A fatal shooting that left two people dead prompted tournament organisers to delay the entry of fans at the Players Championship golf tournament ahead of the third round on Saturday.
St John County Sheriff’s Office in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, said two people were shot and killed in a shooting that occurred late on Friday about a mile from TPC Sawgrass.
Watch The Players Championships plus all four Golf Majors LIVE with FOX SPORTS on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.
The suspect in the slayings subsequently fled on to the golf course before being arrested early Saturday in Nassau County, roughly 48km of the tournament site.
Sheriff Robert Hardwick identified the alleged gunman as 32-year-old Christian Barrios, and revealed that he had been in “contact” with TPC Sawgrass employees as he fled the crime scene.
The suspect was later captured by Nassau Country deputies just before 8am local time.
“He picked up – we believe it was a radio that belonged to the PGA Tour, not one of our radios and we know he dropped it after that,” Hardwick told a press briefing.
“Our canines used it as a scent when they came in there,” Hardwick added.
The drama prompted tournament organisers to delay the entrance of fans to the course by 90 minutes early Saturday due to “operational considerations” but the third round teed off on time.
News4Jax reported the shooting occurred in a Walgreens pharmacy, and authorities said Barrios was out of prison on parole.
Two people were shot in the carpark and were transported to hospital, where they died.
Authorities believe he later stole a dark-coloured BMW that had been reported during a burglary.
“This thug is not from St. John’s county, and once again, he’s out committing crimes here,” the Sheriff said.
“He is out of prison again on probation, committing another violent felony. Here we are dumping all these resources and families are gonna mourn two people that were shot and killed in a parking lot of Walgreens over a domestic violence situation.”
Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg led the prestigious Players Championship tournament by two strokes heading into the third round.
After a lacklustre start struggling with his swing, World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler shot 4-under par in the third round to mover to 5-under for the tournament.
