Showing posts with label GGO Decanters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GGO Decanters. Show all posts
Saturday, April 14, 2012
What's on ebay? 1980 GGO Decanter
What's on ebay? 1980 GGO Decanter
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Best Comments Ever
"Thank for the wonderful description of the GGO bottles. I'm going on Amazon to buy A GGO Thing. I've been fascinated with decanters for years actually back to the Bing Crosby days when he presented his first decanter in 1970 as a tee gift to players in his tournament. I worked for the Northern California PGA from 1979-85 and one of my duties come Crosby time was to very our club pro's card to he could get into the tournament at no charge. A fellow I knew played in the tournament gave me the 1979 decanter. In our Section we had about 3/4 others that the pros gave us to spruce up our office.
A friend of mine got me started in collecting other Crosby and AT&T decanters in 1998 and I would go on Ebay and bid on them. Before too long it became an obsession with me to get as many as my friend had and I practically went where ever I could to find any decanter. Anyway long story short, I have all the Crosby, the AT&T, the GGO, the Hawaiian Open, Bob Hope, and all the singles for a total of around 85/86 bottles on my walls! I've practically had to buy houses that would be big enough for my junk.
Just recently I've decided to downsize the collection and was going to rid of everything except the Crosby and AT&T ones. I even have all the programs and have mounted the cover in a frame above the year of the decanter. My wife said that's the last straw, so I talk about these things from a closet. lol After reading your note I'm not sure about the GGO because I love each of the designs. My favorites are 1978-79, two classics. My friend who has a similar (but not as good as mine!) has that 1982 GGO bottle and always let's me know that I can't have because its the only bottle that I don't have. I can hardly wait to relate your story to him tomorrow. i even have a couple of GGO program and was going to do the same set-up as I did with the Crosby/AT&T collection.
This is and has always been fun to talk to people who have a knowledge of these bottles and what the reason they were made and who they were given to. The Crosby/AT&T decanters have always been a hot item for people in Northern California because of the history of the events. While I was the Director for the PGA I came across the distributor of Jim Beam and he told me what the process was in making and distributing the decanters. They generally made 1300 copies and then destroyed the mold. The decanters went to the players who played in the event, sponsors and a select few people associated with the event. They were in such demand that this fellow was practically bribed to get one. Sorry to carry on such as I have but this is really fun for me. Now let me get on Amazon the buy the book. Thanks again and I hope to talk to you again regarding GGO info.
John"
A friend of mine got me started in collecting other Crosby and AT&T decanters in 1998 and I would go on Ebay and bid on them. Before too long it became an obsession with me to get as many as my friend had and I practically went where ever I could to find any decanter. Anyway long story short, I have all the Crosby, the AT&T, the GGO, the Hawaiian Open, Bob Hope, and all the singles for a total of around 85/86 bottles on my walls! I've practically had to buy houses that would be big enough for my junk.
Just recently I've decided to downsize the collection and was going to rid of everything except the Crosby and AT&T ones. I even have all the programs and have mounted the cover in a frame above the year of the decanter. My wife said that's the last straw, so I talk about these things from a closet. lol After reading your note I'm not sure about the GGO because I love each of the designs. My favorites are 1978-79, two classics. My friend who has a similar (but not as good as mine!) has that 1982 GGO bottle and always let's me know that I can't have because its the only bottle that I don't have. I can hardly wait to relate your story to him tomorrow. i even have a couple of GGO program and was going to do the same set-up as I did with the Crosby/AT&T collection.
This is and has always been fun to talk to people who have a knowledge of these bottles and what the reason they were made and who they were given to. The Crosby/AT&T decanters have always been a hot item for people in Northern California because of the history of the events. While I was the Director for the PGA I came across the distributor of Jim Beam and he told me what the process was in making and distributing the decanters. They generally made 1300 copies and then destroyed the mold. The decanters went to the players who played in the event, sponsors and a select few people associated with the event. They were in such demand that this fellow was practically bribed to get one. Sorry to carry on such as I have but this is really fun for me. Now let me get on Amazon the buy the book. Thanks again and I hope to talk to you again regarding GGO info.
John"
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Question of the Week
"I have a relative who recently passed away that was a GGO fan.To make a long story short he collected GGO decanters I think he has all of them or at least 5 or more. All of them are unopened. Through research I have learned that this is your area of expertise, my family wants to sell these decanters my question to you is what would the value of these decanters be,collectively or individually?
Thank you."
A.T.
A.T., thanks for your email and thanks for reading the Greater Greensboro Open Blog. I want to first point out that I am just a fan of the Greater Greensboro Open, and while I wrote a book about the GGO decanter entitled A GGO Thing, I don't appraise any of the collectible items I discuss in the book or on my site. When you talk about what an item is "worth" and what kind of "value" it has, you are often talking about two very different things.
In my opinion what an item is "worth" is equal to the amount the someone is willing to pay. When I think about an item's "value", I think about what someone in the future might be willing to pay. Again, this is my opinion.
So, how does this relate to your incomplete set of unopened GGO decanters? Here are a couple of thoughts. I think they will be "worth" more as a group. I have met several people that have told me that they are looking for a complete set. I believe that most collectors will be willing to give you between $100.00 to $150.00 for your complete set. (11 bottles.)
These bottles sold for $14.95 a piece back in the 1970's and early 1980's so the decanters have retained their value. You can try to sell them on eBay, but you probably won't get anymore for them. Keep in mind one of the major selling points to this collection is the local sentimental value. There seems to be little interest in them outside Greensboro's city limits. I can prove this by asking how many of you would like an American Legion whiskey decanter in the shape of a pelican from New Orleans or perhaps one from the 1974 Spokane World's Fair Expo?
As far as these decanters being sealed, I'm not sure that adds any real value. The 90 proof bourbon whiskey in these bottles was considered "bottom shelf" to begin with and I have only met one person brave enough to actually drink the stuff after it has sat in those bottles for 20 years. (Also keep in mind how and where these items may have been stored over the last two decades.)
One of the major problems with these decanters is that the seals often broke and were not well made. I have heard horror stories about how bottles have been displayed only to have them leak. They also smell bad once the seals break. For the sake of this discussion I would advise you to leave the bourbon in the bottles and let the next proud owner decide if it's "worth" anything. It is also worth mentioning that it is illegal for you to sell the liquor. (So pour it out before selling.)
The 1972 Greater Greensboro Open crest decanter is considered the most popular. It sells at auction from between $4.00 to $20.00. (You can also pick them up on eBay starting at around $7.99. Keep in mind shipping may double the price of your purchase.) This seal is the same as the one worn on the Green Coats you see each year at the golf tournament. These folks are, of course, members of the Green Coat Club-men and women that make up the past leadership of the Greensboro Jaycees and the Greater Greensboro Open. This club was recently expanded to include members of the new foundation controlling the Chrysler Classic of Greensboro and its tournament director Mark Brazil. These new members will be received their green coats in October of 2006.
Only 6000 decanters were cast by Ezra Brooks each year and the molds were then destroyed. They were sold exclusively in Greensboro State Liquor Stores. The 1975 decanter took the form of a Grecian Urn. According to an article entitled "GGO Bottle Collection" in the 1975 38th Greater Greensboro Open tournament program, "the base design (for the 1975 decanter) was first suggested and later authored by Larry N. Heath, the 1975 General Chairman of the Greater Greensboro Open."
I recently received a call telling me that a friend of mine had a 1979 caddy decanter in the original box. I was excited to see the piece, because I had never seen a decanter in the box. I was disappointed when I was shown that in fact it was just a brown cardboard box and not a slick promotion display worthy item. Unlike some Ezra Brook decanters, including the "Iron Horse" train, the "Cigar Store Indian" and the "Bucket of Blood Dead Wagon"-all of which can be purchased on your favorite online auction-the Greater Greensboro Open decanters did not include photos, text or logos on the package.
A.T., thanks for your question. I want to again point out that I am just a fan of the Greater Greensboro Open, and while I know a lot about the tournament, I don't appraise any of the collectible items I discuss in my book or on my site. The following was just my opinion. Thanks for your email and thanks for reading the Greater Greensboro Open Blog.
Thank you."
A.T.
A.T., thanks for your email and thanks for reading the Greater Greensboro Open Blog. I want to first point out that I am just a fan of the Greater Greensboro Open, and while I wrote a book about the GGO decanter entitled A GGO Thing, I don't appraise any of the collectible items I discuss in the book or on my site. When you talk about what an item is "worth" and what kind of "value" it has, you are often talking about two very different things.
In my opinion what an item is "worth" is equal to the amount the someone is willing to pay. When I think about an item's "value", I think about what someone in the future might be willing to pay. Again, this is my opinion.
So, how does this relate to your incomplete set of unopened GGO decanters? Here are a couple of thoughts. I think they will be "worth" more as a group. I have met several people that have told me that they are looking for a complete set. I believe that most collectors will be willing to give you between $100.00 to $150.00 for your complete set. (11 bottles.)
These bottles sold for $14.95 a piece back in the 1970's and early 1980's so the decanters have retained their value. You can try to sell them on eBay, but you probably won't get anymore for them. Keep in mind one of the major selling points to this collection is the local sentimental value. There seems to be little interest in them outside Greensboro's city limits. I can prove this by asking how many of you would like an American Legion whiskey decanter in the shape of a pelican from New Orleans or perhaps one from the 1974 Spokane World's Fair Expo?
As far as these decanters being sealed, I'm not sure that adds any real value. The 90 proof bourbon whiskey in these bottles was considered "bottom shelf" to begin with and I have only met one person brave enough to actually drink the stuff after it has sat in those bottles for 20 years. (Also keep in mind how and where these items may have been stored over the last two decades.)
One of the major problems with these decanters is that the seals often broke and were not well made. I have heard horror stories about how bottles have been displayed only to have them leak. They also smell bad once the seals break. For the sake of this discussion I would advise you to leave the bourbon in the bottles and let the next proud owner decide if it's "worth" anything. It is also worth mentioning that it is illegal for you to sell the liquor. (So pour it out before selling.)
The 1972 Greater Greensboro Open crest decanter is considered the most popular. It sells at auction from between $4.00 to $20.00. (You can also pick them up on eBay starting at around $7.99. Keep in mind shipping may double the price of your purchase.) This seal is the same as the one worn on the Green Coats you see each year at the golf tournament. These folks are, of course, members of the Green Coat Club-men and women that make up the past leadership of the Greensboro Jaycees and the Greater Greensboro Open. This club was recently expanded to include members of the new foundation controlling the Chrysler Classic of Greensboro and its tournament director Mark Brazil. These new members will be received their green coats in October of 2006.
Only 6000 decanters were cast by Ezra Brooks each year and the molds were then destroyed. They were sold exclusively in Greensboro State Liquor Stores. The 1975 decanter took the form of a Grecian Urn. According to an article entitled "GGO Bottle Collection" in the 1975 38th Greater Greensboro Open tournament program, "the base design (for the 1975 decanter) was first suggested and later authored by Larry N. Heath, the 1975 General Chairman of the Greater Greensboro Open."
I recently received a call telling me that a friend of mine had a 1979 caddy decanter in the original box. I was excited to see the piece, because I had never seen a decanter in the box. I was disappointed when I was shown that in fact it was just a brown cardboard box and not a slick promotion display worthy item. Unlike some Ezra Brook decanters, including the "Iron Horse" train, the "Cigar Store Indian" and the "Bucket of Blood Dead Wagon"-all of which can be purchased on your favorite online auction-the Greater Greensboro Open decanters did not include photos, text or logos on the package.
A.T., thanks for your question. I want to again point out that I am just a fan of the Greater Greensboro Open, and while I know a lot about the tournament, I don't appraise any of the collectible items I discuss in my book or on my site. The following was just my opinion. Thanks for your email and thanks for reading the Greater Greensboro Open Blog.
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