Lot # 97: 1910 Schenectady Putter, Harry C. Lee.

Starting Bid: $75.00

Bids: 10 (Bid History)

Time Left: Auction closed
Lot / Auction Closed




This lot is closed. Bidding is not allowed.

Item was in Auction "Spring 2020",
which ran from 3/9/2020 2:30 PM to
3/28/2020 8:00 PM



Made famous by Walter Travis when he won the British Amateur in 1904, the Schenectady putter was patented by Arthur Knight of Schenectady, New York, in 1903.  The R&A banned the club in 1910, but the USGA did not. The R&A's ban lasted over 40 years before it was reversed. Read about the great uproar around this club during the early 1900s in The Clubmakers Art Volume 1 pages 225-228.

This near mint example is marked "Schenectady Putter, Pat March 24, 1903" on the back of the head and "No. 976267 Sole Licensee Harry C. Lee & Co." on the sole. The "976267" acknowledges a US patent issued Nov 22, 1910 to Arthur Knight, the person who patented the Schenectady putter in 1903.  Knight's 1910 patent was for a steel shaft design, but he nontheless marked this second patent number of this putter to generate greater hesitation to anyone interested in copying it. 

This slightly later version has a smaller "Schenectady Putter" mark on the back of the head.  Perforated leather wrap grip and hickory shaft are original.  A very nice example of this most historical of historical clubs.

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