Golf balls are perhaps the hottest golf memorabilia in the world right now. To longtime collectors, this will not be a surprise, as golf balls were once the crème de la crème of the golf world. Finally, after years of being overlooked, golf balls seem poised for their rightful return to prominence. And rightful it is. Most historians agree – it was the ball, not the club, that most influenced the game of golf. Our last auction saw 2 individual balls sell for over $30,000 each, as well as other golf balls sell for $14,000 and $8,000, respectively. And there are reports that a scarce “Paterson’s Composite” golf ball recently traded hands privately for a whopping $200,000 – the highest price ever paid for a golf ball.

Offered in this auction is one of the finest groupings of rare golf balls ever assembled for a single sale. Many of these balls were the centerpieces of the most important golf ball book ever written, The Story of the Golf Ball (2003) by Kevin McGimpsey. McGimpsey’s book is the Bible for golf ball collectors, and rightfully so.

1870 ‘York House’ Hand Hammered Gutta Golf Ball

Presented here is a circa 1870 hand hammered "York House" gutta percha gof ball. The very first gutta percha golf balls were smooth. After golfers realized that the balls flew better after some "knicking", they began requesting golf ball makers knick the balls before taking delivery. These early hand hammered balls are scarce, as tools/molds were soon made to eliminate the labor intensive work of having to hammer each ball by hand. This hand hammered ball contains an extraordinary York House stamp. The ball retains 95% of its original paint. This exact ball is pictured on page 207, and on plate XI in The Story of the Golf Ball (2003) by Kevin McGimpsey.