Stamped "Thomas E Wilson" on the sole and "Kelly Klub" on the crown, this left-handed putter has a large brass backweight and inlaid brass faceplate. The backweight is so large, visible across sole, back, and crown, that it makes up approximately a third of the entire head. The 34 1/2" hickory shaft and grip are original.
This putter is from the historic Fred X Fry collection and bears his inventory
label on the shaft. According to Fry's inventory sheet for this club, he received this Kelly Klub in 1933 from Lawrence Icely, the president of the Wilson Sporting Goods Company in Chicago. Hired in 1917 by Thomas E Wilson, president and chairman of the board for Wilson & Co, Icely worked as the president of Wilson Sporting Goods until his passing in 1950.
Fred X Fry, the dean of American
golf club
collectors, was busy building his
collection forty years before the Golf Collectors Society (now The Golf
Heritage Society) was formed in 1970. Collecting with
great passion, Fry amassed approximately 450 clubs, mostly putters. He
cataloged, displayed, and cherished his treasures. A number of national
magazines ran articles about his collection of putters between 1936 and
1963. For more on Fry and to view some of the articles, Click Here