PSA Type 1 Photos

We're ready to shout it from the rooftops - certified Type 1 golf photographs are the most under appreciated (and undervalued) golf collectible. Type 1 photos are the rarest of the rare - the actual photographs printed from the original negative near the time the photograph was taken. In other sports, Type 1 photos have already exploded in value - with multiple baseball photographs already eclipsing $1 million each. Expect Type 1 golf photos to form into their own collecting category in the next year or two, with prices likely soaring as a result. We have spent the past several months curating the best Type 1 golf photographs that we could find, and are pleased to offer in this auction the greatest collection of them ever assembled.

1934 PSA Type 1 Photograph Bobby Jones Congratulating Horton Smith for Winning 1st Masters Tournament

When we had the idea of curating the very best items for our first "Modern Collector" auction, this may have been the initial item we focused on. We knew who owned it, but we had to convince the owner to consign it; the golf collecting world needed to see this. In our opinion, it is one of the finest golf photographs in existence. 

This is an original Type 1 photograph of Bobby Jones congratulating Horton Smith for winning the first-ever Masters Tournament in 1934. This famous image contains bold handwritten notations, presumably from the photographer, regarding both Bobby Jones and Horton Smith, and is also handwritten "M.I., Augusta, Ga, 3/25/34." That is the exact date of the final round of the 1934 Masters Tournament. We do not know for certain whether this is the only example that exists, but we are sure that this is among the most important and valuable golf photographs in existence. It would be hard to top a Type 1 photograph of Bobby Jones and Horton Smith from the 1934 Masters Tournament that is hand dated by the photographer himself. More research should be done as to the identity of "M.I.", though we assume it is a from Montell - Augusta National's photographer from the 1934 Masters Tournament (and uncle of longtime ANGC photographer Frank Christian). 6"x8".