A rare collection of photographic slides showing the 1963 Open Championship at Royal Lytham has been unearthed at auction in Manchester. Offering a unique record of golf’s oldest major at a time when American giants like Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus began to compete, they were purchased by the www.oldgolfimages.com archive.
“We were thrilled to obtain these historic images,” said Chief Valuation Expert, Dale Concannon. “We have one of the finest collections of early Open images anywhere but finding colour transparencies of this quality was a special find indeed.”
The 60+ collection includes rare colour shots of Palmer practicing before his round, Nicklaus chatting with journalists and large crowds following the on-course action.
“The fact they are in colour makes them doubly special,” said Dale. “Most golf photos of this period were shot in black and white. These pictures offer a genuine feel for what it must have been like to be there in 1963.”
A specialist library supplying pre-1970 images to golf magazines, book publishers and TV production companies throughout the world, Old Golf Images underwent a major revamp twelve months ago when they became part of the Smashbang Media Group. Boasting over 150,000 golfing images dating back to the mid-18th Century, their website is now considered a “go to” library for historic golf photography.
“Golf imagery is our passion,” said Mr Concannon. “We are constantly looking to add to our archive and spend much our time at auctions here and the United States hunting out rare photographs. These 1963 Open images will fit in perfectly.” info@golfimages.com