B1401s

American Sports

Francis Ouimet - 1st Amateur Golfer to Win the U.S. Open Championship

Fred Collins Signature

Collins Cover Announcement 

FRANCIS QUIMET

Famous Golfer

It is sometimes difficult to come up with a new concept in terms of presenting a subject in cachet format. I like the challenge, however, and am most happy to offer this sport topical hand­painted FDC.

Francis Quimet was a young ex-caddy and son of a coachman. In the 1913 U.S. Open, he was tied with Britain's top two golfers after the final round. In an 18-hole play-off, he defeated them handily by five and six strokes. He thus became the first amateur to ever win the U.S. Open. His victory captured the imagination of the public, challenged the idea that the sport was reserved for the rich only, and paved the way for golf to become the wide-spread recreational pasttime of today.

The stamp was issued in Brookline, Massachusetts where the 1913 U.S. Open took place. I thought a great unofficial First Day cancel would be from Augusta, Georgia, site of the Masters' Tournament. A check of the airline schedule proved it was "just" possible, and the result is a great large bullseye Augusta First Day postmark on a stamp issued in Massachusetts. I really enjoy obtaining and offering these actual First Day cancels and I'm pleased that collectors continue to appreciate them.

And finally, let me tell you about a cachet like none you've ever seen. Something new for your COLLINS collection. A bright sunny day finds two golfers on the green -- one is preparing to putt. A caddy holds the flag. All three are brightly attired.

Surrounding the green, the darker grass of the fairway is broken by an ample supply of sand traps. On a distant hill, about sixty or seventy spectators gather to watch the on-going contest. Trees line the top of the hill. All of the above is bathed in bright sunlight. Around this scene I've created a different and eye­-catching effect by fusing a distinct border of leafy foliage and silhouetted spectators watching the match. It is a cachet that you will have to see for yourself. It is bold. It is different. It is a COLLINS with a new dimension.

I can only suggest that this cover will be judged among the best

(or even "the" best) of all those produced. The cachet, in golfing terms, is a hole-in-one. Strikingly different. The unofficial cancel from the home of the Masters' Tournament required getting the stamps in Brookline, Massachusetts before flying to Atlanta, Georgia and driving to Augusta for the First Day cancel.

You can bet no other cachetmaker got it. I believe this cover may be an early sell-out. Item #B1401. $7.50

Winter 2021 Mail Sale Commentary 

Lot 28 B1401 — Francis Quimet — Golf

This Collins with stamp honoring the famous golfer sold out very quickly. Golf covers in general tend to be strong sports collectibles. The cachet is exquisitely different — done with a "silhouette frame of spectators" looking out from the shade of trees near the green, which is in bright sunlight.

Among descriptions that collectors have used is the word "clever," and I think that may be a good one-word summary. A single stamp has a large bullseye first day postmark from Augusta, Georgia. If you saw this one for sale at a show or stamp store, you would be very tempted. Look at it again on the illustrations page. A beauty!