Masters programme could sell for £8,000

A PROGRAMME for the first-ever Masters Tournament at Augusta could fetch as much as £8,000 when it is sold next month.

The booklet, which includes a plan of the course and each hole from the 1934 competition, is part of a collection of golf memorabilia which is expected to sell for around £2 million at auction.

This year’s tournament has just got under way, featuring players including Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods.

The sale at Christie’s in London on 30 May also includes paintings, clubs and balls dating back hundreds of years. Among its highlights are a painting of a golf course in North Berwick by artist Sir John Lavery which is expected to fetch about £300,000.

Also going under the hammer is a putter used by two of the sport’s most famous names. The putter, estimated to fetch around £70,000, was used by father and son Old Tom Morris and Young Tom Morris, who won eight Open Championships between them in the 19th century.

Also up for sale are Featherie style balls, made from a mixture of cowhide and goose feathers, which are estimated to fetch as much as £20,000. They were brought in during the 17th century, replacing wooden balls, before being replaced in turn by rubber balls in the 19th century.

The collection was put together over a quarter of a century by Jaime Ortiz-Patino who founded the Valderrama Golf Club in Spain.

Some lots will go on show in New York, Hong Kong and Dubai before the sale.