One of Gary Player’s Claret Jugs, which he was awarded for his win at the 1974 Open, has fetched a staggering $481,068 at auction.
Winners of the Major are allowed to keep the original Claret Jug for a year before returning it, but they are awarded a replica to keep. The trophy in question, which stands 19in tall and is 90% the size of the original, is one of three awarded to Player, with the others coming from his Open wins of 1959 and 1968.
According to Golden Age Auctions, which listed the trophy, it is the only Claret Jug it has ever brought to auction. The company also stated that the trophies often end up in museums, including the British Golf Museum in St Andrews, but rarely on the collector’s market.
Adding to its appeal is the fact that it was owned by one of the all-time greats. In addition to his three Open titles, Player won six other Majors in his career. That drew him level with Ben Hogan on nine Major wins, with only Tiger Woods on 15 and Jack Nicklaus, with 18 titles, achieving more. Player is also one of just six golfers to win a career Grand Slam.
Player’s 1974 win at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club was also notable for his dominance, where he went wire to wire in a four-shot defeat of Peter Oosterhuis.
The $5,000 reserve was met for the trophy by a private bidder on 18 July. By the time the auction closed 10 days later, the trophy, which had been owned by Player's design company, had attracted 39 bids, with the winning bid outstripping the previous one by over $80,000.
Player’s Claret Jug is the latest piece of sought-after golf memorabilia to be auctioned in recent years. In 2022, Woods’ Tiger Slam irons sold for a record $5,156,162 at Golden Age Auctions, smashing the previous high for golf memorabilia when Horton Smith's Green Jacket sold for $682,000 in 2013.
Later in 2022, one of Woods’ Sunday red Masters shirts sold for over $140,000. Then, last year, Rocco Mediate auctioned items from his famous 2008 US Open defeat to Woods.
