The Rolex watch company gifted Jack Nicklaus a top-of-the-line Presidential gold watch back in 1967.
It’s been on Jack’s wrist ever since. Didn’t wear it when he played but it went on immediately after the round. He kept it safely stashed in the MacGregor bag he used for many years.
Nicklaus and wife Barbara have become the driving force behind the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital and the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation.
Jack decided to put the watch up for auction with the proceeds going to those two entities that he and Barbara are passionate about.
It went on the block this past Tuesday at the Manhattan-based Phillips Auction House. When the hammer it, the winning bid was a cool $1 million from an anonymous private collector. With the buyer’s premium, the final tally was $1.22 million.
A golden price for a five-decades-old possession of golf’s greatest major champion.
It was still miniscule compared to the $17.8 million that was paid for Paul Newman’s Rolex.
