A rare collection of photographs owned by Old Tom Morris are to go on display for the first time this month as part of the inaugural St Andrews Golf Festival.
Old Tom Morris was born in St Andrews in 1821 and is widely regarded as a pioneer of professional golf.
The winner of four Open Championships, Old Tom played competitively throughout his life as well as working as a green keeper – most famously at St Andrews Old Course and Prestwick – and as a course designer, club maker and retailer of golf balls and clubs.
The photographs date back to the mid 1850’s.
They were discovered gathering dust in a St Andrews attic by two collectors.
Owned by Old Tom himself, they include personal photos of him and his family along with images of early Open champions like Willie Park, Andrew Strath and his son – ‘Young’ Tom Morris.
The photographs will be displayed at the St Andrews Golf Festival from 28th March to 1st April 2012 at the Best Western Scores hotel from 10am to 5pm.
The images are now part of the world famous Old Golf Images archive (www.oldgolfimages.com).
Some of the rarer images will go on Tour for the next six months before being offered for sale as a collection with a minimum price tag of £350,000.
“Obviously we hope they stay in Scotland,” said Laura Ptaszkiewicz of OGI. “But the Old Tom name is known worldwide and we expect worldwide interest.”
Richard Wax, Chairman of the Golf Festival said, “we are delighted that Old Golf Images has agreed to exhibit this unique collection for the very first time at the St Andrews Golf Festival, which is destined to showcase the world’s rarest and most exciting collections.
To have the original prints that Old Tom Morris owned himself returning back to St Andrews at the very first St Andrews Golf Festival is a truly special moment and a real festival highlight.”
For more: www.standrewsgolffestival.com
Fact file for golf history enthusiasts
Golf history enthusiasts visiting St Andrews for the festival will also enjoy a trip to the British Golf Museum situated behind the Royal and Ancient Golf Clubhouse close to the first tee of the Old Course.
Another must-visit is the grave of Old Tom Morris which is in the cemetery at 14th century St Andrews Cathedral and is visited by thousands of golfers a year wishing to pay homage.
St Andrews’ leading expert on the life of Old Tom Morris and possibly the history of golf is golf historian David Joy, www.golfhistorian.co.uk, who lives in the town.
He also paints and sketches images of the Home of Golf which are available for the public to buy.