PGA Tour player arrested, charged with domestic battery and strong arm robbery

PGA Tour player Erik Compton was arrested over the weekend on felony and misdemeanor domestic violence charges.

According to officials from the Miami-Dade police department, Compton and his wife were having a verbal argument on Aug. 19 at their house in Miami when Compton’s wife took out a cellphone and began recording. Compton allegedly took the phone and threw it in a pool, then grabbed his wife by the shoulder and tossed her into a wall. Compton’s wife left the residence and went to a friend’s place, where she called authorities.

Compton invoked his right to an attorney and declined to speak with officials about the alleged incident, according to the police. He was arrested on a strong-armed robbery charge, which is a felony, and a misdemeanor battery charge.

Compton was taken to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami and later bonded out.

Compton, 43, is best known for overcoming viral cardiomyopathy, a condition where the heart becomes inflamed and cannot pump blood effectively. The condition required two different heart transplants, the second at age 28. In spite of the health setbacks, Compton reached the PGA Tour, and though he has no wins and just five top-10s in 168 career starts he did finish in a tie for second at the 2014 U.S. Open.

However, Compton has struggled with his game and lost full-time status in 2016. He had made 45 starts on the Korn Ferry Tour the previous two seasons but has not registered a start on the developmental circuit during this campaign. Compton has made two appearances on the PGA Tour in 2023, finishing T-29 at the Corales Puntacana Championship and and T-63 at the Charles Schwab Challenge.