Before purchasing antique golf clubs, you must get into the habit of gauging it properly. Sadly, most of us at some point have had the experience of giving a club a simple once-over glance and then finding out after we’ve acquired it that it might not be the antique that we thought that it was.

Here’s some guidance to help evaluate vintage wooden shafted golf clubs. The most important thing is to begin at one end of the club and fastidiously work along the club, reviewing all of its elements, guaranteeing that you've an antique golf club appraisal which is sound and trustworthy. As usual, if you have got any questions, there are a mess of gurus available who can assist you with questions or concerns. There are many great reference materials which make appraising an antique golf club way easier.

Here in this 3 part series on antique golf club appraisal, we take a look at the grip, the end grain of the shaft, and wood rot as factors in deciding the genuineness and value of a vintage golf club.

Checking the grip

Only a minute share of antique golf clubs have their original grip. The older the club the more chance it's been regripped when in use. Grips on hickory clubs have a tendency to come in 2 main types: softish suede or hard leather. The most important clue in relation to whether a grip is original is to look for little tacks (nails) or holes in the shaft from prior fittings at the bottom, and particularly, the pinnacle of the grip. Previous holes at the bottom may of course be covered by the more recent grip, it is awfully hard to disguise totally the holes or tacks at the very top. Do not automatically become worried if you think that the grip is not original. The proven fact that a grip is not original isn't sometimes a factor when deciding the authenticity of an antique golf club. We now move on to an inspection of the wooden shaft.

The End Grain of the Shaft

When viewing the butt end of the shaft head on, with the club face lined up as if hitting a ball, the grain of the wood should sometimes run left to right and not top to bottom. The grain of the hickory running in this direction also makes it less sure for the shaft to split when the club is used in play. If the grain isn't in a general left to right direction, it clearly indicates it was not fitted by a talented club craftsman, and a validation (or not) of its vintage nature.

Wood Rot

It is not uncommon to find hickory golf clubs with wood shafts that have rotten ends at the butt end of the club. The wood could be literally collapsing or it may actually be awfully soft. A gentle pressing with a finger on the tip can exhibit any underlying condition. If the tip is falling away then you can consider removing 1 or 2 inches off but you'd need to understand by how much before solid wood is reached. Regularly it'll be clear to you from the very beginning, the club isn't, nor will it ever be, playable. That does not preclude you from making it a valuable and appealing display piece. If the wood is extraordinarily soft then few liberal coats of varnish can stabilize it and make it quite hard and attractive for display.

There are many more steps concerned in assessing an antique golf club which we're going to cover in subsequent articles, enabling anybody to determine exactly what you have.

Andrew Shea has been involved in Antique Golf, both on a personal level, and in a professional capacity for many years. If you've got a query or have an interest in vintage golf clubs generally, you are frequently welcome at his site.Once you have determined what you have, the very next step is figuring out what it may be worth. For a more definitive description of the antique golf club evaluation process, and to take the next step and establish more exactly what you piece is worth, you can explore the range of resources at our site.

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