‘A Museum-Caliber Piece’: Memorabilia From Historic Tiger Woods Moment Sells for 6-Figures

Tiger Woods is known for playing incredible golf and for his passion and dedication to the sport. It helped him make a legion of fans, and it is not a secret that they would do anything to get closer to him. And it is the main reason why anything he used for a special occasion becomes invaluable.

Recently, a ball Woods used to play at the 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open was sold for a huge prize. Notably, the event was his debut tournament as a professional golfer. And most importantly, the owner of the ball was able to sell it for such a big prize at the Heritage Auctions’ fall sports event as it was the ball he used to make his first hole-in-one as a Tour player. 

The hole-in-one ball of Tiger Woods raised a huge amount at the auction

Tiger Woods may be the greatest golfer of all time. He may have made several records and won more than 100 championship titles worldwide. However, he has made only three aces in his Tour career. Hence, when one of the three balls, especially the first one, made it to the auction, many were thrilled to buy it. 

“Everyone knew that was a special piece,” Chris Nerat, the Heritage sports consignment director, said. “How do you put a value on something like that?” 

Read more: What Is the ’Tiger Slam’ and When Did Tiger Woods Achieve It?

According to him, the rarity of the item from the 15-time major champion made it invaluable and they were able to sell it for $186,000. “It’s a museum-caliber piece that is one of those once-in-a-generation.” He further added, “It was a special piece and got a special price, and we were very happy with the result.”

How did the seller get the ball from the 82-time PGA Tour champion? 

Bob Gustin, the seller of the ball, got the ball from Woods itself when he tossed it to the crowd after making the ace on the 14th hole at the Brown Deer Park GC. According to him, he even managed to get an autograph from the golfer on the ball with the help of tournament director Tom Strong. 

Notably, Woods played well enough for a rookie player at the Greater Milwaukee Open. After shooting 67-69-73-68 from the four rounds, he was tied for 60th place. 

Although he couldn’t win his debut event, the golfer was able to win two championships in his rookie year. Moreover, he was named the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. And ever since then, his name became more popular as he won 82 titles, which helped increase the value of the ball to a 6-figure one. 

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