![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6976944.1721898750!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
DEVELOPING Jasper wildfire burns buildings, while poor air quality forces some fire crews out
A fast-moving wildfire has hit Jasper, Alberta, destroying buildings and chasing some wildland firefighters away with dangerously poor air quality.
Two-time Masters champion Scottie Scheffler was arrested after police say he dragged an officer while trying to get around the scene of a fatal accident Friday ahead of the second round of the PGA Championship.
The 27-year-old Scheffler, the world's No. 1-ranked golfer, was attempting to get to Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, around 6 a.m. when police say he illegally bypassed the scene of an accident where a pedestrian was killed.
Scheffler was charged with multiple counts, including second-degree assault of a police officer and reckless driving. He was booked and had his mugshot taken before being released. Scheffler called the chain of events a “big misunderstanding.”
He returned to Valhalla in time for his 10:08 a.m. tee time. Scheffler received a loud ovation from fans when he was introduced, then birdied his first hole of the day, the par-5 10th.
Scheffler arrived at Valhalla this week as a heavy favourite following a run of dominance in the sport not seen since Tiger Woods' prime. He entered play Thursday having won four of the last five tournaments he entered, including the Masters — one of golf's four major events — last month at Augusta National in Augusta, Georgia.
The soft-spoken Texan is an unlikely star. He fell in love with the game as a child, sometimes hitting balls in the dark in northern New Jersey while his father, Scott, held a flashlight.
The Schefflers moved to Dallas during Scottie's childhood, with Scott Scheffler serving as a stay-at-home dad while Scheffler's mother, Diane, worked as the CEO at a law firm.
Scheffler played multiple sports growing up before ultimately settling on golf. He is hardly the only player in the family. His sister Callie played collegiately at Texas A&M.
He and his wife, Meredith, were high-school sweethearts and the Schefflers paint a portrait of a very unassuming life despite Scottie's jet-fueled rise to fame that began in 2022 when he claimed his first Masters title. The process has only sped up over the last few months as Scheffler turned his gap over world No. 2 Rory McIlroy into more of a canyon.
Scheffler is an admitted homebody who prefers playing board games and relaxing by watching Instagram videos rather than indulging in the trappings of his success. He has won more than US$61 million already in his career, including US$18 million this season alone.
The Schefflers welcomed their first child, son Bennett, on May 8, leading Scottie to reflect recently on how his life has played out.
“I married my high school sweetheart and I always wanted to play professional golf, and now I’m here,” he said. “I was sitting there with a newborn in my arms and the green jacket in the closet. It was a pretty special time.”
Scheffler was attempting to get to Valhalla for an early stretch/workout ahead of his second-round tee time, initially scheduled for 8:48 a.m.
A vendor working at the course was struck and killed by a bus just after 5 a.m. while trying to cross a four-lane road. Traffic was backed up in both directions heading into the course while police conducted an investigation.
Scheffler was driving past the scene at around 6 a.m. when a police officer told him to stop. Police say the officer attached himself to the vehicle Scheffler was operating. Scheffler stopped, and the officer ordered Scheffler out of the car before putting him in handcuffs.
Louisville police say the officer was sent to the hospital after being dragged “to the ground” and suffering “pain, swelling, and abrasions to his left wrist” after Scheffler's vehicle “accelerated forward."
A spokesperson for Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Saturday there is no police body camera video of the initial encounter between Scheffler and the officer. The officer was directing traffic at the time, and the department’s officers typically don’t record video with their body cameras while directing traffic, Kevin Trager, the mayor’s press secretary, wrote in a text message to an Associated Press reporter.
Scheffler was booked at 7:28 a.m. — about 2 1/2 hours before his updated tee time after the second round was delayed because of the fatality. He donned an orange jumpsuit and had his mugshot taken before being released. Scheffler said in a statement he never intended to break any traffic laws, expressed sympathy for the “tragic accident” and detailed the sequence of events that led to his arrest as a “big misunderstanding.”
The world's top-ranked golfer then returned to Valhalla just after 9 a.m., emerging from the clubhouse about 20 minutes later to begin preparations for his round. Wearing a white hat and quarter-zip jacket, he received an ovation as he made his way to the driving range, with one fan yelling “Free Scottie!”
There was a sense of normalcy as Scheffler went through his routine. Fellow PGA Tour player Brendon Todd greeted Scheffler by saying “good to see you." Todd then showed Scheffler something on Todd's phone, drawing a small chuckle from both.
Scheffler joined playing partners Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman at the 10th tee, with the gallery erupting when Scheffler was introduced. Scheffler's initial tee shot found the right rough, though he eventually stuffed his approach shot on the par-5 to three feet and tapped in for birdie.
By the time Scheffler was at the midpoint of his round, fans were already wearing white “Free Scottie” T-shirts as they stood behind the ropes a few yards away.
A fast-moving wildfire has hit Jasper, Alberta, destroying buildings and chasing some wildland firefighters away with dangerously poor air quality.
More than 25,000 people have been displaced from Jasper National Park since wildfires started to threaten the picturesque corner of Alberta Rockies on Monday, but the mayor of its namesake municipality says not everyone received an evacuation alert when it was sent out.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a solemn call to voters to defend the country's democracy as he laid out in an Oval Office address his decision to drop his bid for reelection and throw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Staff at a Barrie child care centre say they are frustrated by what they call a local MPP's inadequate response after a car crashed through a window in one of the toddler rooms.
The North American Aerospace Defence Command (Norad) intercepted two Russian and two Chinese bombers flying near Alaska Wednesday in what appears to be the first time the two countries have been intercepted while operating together.
Alberta has called in the Canadian Armed Forces to help assist with the worsening wildfire situation in the province.
An analyst and an assistant coach with Canada Soccer are being removed from the Canadian Olympic Team and 'sent home immediately,' according to the Canadian Olympic Committee.
After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for COVID-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
A B.C. man who was hired to help a non-profit build a food hub but instead spent the money on personal expenses – including travel, restaurants, booze and cannabis – has been ordered to pay more than $120,000 in damages.
A local First Nations elder and veteran is helping to bring the Ojibwe language to a well-known film for the first time.
A cat who fled her Montreal home nearly a decade ago has been reunited with her family after being found in Ottawa.
A woman in Waterloo, Ont. is out thousands of dollars for a car crash she wasn’t involved in.
A swarm of bees living in a lamppost in Winnipeg’s Sage Creek neighbourhood has found a new home for its hive.
Around 100 acres of Manitoba Crown Land near the Saskatchewan border is being returned to the Métis community.
Nova Scotia is suspending the licensed Cape Breton moose hunt for three years due to what the province is calling a “significant drop” in the population.
A well-known childhood prank known as 'nicky nicky nine doors,' or 'ding dong ditch,' has escalated into a more serious game that could lead to charges for some Surrey, B.C. teens.
It's been more than a month since their good friend was seriously hurt in an accident and two teens from Riverview, N.B., are still having a hard time dealing with it.
Halifax bridges have collected thousands of coins from around the world.