One Of The Shark's Claret Jugs Sells For $61K, Well Below Calcavecchia's

Yahoo’s Ryan Young says “one lucky fan has secured the most iconic trophy in golf” and he’s right. However, the paltry $61,164 at auction price for Greg Norman’s 1986 replica version on Saturday night suggests the golf memorabilia market has understandably softened.

While it’s not the real Claret Jug — that trophy travels from winner to winner each year — winners receive a full-size personalized replica to commemorate their win. They can also order up to three smaller replicas.
There are three other replica trophies, too, two of which are used for traveling exhibitions and one that remains at the British Museum of Golf at St. Andrews.

This Claret Jug is just the latest to be auctioned off in recent years. Per the listing, Sam Snead’s 1946 trophy was sold for $262,900 in 2013, and Mark Calcavecchia’s 1989 trophy sold for $95,525. 

The Claret Jug had left Norman’s hands some time ago and was with a collector, according to Golden Age Golf Auctions.

This sterling silver Claret Jug and its bands have matching English hallmarks from 1982 by famed Garrard & Co., the keepers of the Crown Jewels from 1843-2007. The bands are engraved with the names of all Open Champions up to Greg Norman's victory in 1986. Garrard was the Royal & Ancient's official producer of the Claret Jug in the 1980s. To our knowledge, the original owner of this Claret Jug had no ties to Greg Norman. Rather, it comes from the Estate of an avid collector of sterling silver pieces from Garrard (to our uninformed American collectors, Garrard is essentially the British version of Tiffany & Co.) with a special interest in horse racing and golf.

**Update, bidding was extended and it still went for less than Calcaveccia’s.