Names On Golf-Club Shafts

[pdgolferman]

Hi.

 

Was it normal in the day for a club pro or an owner to add his name to a set of golf-clubs via a sticky label?

 

Just below the grip of a set of clubs I just got is a shiny silver printed label:

 

CHUCK RUFFING

CANTERBURY GC

SHAKER HEIGHTS, OH 44122

 

I'd be interested to hear from anyone who may be able to provide me with any info....The only name reference I could find was a 30's baseball player, not a pro at Canterbury

 

Thanks In advance.

Pd

[KYMAR]

Its got nothing to do with pros. It's basically a luggage tag. So if a club is lost it can be returned to the owner or their home course.

[Wriggles]

The label is just the owner's name, club, and city.

Shaker Heights, Ohio is near Cleveland.

[pdgolferman]

Thanks for the replies.
Were name tags a common thing in the US around the fifties? The clubs in question are Tommy Armour silver Scot tourney's with an unknown rec no. of 360. Green coated shafts.
Thanks again.

[KYMAR]

Unlikely those shaft labels survived 60 years unless they sat in an attic for most of it. I'm not sure but I'd guess they were available back then, so it's possible.

[oldschoolrocker]

About half of the old clubs I find at thrifts have the name tags. I keep them on the clubs as my way of keeping their connection to the past.

[Ironmaster Oddities]

Quite a few of the clubs I found in the Niles Hoard had name tags on the shafts. They were from as close as my home club to as far away as Marblehead,MA to the east and the Twin Cities to the west. Indy to the south.
Our pro put member name tags on every club he sold. I always thought it was a nice touch.

[JMSDKS]

I found a set of MacGregor CF4000 with a name tag of William Bendix out of the Canyon Club in Palm Springs. Googled him and it was most likely the famous actor of Life of Riley fame. The timeframe was right. Found his wife's clubs as well. You never know.

[Bella Woods]

The name tags you mention are normally tags put on by a country club for a member who kept/stored their clubs & bag at the club - very common.

And yes they could very well be 60 years old or more and more than likely from the recently "departed"

[502 to Right]

[quote name='JMSDKS' timestamp='1415241968' post='10403697']
I found a set of MacGregor CF4000 with a name tag of William Bendix out of the Canyon Club in Palm Springs. Googled him and it was most likely the famous actor of Life of Riley fame. The timeframe was right. Found his wife's clubs as well. You never know.
[/quote]

He was in The Blue Dahlia with Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. 1946 film noir. Good stuff.

[pdgolferman]

Thanks again for all replies.

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[HoganApexBlades]

[quote name='Bella Woods' timestamp='1415243915' post='10403857']
The name tags you mention are normally tags put on by a country club for a member who kept/stored their clubs & bag at the club - very common.

And yes they could very well be 60 years old or more and more than likely from the recently "departed"
[/quote]

Also, bag tags from the club with the member's name and specific slot location in the bag room was common practice @ Medinah CC.

[HoldenCornfield]

[quote name='502 to Right' timestamp='1415244146' post='10403881']
[quote name='JMSDKS' timestamp='1415241968' post='10403697']
I found a set of MacGregor CF4000 with a name tag of William Bendix out of the Canyon Club in Palm Springs. Googled him and it was most likely the famous actor of Life of Riley fame. The timeframe was right. Found his wife's clubs as well. You never know.
[/quote]

He was in The Blue Dahlia with Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake. 1946 film noir. Good stuff.
[/quote]

I'll have to check that out. Thanks

[NRJyzr]

One of my friends has little button-like things he uses as labels, they stick in the end of the grips.

 

One of the more interesting such things I'd ever seen was a set of 1985 Palmer Standards I'd owned, about 10 years ago or so. I'm pasting a pic from Ironfinder below. Where the irons had the "85" with a wreath around it up near the toe, it instead had the name of Hazeltine National Golf Club (Twin Cities club that has hosted US Opens, PGA Championships, etc), surrounded by the wreath.

 

The ultimate in personalization. LOL

 

[BIG STU]

[quote name='pdgolferman' timestamp='1415226747' post='10402415']
Thanks for the replies.
Were name tags a common thing in the US around the fifties? The clubs in question are Tommy Armour silver Scot tourney's with an unknown rec no. of 360. Green coated shafts.
Thanks again.
[/quote]I have a set of those also in fact a couple of weeks ago I posted a question on here somewhere about them. I was told by a guy in Arizona that is supposed to be a MacGregor expert that they were pre WW 2 models and the first Armours with steel shafts. Mine still have the original red True Temper shaft bands on them

[pdgolferman]

Thanks for the reply, Big-Stu.

...Shame. I'd like to see your 3800's from your other post.

Of mine, the five iron is the only club remaining with a label on it. All the original shaft bands are missing too.
From what I can gather:
Full width grooves start around 1938. From 1941, they appear to have fewer in number grooves.
Chrome shafts also seem to start around 1941.
Although not matching [no Rec No. and a different grip] I have a Niblick too that would indicate a '41 timeframe. It has the same green sheath shaft, same hozel markings. - The sole does not say "Double Duty", just Niblick and MacGregor, but it may have worn off.

Regards..

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[BIG STU]

That head and shaft look just like mine but I only have the 3 thru 9. I bought them quite a few years ago from a junk store that was going out of business I think for $10. these had to have been played some in say the 80s because they have GP green Victory grips on them in excellent shape. I thought at the time they were 53 models until that guy in Arizona on another blog corrected me. One of these days I am going to knuckle down and learn how to post pics