Man faces charges after arrest at Phoenix Open

Mel Reisner

Tuesday, Feb. 2, 1999 | 10:25 a.m.

PHOENIX -- Although an armed man was wrestled to the ground within yards of Tiger Woods, investigators don't believe he was stalking the PGA superstar.

"I think he just let poor sense get the best of him," Scottsdale police Sgt. Doug Dirren said Monday. "He got a little mouthy, was told to calm down and he didn't heed the officer's warnings,"

Dirren said the Maricopa County attorney's office would be asked to review charges of aggravated assault and disorderly conduct against Brian K. Murphy, 40, of Phoenix.

Murphy was detained briefly in the Scottsdale city jail after he was cited Sunday, then was released without bond. In order to face the charges, he must be indicted or be formally charged by county prosecutors.

Bill FitzGerald, a spokesman for the county attorney's office, said the process would take several days because cases involving jailed defendants must be handled before others.

Murphy did not return messages left on the answering machine at his listed telephone number, and FitzGerald was unable to say whether Murphy had retained an attorney.

As a result of the incident, general chairman Ray Artigue said, the tournament will post signs prohibiting guns in the future. Anyone ignoring the sign could be prosecuted.

The assault count stems from an altercation between Murphy and officer Rob Rucker, part of a police detail assigned to shadow Woods. Officers on the course wore modified uniforms to blend with the crowd but had their mace and service pistols in plain view on their belts.

According to witnesses, Murphy had followed the final threesome for several holes and kept yelling Woods' name.

"I told the fan to be quiet, and he said, 'I've got a gun, too,' and squared off on me," Rucker told The Arizona Republic.

After the two began grappling, they fell over a rope around the tee, and Murphy pulled Rucker's jacket over his head. Another officer and a spectator joined in, pinning the burly Murphy to the ground.

The officers found a loaded semiautomatic handgun in a backpack, Dirren said. Murphy later produced a permit, issued through the state Department of Public Safety, that allows him to carry a concealed weapon.

Dirren said Murphy was released because, although the assault charge is a felony, authorities considered it a minor incident.

"In all honesty, these charges didn't warrant him being held before a judge," Dirren said.

But Woods, a 23-year-old sensation who finished third on his second trip to the tournament, was noncommittal on whether he would return to the TPC of Scottsdale.

"We'll see," he said.