MacGregor Tourney "DW"

[Simp]

Hey guys, I've got a set (1-9) of MacGregor Tourneys that I'd like to know more about. I bought them from a guy that claimed they were Tom Watson's backup set. They were 1/2" shorter than standard. They're a 9/10. Don White stamp on the bottom of each club as well. What can you tell me about them? I've tried looking them up, and nothing. What are they worth? Thanks guys. 

[AZBandit]

They look like '73-'75 Tourneys. I know Tom started off playing MacGregor. I *think* he switched to Ram in 1975 but I'm not sure.

 

So, long story short, the years probably match. That's all I have.

[Shallowface]

The "Tourney" font on those looks like it's from the 90s.  There is a set on Ebay called the Tourney FMT that is from the 90s and has that font.

 

Bandit is either right on or very close as to when Watson switched to Ram.

 

The "DW" stamp on irons wasn't "a thing" in the 70s.  Don may have been working there at the time but he hadn't yet achieved the fame that would come later.  In the 90s I saw a MacGregor set in a Play It Again store in Florida that had the DW stamp.  They were also stamped "LJ."  I was told that was for Lee Janzen and given the time frame it could have been.  A beautiful set that had the thinnest soles I have ever seen on a modern iron.   

 

That's a very nice set from their custom shop, even if they never belonged to Watson.

[Simp]

Thank you guys. You're always a wealth of knowledge. Any idea how much these are worth? 

[twidener]

I remember if you did custom orders with MacGregor you could choose from several stampings, so it makes it a little difficult to figure out what year a set of irons might be if you only go by the stamping.  I had planned to turn pro in '74 after college and I was going to be with MacGregor. I was going to have the Winged MT stamped on the irons and woods. But I got a job offer that was going to pay well for 1974 and I would get to play as much golf as I wanted...so I stayed an amateur. You have to remember that in '74 Johnny Miller was leading money winner with a little over 350K, Nicklaus was second around 230K and Tom Watson was 10th around 130K. So I think I made a pretty good decision. I had a thought that the DW could possibly have been for Denis Watson, but I can't remember what clubs he played. Looking at the shape of the iron in the photo it resembles what David Graham used when he won the US Open. He started designing clubs for MacGregor in 1982.

[bcstones]

I can't tell from the glare on the back of the clubhead, it could be a @Shallowface thought, a '90s era (Maltby's describes a Tourney iron similar in 1998), MacGregor also made a Tourney iron in the mid-70s,
As for value, forget PGA listings as they are based on the bay-thingies prices...& if you go to the bay-thingie, puruse the sellers desired prices but go further & see what the clubs actually sold for (& don't forget to include the shipping in the total price to the buyer in that actual final price)

[Shallowface]

Here's a link to a 90s era MacGregor set with the DW, for Don White, stamping.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/376416459424?_skw=Macgregor+%2B+"don+White"&itmmeta=01K0M9VYE9DR7VS37BBJ5HS03Y&hash=item57a42b5aa0:g:zcoAAeSw0UZoe4U0&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAAA0FkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1fkSggcX1TfMvHUY%2Fo8H7nNbon0cjT4%2F5g%2FaVeNI9GPM3YoJ6%2FvyTIyCnJZsdTm41rFJaMkMRu0wjkYYGQjB15E71q3p4ElzWLqv363YmSu%2BIWA8zQQjfRijRlzH5Z4CJ48Zvd52DzaiyuAHTX4HibJ6iEjwAQY7FBxoArttL1h%2BDf4aFv9eCyCtdfH0N2wzIJ3lGcItArJDRnV6Vc1AR6YCydY8Jorn09pr1g4%2FcAO0VpiqW5p7lbWIBxsCxTFsuM%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR57n74mFZg

 

While I am fully aware that one could request old MacGregor stampings on newer custom irons, the above set had a stamping on them that I had never seen prior to the 90s.  That was the logic I applied when offering the opinion on their age.  I also knew that the DW on the sole was for Don White and not for a player, having seen that on numerous occasions.  The LJ irons I mentioned had that stamping on the back.  Whether or not that was for Lee Janzen or someone else, I only know what i was told by the salesperson.  I don't trust any salesperson of any product any further than I could throw them, which at this point isn't very far.

Edited July 20 by Shallowface

[lightning_rod]

Do the hosels have serials that begin with SOxxxxx ?

[Simp]

29 minutes ago, lightning_rod said:

Do the hosels have serials that begin with SOxxxxx ?

 

I can't find any serial number that's visible.