Rare 1961 Karsten Solheim PING 69 Ballnamic Irons - 2 Iron-PW
Exceedingly both scarce and early in Karsten Solheim's PING manufacturing timeline is this incredible set of PING 69 Ballnamic irons with their original gold foil 'PING 69' inserts and green paint fill in second cavity milled by John Solheim in the back of each head 2-9 iron! In excellent condition, especially from the heads' backside money shots, this is a very early model set as 'Ballnamic' is not engraved on the soles. Speaking at length as a well respected clubmaker himself, industry expert Bobby Grace detailed this set's features and low production run in his publication 'Guide to Collecting Rare Ping Golf Clubs.' One out of only 100 sets of these made - this is unquestionably deserving of the finest PING and club collections.
"Ping 69 irons were produced in 1961; they were Karsten's first attempt at a TOUR quality set of clubs. He was obviously way ahead of his time, even then. He thought of creating the first cavity back irons with hand milling machine...The very early 69 irons had no sole stamps, only the number of each iron. These were found with gold foil in the lower cavity & painted green inside the upper cavity. Karsten was certainly on the right track, purchasing his iron heads from Golf Craft and possibly from Fernquest & Johnson. Golf Craft, at the time, were making some of the finest forged irons available on the market. Still today (2000), Golf Crafts are recognized as some od the most beautiful of all the grinds ever made. Karsten's goal was to lighten the swing-weight with these cavity back milled clubs. Karsten designed a severe bend in the shaft, of all these early irons, at the end of the grip, near the collar directly below the golfers hands. The USGA eventually ruled the bend in the shaft nonconforming to the rules. Karsten, at that point had to offer to replace the shafts of those sets already purchased." Replaced, USGA conforming shafts presumably at the expense of Karsten Solheim is precisely what we have here. Wear from ball-striking is evident on the faces' strike zones. Along with the 2-9 iron set is a matching pitching wedge, that with a single green paint filled cavity. Bobby Grace goes on to speak on the scarcity, "According to Karsten Mfg. Corp. they made a total of 100 sets of each 69 model." These are presented here by the single owner, who traces the lineage back to when Arnold Palmer presented them to her father while her mother worked at Bay Hill however does not have any paperwork with the story. While there were said to have been just 100 sets produced originally, how many in this condition could possibly be around today? Rare is an accurate descriptor for this highly prized set of classic clubs and leader in their category. 36" - 39".
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