Vintage Golf Clubs Value: Hickory, Persimmon and Old Putters

Most vintage golf clubs sell for $5-20 each as of November 2026, and full bags of 1970s and 1980s clubs often go for less than the cost of shipping them. The exceptions are specific: hickory-shafted irons stamped by a known Scottish maker sell for about $40-150, Ping Anser putters stamped with Karsten and a Phoenix zip code for about $30-100, MacGregor Tommy Armour Iron Master putters for about $25-190 on thin sales, and Scotty Cameron Newport 2 putters for about $200-400.

Three things sort a club in a minute: the shaft (wood or steel), the stamps on the head, and whether a golfer would still use it. Putters hold value far better than irons and woods because people keep putting with old ones.

Quick answer

• Steel-shafted irons, woods and full sets from the 1950s to the 1990s: about $5-20 per club, often $20-100 for a whole set.
• MacGregor persimmon drivers and fairway woods: about $10-50 each, Tourney models at the top; matched 1-3-5 sets about $45-105 on thin sales.
• Hickory-shafted irons with a readable maker's name and cleek mark: about $40-150. Unmarked or cracked ones: $10-30.
• Ping Anser putters marked Karsten and Phoenix: about $30-100, most near $40-60. Original Scottsdale-stamped Ansers from 1966-67 are a collector item; sales are thin.
• Scotty Cameron Newport 2 putters: about $200-400 used. Tour-only Circle T putters are a specialist market.

How to identify and value an old golf club, step by step

1. Check the shaft first. Wood with visible grain means hickory, and almost all hickory clubs predate the mid-1930s: the USGA allowed steel shafts in 1924 and the R&A in 1929. Some 1920s and 1930s steel shafts were coated to look like wood (Pyratone was one such finish), so check the butt end and any chip in the coating before calling a club hickory.
2. Read the back of the head. Irons carry the maker's name, a town and often a small symbol called a cleek mark. Woods carry the name on the crown or the sole plate. Putters carry a model name and, on Pings, a city and sometimes a zip code.
3. Look at the face. A completely smooth face on a hickory iron points to about 1900 or earlier; punched lines, dots or dashes came later. On persimmon woods, MacGregor's red and white "Eye-O-Matic" insert identifies the maker at a glance.
4. Find any numbers. MacGregor woods carry model codes such as 693 or 945 on the sole. Many putters carry a patent number. US patent 4,000,000 was issued in December 1976 and 5,000,000 in 1991, so a seven-digit patent starting with 4 means the club was made from the late 1970s on.
5. Check the grip and the head finish. Original leather grips on hickory clubs and original Ping grips on early putters add value. A replaced rubber grip costs little; a refinished or re-stamped head costs collectors much more.
6. Decide who the buyer is. If none of the stamps below match, your buyer is a golfer and the price is what a usable club is worth to them.

Which old golf clubs are worth money?

Sold prices from Mercari, Poshmark, ShopGoodwill, eBay (read through the 130point sold-price search) and specialist auction results as of November 2026, for clubs in honest used condition with original heads.

For common steel clubs, Mercari and Poshmark agree: vintage iron sets from Wilson, Spalding, MacGregor, Northwestern and Arnold Palmer sold for about $20-90 a set, single irons for $6-20. MacGregor persimmon woods sell lower on Poshmark and ShopGoodwill than on Mercari: a matched Golden Bear 1-3-5 set at $45, single woods from cheaper lines at $8-20, a persimmon driver at $17 and a lot of five Tourney and Toney Penna woods at $43. Matched sets have too few sales to pin down. Ping Ansers split the same way: 47 Karsten-stamped putters sold on Poshmark at $15-160, most at $25-75 with a median near $42, against $45-140 on Mercari. On eBay, two 1997 Newport 2 putters sold for $335 and $375.

For Scottish irons the best guide is The Golf Auction, a specialist golf memorabilia auction house. In its June to October 2026 sales (prices include its 19.5 percent buyer's premium), thirteen single Scottish hickory irons and cleeks with a maker's name sold for $36-244, with a median near $99: a Tom Stewart pipe-mark lofter at $101.58, a Tom Stewart Willie Klein mashie at $99.19, an R. Forgan niblick at $89.63, a J. McAndrew Glasgow niblick at $71.70 and a George Forrester putting cleek at $35.85. Named patterns did best, such as a James Braid dot-face mashie by Gibson at $194.79 and a Robert Simpson The Perfect iron at $243.78, while several other Scottish irons drew no bid at their opening prices. On ShopGoodwill, a general charity auction site, hand-forged Scottish irons sold for less, $10-56, and on eBay a scarce hickory brick-face iron made $149. American hickory clubs sold for about $10-26 on Mercari, among them a Spalding Robert T. Jones 7 iron at $21 and a Spalding Tournament at $26, with a Bobby Jones putter at $70, and for $51-100 in four Poshmark sales.

How do you read cleek marks on hickory clubs?

A cleek mark is the small symbol a Scottish ironmaker stamped on the back of the head, next to the name and town. It identifies the forge and, because the marks changed, often narrows the date. Three of the most common:

• Tom Stewart of St Andrews: a clay pipe. The plain pipe mark was used from about 1893 to 1905, according to dealer research by Manfred Schotten Antiques; later Stewart irons add other marks with the pipe.
• William Gibson of Kinghorn: a star. The outline star was registered in 1906 but used earlier; a deep-struck star replaced it around the 1930s.
• George Nicoll of Leven: a hand. It appears from the 1890s, in several variations that collectors use for dating.

Irons were often forged by one firm and sold by a club professional, so the back may carry a second name. When that name belongs to a famous player or club, it adds interest. Long-nose woods, with long, slim heads spliced to the shaft, are much earlier and rarer than the irons people usually find; send those to a specialist auction house, not a quick sale.

How old is my Ping Anser putter?

Karsten Solheim started Ping in 1959, sketched the Anser in 1966, received the Anser patent on March 21, 1967, and formed Karsten Manufacturing Corporation in Phoenix later that year. That sequence explains the stamps:

• "Scottsdale" with no Karsten name marks the earliest run. Golf Magic reports that about 4,000 original Ansers were made in Scottsdale over roughly fifteen months from 1966, with stepped True Temper shafts, and that a mint original could be worth as much as £5,000 to a collector. Sales are thin.
• "Karsten Mfg" with a Phoenix address and zip code covers the long production run that followed. Forum claims tie the 85020 and 85029 zips to specific years, but those claims conflict, so treat a zip as "after 1967" rather than as an exact year. These sell for about $30-100: on Poshmark the median of 47 sales was about $42, and Mercari sales ran higher.
• Modern "Scottsdale" putters are a different thing. Ping has reused the Scottsdale name on newer putter lines, including the 2025 Scottsdale Anser models. An old original has a plain stamped head, no face insert and a stepped steel shaft.
• Bronze, manganese bronze and beryllium nickel heads in the Anser shape exist from several decades. A BeNi Scottsdale Anser sold for about $190-245 on Mercari, well above a standard Karsten model, so check the head metal before pricing.

MacGregor, Tommy Armour and the persimmon era

MacGregor's persimmon woods are the most collected of the wood-headed era. TaylorMade introduced the first steel wood in 1979, and within about a decade persimmon was gone from most bags, which is why a 1980s wood can still be found in near-unused condition. The tells on a MacGregor: a Tourney name, an Eye-O-Matic insert, "Oil Hardened" on the head and a model code on the sole plate. The Jack Nicklaus Muirfield and VIP lines are the ones seen most often in sold listings. Woods from MacGregor's cheaper lines, such as Golden Bear and Byron Nelson, sold on Poshmark for $8-20. Cracked heads, loose inserts and replaced shafts push any wood to the bottom of the range.

Tommy Armour's name was on MacGregor clubs for decades. The Iron Master putters, marked IM, IMG or IMGL, are the Armour items that sell, though sales are thin: two recent Poshmark sales, an IM putter at $35 and a Tourney IMG 5 at $25, none on Mercari, and earlier sales up to about $190. Armour-branded irons and woods sell for about $25-40.

Scotty Cameron putters

Scotty Cameron putters, made under Titleist since the 1990s, are not old, but they are the most collected putters in golf and they turn up in the same garage bags. A used Newport 2 from the Select, Special Select or Studio lines sold for about $225-450 on Mercari and for less on Poshmark, where about two dozen used Newport 2 putters sold at $80-404 with a median near $240, so the typical range is about $200-400. Limited runs such as the Jet Set sold for over $1,000, and custom shop pieces go higher. Tour-only putters marked with a Circle T sell through Cameron specialists at prices set by the specific head. Copies of Circle T putters exist, so treat a cheap one as a copy until a specialist says otherwise.

A worked example

Say you clear out a garage and find a canvas bag holding a MacGregor Tourney driver with a red-and-white insert, a set of 1980s steel irons, a wooden-shafted iron marked "Gibsons Kinghorn" with a star, and a black putter stamped "Ping Anser, Karsten Mfg Corp, Phoenix Ariz 85029".

The irons are a golfer's set: about $40-80 for the lot. The driver is about $25-50. The Gibson iron, with a readable star and a sound shaft, is worth about $40-100; an outline star dates it before the 1930s. The Ping is a Karsten-era Anser at about $40-90, more with its original grip. Bag total: roughly $150-320, about half of it in two clubs. List the Ping and the hickory iron on their own and sell the rest as one lot.

How to sell old golf clubs

Pull the putters and the hickory out first; the rest is player equipment. A Ping Anser with the Karsten and Phoenix stamp, a Tommy Armour Iron Master, a Scotty Cameron and any hickory iron with a readable maker's name and cleek mark each get their own listing on eBay or Mercari, where sellers pay roughly 10-15 percent in fees. The 1960s to 1990s steel irons and woods go as one lot, sold locally or through a golf consignment shop such as 2nd Swing, because a 1970s set rarely brings $100 and shipping a bag eats most of that. Tourney persimmon woods with a sound head can go singly; cheaper lines go with the lot. A Scottsdale-stamped Ping, a long-nose wood, a smooth-faced iron by a famous maker or a Circle T Cameron belongs with a specialist: a golf memorabilia auction house or a Golf Heritage Society member who knows hickory and early putters.

Each of these buyers checks a specific stamp, so photograph:

• The back of an iron head square on, with the name, town and cleek mark legible.
• The face, smooth or scored.
• The sole plate and insert of a wood, with the model code.
• Every stamp on a putter, including the city and zip on a Ping.
• The shaft along its length, the grip, and any crack or loose head.

Wipe off dirt and stop; a wire-wheeled hickory head or a refinished putter is worth less. Do not call a coated steel shaft hickory, do not call a modern Scottsdale putter a 1966 original, and treat a cheap Circle T as a copy until a specialist says otherwise.

Common mistakes

• Treating every Ping that says Scottsdale as a 1966 original. Check for the Karsten name, the shaft and the insert first.
• Refinishing a putter or sanding a hickory head. Players do it to play; collectors pay less for it. Sell it as found.
• Calling coated steel shafts hickory. Look for real wood grain and check the butt end of the shaft.
• Shipping a full bag of common clubs. A 1970s steel set rarely brings $100, and a golf bag costs a large share of that to ship. Sell those locally.
• Oiling or soaking a cracked hickory shaft. It does not save it, and collectors see the split either way.

How WorthPic reads golf club photos

WorthPic runs on the newest and most capable AI model available, tuned for exactly this kind of identification. From your photos it reads the maker's name, the town and the cleek mark on a hickory iron, the model code and insert on a persimmon wood, and the stamps on a putter, including whether a Ping says Scottsdale or Karsten and Phoenix. It judges the shaft material, a replaced grip and signs of refinishing. It then gives an honest value range for that club with a most likely figure. What it cannot know from a photo: whether a hickory shaft has a hidden crack, whether a Circle T or tour putter is genuine, or exactly which year a zip-coded Ping was made. It identifies and estimates. It does not authenticate, grade or appraise.

What to photograph

• The back of an iron head, square on, so the name, town and cleek mark are readable.
• The face of the club, to show smooth or scored grooves.
• The sole of a wood, with the model code, and the face insert.
• Every stamp on a putter: back flange, toe, heel and sole.
• The shaft along its length, plus the butt end of the grip.

When to get it looked at in person

A Scottsdale-stamped Ping, a long-nose wood, a smooth-faced iron by a famous maker, or a Circle T Cameron deserves a specialist. The Golf Heritage Society, which has published its journal since 1970 and runs a convention with a trade show, is where to find members who know hickory and early putters. Everything else is player equipment: sell it locally, at a golf consignment shop such as 2nd Swing, or on eBay and Mercari, where sellers pay roughly 10-15 percent in fees. A shop or trade-in counter will offer less than those sold prices, since it has to resell. For other old tools that sell to users more than to collectors, see our antique tools guide and the Stanley plane guide. If the bag also holds signed memorabilia, our guide to autographed baseballs explains how signatures are authenticated, and where to sell antiques compares selling channels. For the full range of sports and hobby collectibles we cover, and how each is priced, the category page is the place to start.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Ping (golf): founding in 1959, the Anser sketched in 1966, the patent of March 21, 1967 and Karsten Manufacturing in 1967.
• Golf Magic: Ping revives Scottsdale putters: about 4,000 original Scottsdale Ansers over fifteen months, the stepped shafts and the £5,000 figure for a mint original.
• Manfred Schotten Antiques: Gibson of Kinghorn club and Tom Stewart club: the star and pipe cleek marks and their dates.
• Wikipedia: Golf club: steel shafts allowed by the USGA in 1924 and the R&A in 1929, persimmon heads and the first steel wood in 1979.
• Golf Heritage Society: the collector society, its journal since 1970 and its convention trade show.
• Poshmark sold listings: Ping Anser Karsten putters, MacGregor woods and hickory clubs: 47 Karsten Ansers at $15-160, MacGregor woods at $8-45 and hickory clubs at $51-100.
• The Golf Auction: realized prices: thirteen single Scottish hickory irons and cleeks at $36-244 including buyer's premium, June to October 2026, among them a Tom Stewart pipe-mark lofter at $101.58.
• Mercari sold listings: vintage iron sets and hickory golf clubs, and Poshmark sold listings: vintage iron sets and Iron Master putters: steel sets at about $20-90, hickory clubs at $10-26 and two Iron Master putters at $25 and $35, checked November 2, 2026.
• Poshmark sold listings: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 and ShopGoodwill closed auctions: MacGregor persimmon: about two dozen used Newport 2 putters at $80-404, median near $240, and MacGregor persimmon woods at about $9-17 a club, checked November 2, 2026.
• 130point sold-price search (eBay sold listings): two 1997 Newport 2 putters at $335 and $375 and a hickory brick-face iron at $149.
• Mercari sold listings: MacGregor persimmon and Scotty Cameron Newport 2: the sold price ranges in the tables.