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Gary Player says he's taking legal steps regarding sale of his 1974 claret jug, auction house responds
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Gary Player finds himself in another battle for the claret jug. Only this time, it might take place in a courtroom instead of a golf course.
Player's replica claret jug for winning the 1974 Open Championship was sold via Golden Age Auctions for the staggering price of $481,068 on Sunday. Although the identity of the seller and buyer of this golf artifact were kept private, the nine-time major champ made it clear that he wasn't a fan of the sale with a statement released on Thursday.
Player also indicated he's already pursuing legal action regarding the matter. However, Golden Age has a much different take on the situation. First, Player's statement:
"Several articles have been written about the recent sale of a replica Claret Jug that I won at the 1974 Open and that was recently auctioned and I feel that it is necessary for me to correct inaccuracies contained in those articles.
“Neither of the 1974 Masters Trophy nor the 1974 Open Trophy were sold by me or by one of my companies. Each of these trophies was granted to me for my sole use and enjoyment as winner of the respective Majors. The person entrusted with ensuring the safekeeping of these items on my behalf and who was tasked with using them to enshrine my golfing achievements has done the opposite by offering them for sale without my consent and against my wishes. My legal team is taking appropriate steps to resolve this unlawful situation."
This is the second time, however, that this particular claret jug replica has been auctioned. It sold for $143,030 back in November 2020 along with Player's 1978 Masters Trophy ($253,386), his 1965 U.S. Open trophy ($97,691) and his 1972 Wanamaker Trophy ($80,736) for winning the PGA Championship that year. The four trophies sold for nearly a combined $600,000 through Golden Age Auctions.
"I have been made aware of the online auction of replica trophies of certain golf tournaments that I have won," Player said in a statement at the time. "These trophies have been put up for auction without my permission."
But Golden Age refutes Player's statements, both then and now.
"Unfortunately, Mr. Player’s statements about the sale of replica trophies are not accurate," Ryan Carey, President of Golden Age Auctions, told Golf Digest. "Shortly after the COVID pandemic began, Gary Player’s company had serious cash flow issues and reached out to a number of auction houses to sell its collection of replica trophies in order to meet payroll. Golden Age then facilitated a private transaction between Gary Player’s Black Knight International company and a private buyer. The net proceeds of this sale were paid directly to Gary Player’s Black Knight International. The private buyer then sold some of the trophies, including this exact same replica 1974 Claret Jug at public auction in November 2020. Mr. Player was well aware of those sales back in 2020, and he was aware of them when he made these contradictory statements today.
"While Golden Age has the utmost respect for what Mr. Player accomplished as a golfer, his inaccurate statements are simply not acceptable under any circumstances."
This would not be the first time Player has needed to take legal action regarding memorabilia from his Hall-of-Fame career. In 2022, he filed a lawsuit against his son and ex-manager, Marc, as well as a grandson over items being sold that were to be returned to him.
Player also won a $5 million legal dispute against Marc in 2020 over unpaid royalties from the Gary Player Group.
Winners of the Open Championship get to keep the actual claret jug—although the original is on display at R&A headquarters—until the following year's tournament. They then get a replica one to keep forever.
The South African legend won the Masters in 1974 and then the British Open later that year, his third and final victory in the championship, when he wire-to-wire at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
