Historic Collection Of 7 Personal Letters Of Bobby Jones, 6 To His Personal Clubmaker, Up For Auction
- Details
- Category: Inside Golf
- Published: 2020-07-17
Jeff Ellis Golf Auctions.com is pleased to announce that a collection of seven letters from Bobby Jones, six of which were sent to his personal clubmaker, J. Victor East, is up for auction. This collection, which is presented in a custom made leather-bound volume, includes a Pinehurst No. 2 scorecard sighed by both Jones and East. It was J. Victor East who, in 1926, crafted the Calamity Jane putter Jones used to win the Grand Slam in 1930.
Also up for auction is a genuine 1933 Augusta National Golf Club as-built architectural map that documents the original Augusta National course layout and elevations. Commissioned by Bobby Jones and Alister MacKenzie and produced for the city of Augusta, this 1933 course map is one of the few remaining examples known.
A group of Fifty-Five historic North American golf scorecards that date between the 1890s and 1910 is also up for auction. Among the many fascinating cards in this lot is a six-hole scorecard from the Palm Beach Golf Club, a Baltusrol Golf Club scorecard that shows Baltusrol used ten holes to make an 18-hole round, and an Upper Montclair Golf Club scorecard with four holes that for years nobody was able to par! Why? Because, as the card shows, two were par 3 ½’s and the other two were par 4 ½’s!
Of a more modern fare, this auction includes 36 winner-autographed flags from 36 different venues—including Masters flags, British Open flags, and USGA event flags. This expansive collection was consigned by a lifelong member of the press who attended the events and procured the signatures in person. A few of the highlights include 1990s US Amateur flags signed by Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, and a Masters flag signed by “the Big Three”: Nicklaus, Palmer, and Player.
Ellis’s online Summer 2020 Golf Auction, featuring 294 lots of fine golf antiques and historic collectibles, is now live at jeffellisgolfauctions.com. The auction will end Saturday, July 25th.
Among the many historic golf clubs being offered in the current auction are three Tom Morris long nose clubs that date between 1860 and 1880. There are fifteen clubs up for auction that date prior to 1890, including five—two irons, an iron putter, and two Hugh Philp long nose clubs—made before 1850, during the feather ball era.
Along with a double roller sole putter from 1902, there is an amazing array of highly unusual and rare antique golf clubs—from early 1900s adjustable putter with ten removable weights to a 1904 Thistle rake iron designed to play from water; from an 1890s Willie Park Jr. splice neck 9-wood to am iron with an adjustable length grip.
Additional highlights include a mid 19th century ballot box that once belonged to Prestwick Golf Club, home to the first eleven British Open championships; an unused circa 1840 Allan Robertson featherball; a wide variety of pre-1900 solid gutta percha golf balls and early rubber core balls that include two Haskell patent golf balls and many unique balls with unusual cover patterns; 22 classic golf books some of which are signed by the likes of Willie Park, Jr, Francis Ouimet, Walter Hagen, and A.H Findlay, the father of American golf. Plus antique golf tees, ceramics, silver, etc;
To view and register for this unique event or for additional information, please visit jeffellisgolfauctions.com.
About Jeff Ellis
Since 1979, Jeff Ellis has been recognized as a leading authority on antique and vintage golf clubs and balls. Over a 24-year period, Ellis assembled an unparalleled collection of antique clubs that was sold at Sotheby's in 2007. During the collection's formation, Ellis researched every significant club and club maker and published his findings in his award winning book, The Clubmakers Art: Antique Golf Clubs and Their History, which Golf World magazine included in its list of the top 10 golf books of the 20th Century.
Ellis has authored two additional books - The Golf Club which provides a visual time line of golf clubs and balls development across four centuries; And The Putter Went...PING, his most recent and widely acclaimed book which details the most innovative golf company of the 20th Century. He has also worked as a consultant for Callaway, Taylor Made, Ping, Nike, and Cleveland Golf.