament officials decided to move the hole location in an attempt to limit the obstruction that the damage might have had on the green. The 18th hole is the location of the first playoff hole, which is set to start in the coming minutes.

Some of the protestors were seen wearing shirts that said “No Golf on a Dead Planet” when being escorted by police off the green:

Didn’t see that coming. Protesters tried to make a mess of the 18th hole at the @TravelersChamp. Cromwell, Connecticut police stopped them as the crowd cheered “USA, USA, USA” pic.twitter.com/GJKKgBPMoF

— David Dusek (@Golfweek_Dusek) June 23, 2024

Cover Image via CBS