Crime doesn’t stop for Masters Week, and sometimes the people who end up in jail are golf fans from out of town.
Last year, two people were arrested at Augusta National Golf Club during the Masters golf tournament.
James Alden Thomas, 38, of Hobe Sound, Fla., was arrested during practice rounds. The golf fan reportedly came into the tournament with an attitude and then became intoxicated and refused to leave the course when ordered to do so, authorities said. Thomas spent a night in jail.
Cooper Timmerman, 22, of Myrtle Beach, S.C., was arrested on Masters Thursday for trespassing. He reportedly came in with his father and became inebriated while watching the first round. Escorted to the gate and told to leave, he came back and tried to get back in.
That wasn’t all. A Sunday afternoon car chase near the golf club created a real scare. Kelvin Taylor, 29, allegedly fired a gun while chasing a man who had stolen his girlfriend’s car. The Augusta man and the suspect he was chasing raced through a red light at Washington Road near Alexander Drive.
Authorities said it was incidental to the Masters, but there were patrons all over the area. “It’s amazing that no one got hurt, thank God,” Chief Deputy Pat Clayton said.
Taylor was charged with aggravated assault, weapon possession, fleeing police and reckless driving. He spent months in jail before getting bond, and he currently awaits trial.
The Masters tournament has generated some wild arrests over the last two decades:
Adam Scott’s Father? (2014): Fresh off his release from jail for allegedly crashing the gates of Augusta National on Saturday, April 3, 2014, Pennsylvania resident Joseph Murphy tried again that next Monday morning. But an alert deputy recognized the man and he was jailed without bond until the tournament ended.
Authorities say the 50-year-old golf fan showed up at the main entrance, driving a rented Mercedes-Benz and claiming to be the father of former Masters champ Adam Scott. He was not. That case and a subsequent trespassing arrest were dropped a year later.
Street Preacher Arrested (2013): A street preacher from Tennessee was arrested on Wednesday, April 10, 2013, outside Augusta National Golf Club, accused of trespassing on club property after being told to leave. Larry Craft was arrested for trespassing and obstruction. Authorities say they ordered the 52-year-old preacher not to enter Augusta National “due to his aggressive behavior towards patrons” and comments on “how the patrons were dressed.”
But three hours later, Craft entered the golf property on Berckmans Road and was arrested when he told deputies he was “not going to leave.” A jury eventually found him not guilty.
Sand Souvenir (2012): After flying into Augusta on a private jet with his client for Masters Sunday 2012, Oklahoma salesman Clay Baker was arrested after trying to grab a handful of sand from a bunker. “I didn’t think grabbing a handful of sand would be that big of deal,” he told reporters.
Baker said he attended the 2011 World Series at Ranger Ballpark in Texas and sat in the front row. Before he left, he grabbed some dirt from the field and was not arrested.
Authorities said that Baker was not arrested for the sand, but for being drunk and crossing a rope barrier that clearly prohibited patrons from walking on the course.
Baker eventually agreed to forfeit the $285 in bond.
Lake Jumper (2010): A Canadian golf fan was “highly intoxicated” when he wrapped up Masters Sunday in 2010 by jumping into the pond on the 16th hole at Augusta National.
Eric Blue-Sky Sweet, 37, was arrested for disorderly conduct after his dip into the small body of water on the Par-3 hole. Authorities say the restricted area was clearly marked by rope.
Tiger’s Biggest Fan (2005): Moments after Tiger Woods defeated Chris DiMarco in a thrilling playoff win in 2005, 24-year-old Arun Arora of Martinez flew through Gate 1 in his 2001 Acura and refused to stop.
When he finally stopped near a shuttle pick-up, Aurora told an officer “he just wanted to meet Tiger and that he was a big fan of the Masters,” a report stated. He later pleaded guilty and received probation and heavy court fees.
