There is no putter on earth more famous than Tiger Woods’ Scotty Cameron Newport 2. The famed blade has remained in Tiger’s bag for 14 of his 15 major championships and is unquestionably the most recognized flatstick in the history of the sport.
Now, we can confidently say that there’s no putter on earth more expensive, either.
On Saturday, Woods’ putter went up for sale on Golden Age Auctions, the popular golf auction house that sold Jack Nicklaus’ famed Rolex earlier this year. And on Saturday night, Tiger’s putter made history of a different kind.
A twin replica of Tiger’s Scotty sold for a lump sum of $154,928, the largest price ever paid for a putter. The flatstick was Woods’ backup, replete with a cherry bomb insert, backsplash and name engraving for its former owner.
As legend has it, only a handful of these “backups” exist, each created personally by Scotty Cameron to Tiger’s exact specifications. The putter isn’t the first of Tiger’s backups to hit the market. Just a year ago, a less-specific variation sold for $88,809.
Each backup holds a slightly different level of authenticity against Woods’ gamer, with a variety of subtle details distinguishing the backups from the original. The one sold by Golden Age Auctions, however, is a near-perfect match, including the iconic Ping grip and proper stamping and insignia. And its history only adds to the intrigue — the putter originates back to 2001, the year of the Tiger Slam.
But perhaps the most remarkable portion of the sale is what it isn’t. This wasn’t the putter that won Tiger his first Masters in 1997 or his last in 2019, nor was it in the bag for any of his heroic major (or minor) triumphs over the past two and a half decades. No, it’s merely a carbon copy of that putter. A version that was only meant to exist in the grave scenario something happened to the original. In fact, this putter has the same (or less!) in-round experience than the first Scotty you’d find off the rack at your local golf retailer.
As for the real thing, you’d better start saving now in the event it ever does go on sale. A few years ago, a Golden Age appraiser estimated the value of Tiger’s real putter would be $3 million to $5 million. Not half-bad for a (very famous) hunk of metal.
