SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The WM Phoenix Open drew large crowds during the Super Bowl weekend and Friday’s crowd witnessed a streaker making waves around the back nine.
Social media blew up with videos of Sean Patrick McConnell, 27, as he made his rounds from the 16th hole all the way to the 18th hole. McConnell allegedly jumped from the general admission bleachers at the 16th hole in just a pair of underwear and ran to the green before dancing with the flagstick.
He circled around the stands to pump up the crowd, evaded an event official and ran through the secondary tunnel to the 17th hole and jumped into the water hazard to swim to the 18th hole.
A man runs onto the 16th green delaying the tee shot of Stewart Cink during the second round of the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale. (Photo: Rob Schumacher-Arizona Republic)
He was charged by Scottsdale police with trespassing, disorderly conduct and failure to obey a lawful order from law enforcement.
The videos gained enough traction that the underwear brand, Shinesty, saw that McConnell wore their swim brief and the company’s CEO felt an obligation to reimburse his bail and help with administrative court fees.
“All I wanted to do was put a smile on people’s faces,” McConnell said in the release. “After all, it is nicknamed ‘the people’s open,’ so I wanted to make sure the people had something fun to remember.”
McConnell did draw cheers from the crowd, but those on the course weren’t cheering. His actions delayed the second round and drew ire from golfers.
Stewart Cink, who was supposed to tee off at the 16th hole when the performance began, was confused at first when the crowd began to get louder than usual.
“I saw an idiot, is what I saw, running around on the green,” Cink said. “I think, for the 10 or 15 minutes he got in the spotlight is probably going to result in several hours of whatever the opposite of the spotlight is.”
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