PBA Galleries and Golf Auctions

My prior employer, PBA Galleries, no longer hosts golf auctions. I am sad to learn the news, but with the passing of illustrious auctioneer and friend of mine George Fox, it did seem inevitable. George passed away some years ago now, but he's still very much alive in my memories. 

George and I ran the golf department at PBA Galleries, and we had a great time. Golf auctions are half research and sales, and half relationship-building. George was a relationships guy, who loved to introduce people to each other and to knowledge. He really was built to run the golf auctions.

I left PBA Galleries while the golf auctions were still going strong, but I've recently learned they are no longer hosting them. That is a shame because PBA specialized in antiquarian golf books, ephemera, and more recently hickory clubs. I don't know if anyone can quite fill the gap that PBA left behind. If you know of anyone I should look into, please let me know!

I now work in a vastly different industry: Financial investing data and information architecture. I have a lot of fun governing metadata (no really, I do!) because I really love the details. I think that's what attracted me to researching and cataloging antiquarian books in the first place. It is the details that really matter. It is the details such as inscriptions, condition, context, and history that create the value of a book or a hickory club or an event program.

I'll tell you my favorite PBA golf auction: The two-part sale of Ralph Elder's collection. That man collected everything golf related that he could get his hands on. And those cute little wrapper-bound stapled booklets about various UK golf clubs were pleasant little surprises and are no doubt a font of knowledge for those who study and love those courses. I personally cut my teeth on those two auctions. I learned so much about golf's history and about the current golf collectors' enthusiasm for all things rare and unusual.

If you want to talk anything golf, please contact me. I'll be glad to discuss, learn, and make a new connection. 

Annual Auction at the Golf Heritage Society meeting (formerly Golf Collectors' Society)

PBA Galleries held their annual auction at the Golf Heritage Society Meeting (formerly Golf Collectors' Society), and it held some surprises for all!

Highlights of the sale include:

Lot 173 A Round of the Links, inscribed

Which sold for $9,000.

Lot 190, A Rare Tillinghast work

Which sold for $1,560 well over its estimate of $500 - 800. Probably due to the fact this it included photographs which hold clues to a mystery (read the description in the link).

Lot 208 Story of Wicker Park

Which is a work unlisted in the major bibliographies, and sold for $4,500 way over its estimate of $200 - 300. These small seemingly insignificant booklets hold important information for golf history buffs and collectors alike.

The last lot in the auction held the biggest, most exciting bidding of all:

Lot 213 Wright & Ditson 1901 Golf Guide

Which sold for $13,200 above its estimate of $1,000 - 1,500.

Suffice it to say, PBA Galleries once again struck gold in the department of rare finds. The partnership between the antiquarian book auction house and the society is one that is bound to spark curiosity and encourage competitive bidding for a long time to come.

Golf Auction, November 12th at the Golf Collectors' Society Annual Meeting and Trade Show

Sunday, November 12th at 5:00 p.m. PBA Galleries will host an auction, on-site at the Pine Needles / Mid Pines Resort in Southern Pines, NC.

Golf enthusiasts and collectors have the opportunity to preview starting at 9:00 a.m., on Nov. 12th with the bidding beginning at 5:00 p.m. The auction has been schedule in conjunction with the Golf Collectors' Society Annual Meeting and Trade Show for the fourth year in a row, a tradition that benefits all who gather for the GCS.

Like always, there will be fine antique golf books and hickory golf clubs, with a sprinkling of other select memorabilia like rare and important programs and autograph letters.

Please check the website for more information, and for the auction catalogue which will be available 2-3 weeks prior to the auction. www.pbagalleries.com

Golf Auction at the Poconos on Sunday September 18th at 5:00 PM EDT

It has now become a PBA Galleries tradition: host their late summer golf auction at the Golf Collectors' Society meeting each September. It's a great partnership. Nowhere else in America will you have such a gathering of golf memorabilia enthusiasts, and nowhere else will you get a collection of premier golf antique books, clubs, and more, curated by an attentive staff and catalogued by intelligent antiquarian experts.

According to their website, this auction offers:

Offered in this sale are over 200 lots for the golf collector including books, photographs, trophies, medals, autographs, ephemera, and other memorabilia including a large selection of early golf clubs.

But, I encourage you to take a look for yourself. There is always something new and surprising to be offered at PBA Galleries, such as this original silverprint photograph of Bernard Darwin:

Lot 35: Original Photograph of Bernard Darwin

Your study is not complete without a bronze sculpture of Bobby Jones:
Lot 90: Sculpture of Bobby Jones



And for those who collect golf club histories, this one is among the rarest:
Lot 52: The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers at Muirfield, 1891-1914



And there is a lovely selection of over 30 hickory shafted golf clubs from early 20th century. Check out these lovely hickories:

Lot 173: Early Belgian Chole Stick

Lot 181: Late 19th Century long nose wooden putter

Click here for the full catalogue:

Sale 596: Rare Golf Books & Memorabilia - Golf Clubs (Sunday in the Poconos)

Joseph P. Garrity Collection of Golf Books to be offered at auction March 3rd, 2016

This March 3rd, 2016 PBA Galleries will be offering a library of over 500 golf books, programs, and other memorabilia at auction. The auction starts at 11:00 am PST, but you can bid now online here: SALE 580 Catalogue - Joseph P. Garrity Golf Books

I have been cataloging and appraising golf collections for nearly 8 years, and rarely have I seen a collection this impressive. Joseph P. Garrity (Golf Collectors' Society member number 761) collected not only the premier books on golf, but also programs from several British Opens spanning from 1935 to 2013, and USGA Programs spanning from 1928-2013. Some of these programs have been signed by the victors.

For Bernard Darwin collectors, there are many opportunities to enhance your collection. Included in the sale is a nice selection of golf course guides detailing courses all over the UK from the 1920s to the 1950s. Plus most of his classic golf books will be available to bidders, plus some scarcely seen books written by him, including one of his few attempts to write golf instruction:

Lot 126: Hints on Golf by Bernard Darwin



There is also a great selection of memorabilia including 7 trophies from the first half of the 20th century, a few early hickory clubs, and some original pen and ink comic art by Dow Walling.

A few notable lots include:

Lot 296
Masters, Augusta National Golf Club annuals, 1978-2013 - 21 of them signed by the champion.



Lot 350
Putter Boy Bronze Sundial

Lot 352

Historical Gossip About Golf and Golfers, by a Golfer

Lot 400

Two original photographs of Walter Travis winning the British Amateur at Royal St. George's, Sandwich

Click here to view the whole catalogue of over 500 lots of golf books, memorabilia, programs, trophies and more.

SALE 580 Catalogue

Please contact PBA Galleries with any questions about bidding by phone (415) 989-2665 or by email at info@pbagalleries.com. If you have specific questions for me, the golf expert, you can reach me by email at erin@pbagalleries.com.

Happy Bidding!

Fine Writing Instruments auction this November 12th

Pen collectors, I have exciting news: This November 12th PBA Galleries is having an auction with over 175 lots of fine pens and desk accessories. Pens included date from the 1930's to the 2000's and are from various fine penmakers from around the globe like Aurora, Cartier, Waterman, Pelikan, and more. Click the link below to see the beautiful digital catalog. If you see something you like, click on it, and it'll take you directly to the online catalog where you can bid on it.

http://pbagalleries.com/content/ecat/573/index.html

Good luck!

American Treasures: Bobby Jones and Donald Ross

America’s love affair with golf was transformed by two great forces in the early 20^th century: Bobby Jones and golf course architecture.

Bobby Jones rose to stardom in 1916 when at fourteen years old he won the Georgia State Amateur Championship. He emerged from oblivion to become an immediate sensation; a young, good-looking, American prodigy. For the next 14 years he was golf’s media darling with accomplishments to match the hype surrounding him.

Jones’ charm and killer instinct on the golf course helped fuel a new generation of golf fans, some of whom still golf and collect memorabilia today. Those who collect Jones memorabilia are in luck: On Thursday, September 17^th, we are offering 9 lots of Bobby Jones typed letters, signed. Dating from 1945 to 1969, the letters are written to a variety of important people who helped shape golf: Cyril H. Tolley, Walter Hagen, golf reporter Charles Price, sportswriter Lincoln Werden, and LA Times reporter Jim Murray. For historians and fans alike, these letters provide a rich source of first-hand material written by the greatest golfer of all time, not to mention a lawyer, author, and co-founder of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament.

Lot 132: Typed Letter, Signed from Bobby Jones to Charles Price

Simultaneous to Jones’ rise to stardom, Americans’ interest in playing golf expanded rapidly in the first half of the twentieth century, as seen by the sheer number of quality golf courses being built around the country. The talented group of golf course architects that were building American courses from 1910 – 1940, produced such immaculate and unique courses, that this period of time is called the “Golden Age” of golf architecture. Architects like Charles Blair Macdonald, William Stephen Flynn, A.W. Tillinghast, and Donald Ross, were building in American and abroad.

Those who collect books about golf course architecture are also in luck: The auction will feature many of the most collectible titles on the subject, including Aleck Bauer’s rare little 1913 book devoted to hazards. There are also hand-drawn maps of two southern golf courses, signed by golf course architect Donald Ross. Ross was Scottish born, but moved to the United States in 1899. He went on to have an illustrious career in golf course design across the states. All in all, Ross designed 413 courses, including Pinehurst, Oak Hill, Inverness, Seminole, and Interlachen. Sadly, many of his original designs have been re-done, so to obtain original plans for a Donald Ross course, is obtaining an irreplaceable piece of golf history.

Lot 169: Donald Ross signed golf course plan for Desoto Heights Golf Club