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.

Circa 1888 Eclipse Patent "Composite" Golf Ball

Presented here is a scarce circa 1888 Eclipse Patent "Composite" golf ball. Eclipse Patent golf balls were made of a composition of gutta percha, leather shavings, and iron fillings in order to supposedly create a softer and more durable golf ball. The ball retains 100% of its original paint. This exact ball is pictured on pages 26 and 185, and on plates XIII and XV in The Story of the Golf Ball (2003) by Kevin McGimpsey.