A golf ball Tiger Woods gave to a younger fan throughout the last spherical of his victorious 1997 Masters event has bought for $64,124, public sale home Golden Age Auctions stated on Sunday.
Woods bogeyed the fifth gap and handed the ball to Julian Nexsen, who was nine-years-old on the tie. Bidding for the Titleist ball, which has ‘Tiger’ stamped on it, started at $500 when Nexsen put it up for public sale on March 27, the public sale website stated.
Woods, then 21, received the primary of his 15 main titles in gorgeous trend on the 1997 Masters with a file margin of 12 strokes and have become the youngest golfer to triumph at Augusta National.
“Unless Tiger himself or his caddie Fluff intentionally saved a ball from this historic final round (which we doubt), this may be the only confirmed golf ball from the final round of Tiger Woods’ first major championship victory,” Golden Age Auctions stated.
According to the auctioneers, “dozens of people” witnessed the second Woods handed the ball to Nexsen. It additionally featured within the Washington Times newspaper the subsequent day.
Nexsen has signed a authorized declaration certifying the authenticity of the golf ball and the story of his last spherical interplay with Woods.
Woods, 47, withdrew from this yr’s Masters on account of harm earlier than the resumption of the third spherical, saying he had reaggravated a tissue irritation that causes ache within the heel.
In November final yr a signed Woods ball bought for a file $186,000, Heritage Auctions stated. Woods hit a hole-in-one with the ball on his skilled event debut in 1996.