Green Jacket Auctions' Statement on Early Golf Clubs

To celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Green Jacket Auctions(!!!), we’ve been surveying the hobby and have an observation to share: early golf clubs, which for decades were the driving force of the entire collecting industry, are vastly oversold and incredibly undervalued in the current market. This is especially true for museum quality clubs, which we consider to be the top 5% of known examples. If there has ever been a time in the past 50 years to pay attention to the earliest golf clubs, now is that time.

Museum Quality John Jackson Putter, Circa 1850

John Jackson putter, ca. 1850. John Jackson of Perth (1805-1878) was one of Hugh Philp's greatest competitors for producing fine and enduring golf clubs of high quality in the mid-1800s. With a large club head of early design, this high grade club was likely part of an early display of ancient golf clubs. It contains an early handwritten inscription on the face and sole which read "Putter" in script. Though this writing could easily be removed, it adds a certain level of intrigue to know that this rare John Jackson club was apparently fine enough to display many decades ago. Jackson clubs are a key element of any fine collection of ancient golf clubs. According to Jeff Ellis' book "The Clubmakers' Art", "[a]lthough Jackson was making clubs during the same period as Hugh Philp and Douglas McEwan, very few of his clubs remain compared to the number of known McEwan and Philp clubs." ("The Clubmakers' Art" (2nd Ed., page 52)

A total original club by the most important figure in the history of the game. Patterned after the slim and elegant clubs of Hugh Philp, Old Tom's early clubs are highly prized. Clubs of this era in original condition are genuinely rare. Though later, less quality Tom Morris clubs abound, they don't begin to compare to a high grade early example such as the offered club.