1935 Masters Tournament Panoramic Photo
Signed by Entire Field
And here it is. This is one of the most iconic, yet elusive, pieces of Masters Tournament memorabilia in existence. In fact, it is so rare that before it was extensively profiled in Frank Christian’s memorable book Augusta National & The Masters: A Photographer’s Scrapbook, many collectors doubted its existence at all.
This historic photograph was taken at the 2nd Masters Tournament in 1935. Shortly thereafter, some of the original photos were doctored in order to make it appear to be from the first Masters Tournament in 1934.
The story behind this photograph, and how it was controversially doctored, is described by photographer Frank Christian as follows:
“Before the Second Masters began, in 1935, Clifford Roberts asked my father to photograph the entire field as a memento of the occasion. The players posed on the lawn in front of the clubhouse. I will let you in on a little secret about that photograph ... Copies have been widely circulated and incorrectly identified as the “Inaugural Masters 1934”...The reason we know this is that Gene Sarazen, and many others who did not enter the tournament in 1934, are clearly evident and identified in the photograph. Sarazen had committed for an exhibition and could not play in 1934 and others shown, but not present in 1934 were Jock Hutchison, Byron Nelson, Fred Haas, Jr., Jimmy Thomson, Olin Dutra, Lawson Little, and Tommy Armour. The final indignity is that the print is doctored. The figures of Walter Hagen, Horton Smith, and Leo Diegel do not appear on the original negative because they did not show up for the photo session; they were later dubbed into the back row of the print, as was Errie Ball, who was actually present in 1934, but not in 1935 when the photo was made.”
But here’s the amazing thing. In Frank Christian’s book, he examines a known field-signed doctored photograph and compares it with his dad’s original negative to prove that the photo depicts the 1935 Masters Tournament, not 1934. But if Frank Christian had access to the photo offered in this auction, he wouldn’t have needed the original negative at all. Even though he didn’t know that this example existed, offered here is an original undoctored 1935 Masters Tournament photograph that has been signed by the entire field.
This historic photograph depicts 49 participants in the 1935 Masters Tournament (65 competed), but it has actually been autographed by even more golfers than appear in the photo. Not only has it been autographed by pictured contestants including Bobby Jones (front and center) and '35 Masters Champ Gene Sarazen; it has also been autographed by non-pictured participants (and the subjects of the aforementioned photo doctoring on other photos) Horton Smith and Walter Hagen. The autographs vary in condition greatly. Some are barely legible while others are bold.
Not only is this piece significant on its own, it also comes with impeccable provenance. The only reason that this piece exists at all is because a golfer competing in the 1935 Masters Tournament, “Lighthorse” Harry Cooper, obtained this photograph and had the entire field sign it. Cooper kept this panoramic photo in his personal collection for almost six decades before finally selling it in 1992. Included with this piece is a signed letter of provenance from Harry Cooper himself. As explained in the letter, Cooper paid a friend to stand at the first tee during the Masters Tournament to collect the autographs of each and every participant.
Just like the confusion as to the date of this photo outlined in Frank Christian’s book, Cooper also mistakenly dates this photo to 1934 in his letter. But because of the golfers pictured in the photograph, and because of Frank Christian’s detailed account, we can definitively say that this photograph is from 1935.
The 1935 Masters Tournament is, of course, one of the most significant golf tournaments in golf history. While the participants posing for this group photo did not know it at the time, Gene Sarazen’s Sunday back nine double eagle sent shockwaves throughout the sporting world and changed the future of golf forever.
This panoramic photograph measures 17-5/8" x 7-3/8", and is in excellent condition. Even an unsigned copy of this photo would surely bring $15,000 at auction, but this fully-autographed example is impressive. Our consignor had an impressive custom case and slipcase produced for this photo, though at the time it was created he also believed the photo to be from 1934 so it is incorrectly titled. The case measures 22" x 11".