2024 January Golf Memorabilia Auction - Closing Date - 2/4/2024
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/5/2024
Babe Zaharias' Best Blast Personal Rattlesnake Skin Mount w/Shell Casing
This is probably the most unusual and unique item we have ever listed from the estate of Babe
and Big George Zaharias on behalf of the Babe Zaharias Foundation. After purchasing the
Forest Hills Country Club in the early 1950s, Babe & Big George decided to make Tampa their
permanent residence. They purchased a piece of land on a lake across the road from the
clubhouse. It was a typical Florida scrub brush and palmetto thicket, infested with many of
Florida's well-known animal inhabitants. During the clearing of the land, Babe and the
engineer/architect spotted the bulldozer operator leaping from the cab of the dozer, running
towards his pickup truck & grabbing his shotgun off the rear window gun rack. He told them he
had stirred up a rattlers' nest! Babe became very excited. In all the things she had done in her
life, she had never had the opportunity to shoot a poisonous snake!! With caution, the dozer
operator led them to the last place he had seen the snakes. To their surprise, there, coiled up
on the edge of the clearing, was this diamond-back Rattlesnake. Babe was familiar with guns:
she and Big George had hunted in many parts of these United States. After Babe found and
released the safety on the shotgun, she proceeded with an uncanny sense of stealth had a direct hit. The dozer operator then schooled Babe in the art of skinning the
rattler, nailing it to a plank, salting it down, removing the rattles and beginning the curing
process. Babe later put the skin on an odd, shaped scrap piece of lumber, from the lakeside
home she and Big George were having built on Lake Eckles. As you can see from the photos,
this was a grandpa of rattlesnakes. A signed letter of provenance from The Babe Zaharias Foundation comes with this lot.
The brass plate Babe placed on the board reads (along with a shotgun shell):
Lake Eckles 9 1/2" x 53 1/2"
Rattlesnake Round-up
1951
& "Babe's Best Blast"
5ft 2"
The Golf Auction is proud to present our first auction of the year, the 2024 January Golf Memorabilia Auction. Please utilize the categories column to help you navigate towards your preferred collectibles. Bids must be placed before 10pm ET, Sunday, February 4th in order to participate in extended bidding.
AUCTION CLOSING RULES:
1. Place your initial bids BEFORE 10pm ET Sunday February 4th in order to bid on the item(s) during extended bidding
2. During extended bidding, you may only bid on items you PREVIOUSLY placed a bid on.
3. Lots with only ONE or NO BIDS at the time of auction close will close at 10pm ET
Extended bidding starts at 10pm ET, and all lots will begin closing with their own 30-minute countdown clock. Clock will reset to 30 minutes with each bid, please refresh your page. Thank you
Please Note: TGA will charge the Bidder/Buyer of the Item(s) a commission (Buyer’s Premium) of nineteen and one-half percent (19.5%) on the successful and final bid price of each of the Item(s) or lot(s) won. No discounts apply. No returns. TGA is not responsible for customs, duties, brokerage and/or similar charges on items shipped internationally. Placement of a bid in this auction constitutes acceptance of all of the terms and conditions in this auction. ALL SALES ARE FINAL.
Click above for larger image.