Before he became the 37th President of the United States Richard Milhous Nixon served as Vice President from 1953 to 61 in the Dwight D. Eisenhower Administration. He waged an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 1960 narrowly losing to John F. Kennedy and lost a race for Governor of California in 1962. In 1968 however he ran again for the presidency and was elected.

During his days as vice president Nixon became exposed to golf and tried hard to pick up the game. He practiced religiously and actually honed a pretty decent short game but his weak drives off the tee often hurt his chances. Nevertheless as a member of the Burning Tree Club in Bethesda Maryland Nixon put in plenty of rounds. Offered here is the leather-and-nylon Wilson branded golf bag that Nixon used during his days as Eisenhowers right-hand man as well a full set of his used clubs. The well-worn burgundy colored bag called The Fairview clearly shows it age with multiple cracks in the leather and some slight tears in the nylon. Still attached to the lower compartment remains Nixons white-and-blue plastic Burning Tree Club members tag that reveals he was number 925 to the all-male club which first opened its doors in 1922.

The accompanying four MacGregor woods (1 3 4 and 5) all reflect ample usage with Richard Nixon VP engraved in red on the bottom of each of the club heads. The 3 and 4 woods are Eye-o-Matic Tourney clubs while the driver and 5 wood are Super Eye-o-Matic Toney Penna MacGregor clubs. All four woods include extremely broken in black-and-burgundy leather grips and the metal shafts all have Burning Tree member labels with R. Nixon typed on them. The driver and 5 wood are both serial numbered S2332G while the 3 and 4 woods are serial-numbered S4560E. Three two-toned black-and-burgundy leather head covers are included.

Eight Toney Penna V.I.P. model MacGregor irons (3 4 5 6 7 8 11 and a pitching wedge) are included and the back of every iron is engraved with MR. V.P. NIXON. They all sport noticeably used brown leather grips with white pin striping. Each is also engraved on the hosel with OS1657P and includes the Burning Tree member labels on the shafts with R. Nixon typed on them. A Ben Hogan PT III model 9 iron (serial numbered 152212) is also part of the mix as is a MacGregor Tommy Armour model Iron Master putter that certainly shows its age.

According to the consignor Newport Sports Museum Founder and Curator John Hamilton he acquired the clubs directly from Nixons nephew Don Nixon in 1999. The Nixon Family and my family have been friends since the 1940s said Hamilton. My grandfather John B. Reilly financed Nixons first campaign for Congress in 1946. Nixon approached him for help financially with his campaign and as the story goes after one sit-down meeting my grandfather wrote him a check for $10000. Hamiltons mother Patricia R. Hitt who died two years ago at the age of 87 served as the national co-chairwoman of Nixon's 1968 presidential campaign and was the former assistant secretary of Health Education and Welfare from 1969 to 73. She passed away on January 9 2013 on what would have been Nixon's 93rd birthday.

Includes Letter of Provenance from the Newport Sports Museum.