A 1935 Duesenberg SSJ Special Speedster with a Hollywood pedigree — once owned by actor Clark Gable — took Best of Show at the 75th Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, held August 16 on the 18th fairway of Pebble Beach Golf Links. The win marks the eighth Best of Show trophy for the Duesenberg marque, cementing its status as the event's winningest American brand.

The Winner's Story

The SSJ was shown by Cincinnati collector Harry Yeaggy, who restored the car to its original black lacquer finish and light saddle leather interior. It is one of only two SSJ Special Speedsters ever built. Yeaggy has won Best of Show before — he took the top prize in 2007 with a 1935 Duesenberg SJ Speedster known as the "Mormon Meteor" — but framed this victory differently. "I won once before, 19 years ago, but I appreciate it a lot better now," he said. "People don't realize how hard it is, how special it is, to win this award." Yeaggy also noted a striking coincidence: a former owner of the car lived on the point in Pebble Beach for nearly 12 years, making the event a homecoming of sorts for the vehicle itself.

Concours Chairman Sandra Button described the SSJ as "the marque's ultimate expression," citing both its aerodynamic styling and its storied backstory. Strong competition came from a 1938 Delahaye 165 Figoni et Falaschi Cabriolet from The Pearl Collection of Switzerland, a 1955 Ferrari 375 MM Pinin Farina Berlinetta from Bangkok's Heinecke Family Collection, and a 1954 Ferrari 375 America Vignale Cabriolet from RQ Collections of Texas.

Philanthropy and the Auction Floor

The 75th celebration crossed a landmark threshold in charitable giving. The Concours raised more than $4.3 million this year alone, bringing its cumulative total to $50,154,192. Through the Pebble Beach Company Foundation, those funds support more than 130 local nonprofits focused on the education, health, and well-being of children throughout Monterey County — with more than half of the lifetime total raised in the past decade alone.

On the auction side, Gooding Christie's — in its 22nd year as the official auction house — posted its highest-ever gross since the company's founding. Total sales exceeded $159 million at a 94% sell-through rate. The top lot, a 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, achieved nearly $43 million, setting records as both the most valuable American car ever sold at auction and the most valuable car ever sold by Gooding Christie's.

Why Hospitality Operators Should Pay Attention

For resort and luxury hospitality operators, Pebble Beach Automotive Week represents one of the most concentrated gatherings of ultra-high-net-worth guests on the annual calendar. The Lodge at Pebble Beach serves as the venue for the 76th Concours, already scheduled for August 15, 2027. That edition will spotlight the centennial of Delage's Grand Prix–winning season alongside classes dedicated to the Ferrari F40's 40th anniversary and Prewar Open-Front Town Cars — programming that drives multi-night stays, high-end F&B spend, and ancillary event revenue across the Pebble Beach Resort portfolio.

The event's formula — pairing world-class hospitality programming with a charity mandate and a blue-chip collector audience — continues to set a benchmark for how luxury resort properties can build recurring, high-value signature events. For food and beverage operators eyeing the luxury segment, understanding how properties like Pebble Beach structure week-long experiential calendars offers useful framing, as explored in our beverage industry analysis of premium on-premise spending trends.

This year's field comprised 218 cars in total, including 33 international entries from 14 countries and 185 U.S. entries from 30 states.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.