Man Buys An ‘Old Jacket’ From A Thrift Store Before Spotting A Huge Name

This particular second-hand store mostly carried clothing, although there were little knick-knacks on some shelves. He immediately began rummaging through a pile of old blazers until he stopped on one that caught his eye.

It was vibrant green, and it instantly jumped out at him among the other dull and worn-out jackets on top. But, as an avid golfer, the jacket also reminded the man of something else.

It looked suspiciously like an Augusta National jacket that world-champion golfers received after they win the Masters Tournament. An avid golf fan, the Toronto man hurriedly followed his hunch — but was met with disappointment.

Because the Toronto man firmly believed he happened upon an authentic jacket, he looked inside the collar to see if a name or date was written. However, unlike real prize jackets, he didn’t see a golfer’s name stitched into the tag.

Whoever the jacket belonged to — or maybe even the employees who ran the thrift store — cut out the tag that would have placed the jacket to an actual person. Either way, these things were worth a lot.

The Augusta National Golf Club, located in Georgia, is known as one of the most elite and prestigious clubs in the world, and those green jackets they hand out come with some serious clout.

People unfamiliar with golf wouldn’t even recognize the jacket if it was in their own closet, but fans of the sport know just how hard an athlete works to finally bear the iconic symbol on their chest.

Every professional golfer who’s ever stepped onto the green has dreamt of one day sporting the Augusta National logo. It’s champion symbolism dates back decades, and it started with Sam Snead in 1949.

Even though every member who belongs to the prestigious club gets a jacket, only the Masters winners can wear them when they leave the club grounds. Each owner’s name is even sewn inside.

Because of the rarity and prestige associated with them, the jackets sold for insane amounts of money at auctions. In fact, a 2013 auction saw a green Masters jacket sell for nearly $700,000!

So, in 2017, the Toronto man put the mystery jacket he found up for auction at Green Jacket Auctions. Considering what else was up for auction, the Toronto buyer felt good about the odds of his jacket landing big money.

Ryan Carey (left), one of the major players at the auction house, said, “We are blown away by the interest in golf memorabilia right now. The golf-collecting hobby has never been so strong.”

There were several other rare items at the same auction as the Toronto jacket as well. One was Arnold Palmer’s putter from the 1964 Masters Tournament, and another was a massive 1954 Masters trophy that belonged to Sam Snead.

An auction house worker admitted few pieces sell as well as Arnold Palmer memorabilia. “He’s just beloved by so many people. It’s no wonder that his memorabilia is finally getting the respect and the prices that it deserves.” But what would a no-name jacket land?

The bidding started at a minimum of five thousand bucks, but 34 bids later, a private buyer walked away with the blazer after shelling out $139,349! Soon after the sale, more information on the jacket was learned.

Apparently, the jacket originated sometime during the 1950s, and it even found its way onto the cover of several golf magazines, with a famous British model named Jodie Kidd wearing it. Naturally, Green Jacket Auctions had plenty to say.

Of course, the amount paid for the mystery blazer in 2017 wasn’t even close to the money someone forked over ($682,229!) to walk away with a jacket that belonged to Horton Smith, the world’s first Masters champion.

No one knows how the Augusta National jacket found its way to a second-hand store in Toronto. Perhaps a pro golfer donated it?