Tiger Woods' ball from 1997 Masters fetches $64,000

A play shot Tiger Woods gave to a 9-year-old lad during the 1997 Masters has sold for much than $64,000.

Woods handed the shot to Julian Nexsen during his last round, aft helium made a bogey connected the 5th hole.

The shot was enactment up for auction connected 27 March - aft a starting bid of $500, it fetched $64,124.40 (£51,626) erstwhile the auction closed connected Sunday.

The tourney was Woods' archetypal large title triumph and made him the youngest subordinate to triumph the Masters.

The triumph acceptable the code for Woods' record-breaking career. His four-day people was 270, 18 nether par - breaking the erstwhile record held by Jack Nicklaus.

Golden Age Auctions said it is apt to beryllium the lone known shot from the last round.

"Unless Tiger himself oregon his caddie Fluff intentionally saved a shot from this historical last circular [which we doubt], this whitethorn beryllium the lone confirmed play shot from the last circular of Tiger Woods' archetypal Major Championship victory," the auction location said.

The auctioneers accidental dozens of radical witnessed Woods springiness the shot to Mr Nexsen, including a newsman from the Washington Times.

Mr Nexsen's enactment with Woods was featured successful the Washington Times' nonfiction connected the paper's beforehand leafage the adjacent day.

"After making his archetypal bogey successful 36 holes yesterday, Woods stopped connected his mode to the sixth tee to springiness a shot to 9-year-old Julian Nexsen of Greenville, SC [South Carolina]," the insubstantial reported.

The paper cutting, Mr Nexsen's badge from the 1997 Masters Tournament, pairings sheets from the Sunday last circular and the play shot person been framed unneurotic ever since.

Mr Nexsen signed a ineligible declaration, certifying the authenticity of the play shot and the communicative of that last circular enactment with Woods.