Gary Moranon the serious bidding in store for items ranging from an 1883 Open winner's medal guiding at €62,657 to 1,500 ball markers for €1,000.
WHEN TOM WATSON won the British Open at Carnoustie in 1975, his winner's cheque was for £7,500 (€9,400). At Maxwells auctioneers in Cheshire today, a programme from the tournament signed by 40 players is expected to sell for between £150 (€188) and £200 (€250).
Pádraig Harrington earned £750,000 (€940,000) for his victory at the same venue last year and if you applied the same ratio, a similar programme would fetch between £15,000 (€19,000) and £20,000 (€25,000). That won't happen, of course, because when it comes to memorabilia, old is gold, a point that will be illustrated time and again during the golf auctions taking place in the run up to the British Open.
Bonham's in Chester and Mullock's, who run their auction at the unlikely venue of the Clive Pavilion at Ludlow racecourse, have serious track records in the business, while Maxwells of Cheshire have a fine catalogue for their first golf-only auction today.
The items at Maxwells will include the Ben Hogan irons we featured in this column last week.
A private American collector is putting Willie Fernie's winner's medal from the 1883 Open at Musselburgh up for sale and it guides at £50,000 (€62,657) to £60,000 (€75,000). Even the lower figure would beat the previous record for a golfing medal.
Their next most expensive item is expected to be the Hogan irons at £15,000 (€19,000) to £25,000 (€31,000) and there are a wide variety of items expected to make over £5,000 (€6,200).
You could write a column or even a lengthy series of columns on clubs alone, with baffing spoons and socket neck brassies, rut and track irons, deep groove mashies, mammoth niblicks, transitional headed woods, scared neck putters and spring face cleeks among the items on offer. (Socket by the way refers to the head being drilled to accept the shaft rather than the expected result of using the implement.)
Value depends on demand, which typically depends on rarity. Bonhams had many lots such as a Robert Forgan long nose spoon (circa 1863) guiding at £1,500 (€1,900)to £2,000 (€2,500), while Maxwells top club is "An early blacksmith-made cleek, circa 1790s, with lemonwood shaft, later sheepskin grip with underlisting and a thick 5-inch hosel." The club is believed to be one of a group of the six oldest cleeks in the world and guides at £8,000 (€10,000) to £12,000 (€15,000).
Putters come in all sorts of shapes and with exotic names including the Tom Morris Rustless Gem (only £80 (€100) to £120 (€150), the Gibson Jonko, the Bogee, the Little Slam, the Auld Reekie and Black Majic by Forgan of St Andrews.
Maxwells quote £3,000 (€3,750) to £5,000 (€6,200) for a Holmac Patent (Pending) T-Frame Rudder putter, circa 1922. It is one of only five known examples of the club which had a very limited lifespan as both the USGA and the RA declared it illegal before it was offered to the public.
If you have clubs then the next thing you need is balls and again, there is a great variety of types, ages and prices. A Dunlop Warwick 50/50 had a 50/50 mixture of round and squared dimples. Bonham's listed one still in the original wrapper for £50 (€63) to £80 (€100).
Maxwells guide £5,000 (€6,200) to £7,000 (€8,800) each for a rare Forgan hand-hammered gutty and a William Gourlay feather ball (circa 1830s).
Something as simple as a ball marker can be a collectible and Bonham's had one lot of over 1,500 markers covering 1930 to the present day, all documented and presented in cabinet trays, estimated to fetch £600 (€752) to £800 (€1,000).
If you are going to the Open this week, then you might hold on to your hat, programme or other souvenirs. A 1983 Open championship baseball cap along with the programmes from the '83 and '76 Opens and the 1969 Ryder Cup (all played at Birkdale) were going as one lot for £60 (€63) to £80 (€100) and players' signatures add value to such items.
A programme from the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach, signed by the winner Tiger Woods, guides at £200 (€250) to £300 (€376) and a signed souvenir pin flag from his 2,000 Open win at St Andrews is almost twice that. Woods' signature adds value to anything.
There is a feeling among collectors that prices, particularly for books, will be down this year and the state of the American dollar hasn't helped. We'll report on results.
In the meantime, we welcome e-mails concerning golf memorabilia but do not guarantee valuations. If you have an interesting story or item, e-mail collectgolf@gmail.com
