Historic Original Bobby Jones Edgerton 1/100 Swing Sequence Study w/61 Photos/Records/Notes

INCREDIBLE find, unparalleled in the sports photography category using then state-of-the-art technology - THE famous original Bobby Jones-Edgerton swing study observation results! This lot consists of 61 ORIGINAL PHOTOS with Bobby Jones the study subject!

Video of Original Bobby Jones Swing Study

Recently discovered in a private collection is the actual Edgerton, Germeshausen & Grier (E&G) study composed of 65(!) 'Trial Data Sheets' with the time-period pencil notated findings on January 12, 1939 in correspondence and 61 specific 3 1/2 x 4 1/4"" original high-speed photos capturing Bobby Jones at 1/100-1/600 exposure speed, consisting of five reports and four of those stills of Jones addressing the 'Spalding' golf ball with his driver. The unprecedented study's observations here were recorded by Herbert E. Grier, Vose and James of the firm and are unique to this photo of the shot sequence, most now held on with a staple containing oxidation. These original photos for the famous study were captured by Harold E. Edgerton and Germes Hausen, many just in front of Jones and depict the some or all of the sequence of clubheads from the address to the follow-through. Handwritten notations formed in graphite on paper including where on the face the ball was struck and after prompts such as 'Descriptive Remarks - Feel - Estimated Distance.' Breaking down the shot further are written answers for most to the typed prompts - Type Club, Style of Shot, Used Ball, Height and Type of Tee, Special (notes) and Location of Ball Impact on Club. Seven more sheets and six more photos are included in this original folder of the study subject J. Victor East, the chief designer for Spalding and Bobby Jones. Each photograph still was closely picked apart, with its own write-up and chapter in the story. That story remained in the private collection, with only a single study sheet and photo commanding $2,176 in our 2024 March Auction offered until now.

While the golf swing study is both as famous and significant as they come, these exact findings written at the time of it by Grier and R. James of the conducting firm have never surfaced.

In January of 1939, a groundbreaking study that would flip the golf instruction profession on its head occurred - finally equipping the industry with the visuals necessary to properly study the swing and its intricacies. This study, or trial as it was labeled at the time, was conducted by Harold Edgerton of the firm Edgerton, Germeshausen and Grier (E&G) with the perfect swing sequence subject - Bobby Jones himself. Jones in front of a white screen and club in hand was captured during that study, many being full body shots for analysis. State-of-the-art high-speed photography was only newly available, just like this museum-grade study of findings released 85 years ago.

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