CGC Now Encapsulating Select Cards in ‘Tall Boy’ Holders for Enhanced Security and Display

CGC® is pleased to introduce a new holder specifically designed to fit oversized cards, especially certain vintage sports cards of the 1960s and 1970s. The CGC “Tall Boy” holder is tailored to the unique sizes of many cards that CGC couldn't previously encapsulate.

Today, most modern cards measure 2.5 x 3.5 inches, but there has not always been a standard size. Sports cards of the early 20th century were smaller, measuring 1.4375 x 2.625 inches. However, sports cards grew larger as time went on, culminating with the 1965 Topps "Tall Boys" Football set, which consisted of taller cards that measured 2.5 x 4.6875 inches. CGC is now utilizing an additional oversized holder (not to be confused with the pre-existing CGC Jumbo holder) for 1965 Topps Football cards, 1969-70 Topps Basketball cards, Exhibit cards, T-201, T-202 and other select cards with similar dimensions.

Go big or go home

In the 1960s, Topps released one of their most iconic football sets of all time when their 1965 Topps Football set hit shelves. The 176-card set is beloved for its unique larger cards (nicknamed "Tall Boys") that included one of the most sought-after rookie issues in the whole hobby: the 1965 Topps #122 Joe Namath rookie card.

The bigger 2.5 x 4.6875-inch cards provided more room for larger player images over vibrant color backgrounds on the front and larger team names at the top. The cards also included player names and positions at the bottom in smaller font sizes. The eccentric cards were a hit with collectors, immediately becoming one of the most popular football card sets ever printed.

The football set was so popular, Topps chose to use the oversized "Tall Boys" dimensions when the company created its first basketball card set in more than a decade dating back to their 1957 release. 1969-70 Topps Basketball is a 99-card set that utilized the same super-sized 2.5 x 4.6875-inch cards. The set featured 32 future Hall of Famers, showcased by superstars like Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West, but the gem of the set is the rookie card of Lew Alcindor (who changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar).

Another attractive historic set from Topps, it features player images in an oval border in the center of each card on colorful backgrounds. In contrast to their football counterpart, the basketball set features the team at the bottom and the player's name and position at the top.

Now, each of these iconic sports cards submitted to CGC will be encapsulated in holders specially designed with these and other "tall" cards in mind. Simply submit your Tall Boy-sized cards like normal, which includes autographed cards for JSA authentication, and our grading experts will take care of the rest!

Better fit, better clarity

For many card sizes that are encountered less frequently, CGC uses soft-plastic protective sleeves that are encapsulated within the holder to secure the card in place. With the new Tall Boy holder, these cards will not require a soft-plastic sleeve, which means greater clarity in the holder.

"CGC continues to look for ways to innovate and enhance our industry-leading certification and encapsulation services," said Andy Broome, CGC Cards Vice President. "When it comes to vintage sports cards and more, these new holders will provide a more precise fit and extra clarity."

Submitters do not need to do anything differently when submitting cards to CGC. The CGC team automatically selects the appropriate holder when encapsulating cards, and the new CGC Tall Boy holder will be used at no extra cost to submitters!

CGC has graded more than 12 million cards, including more than 2 million sports cards — a number that encompasses thousands of vintage collectibles. If you have a CGC-certified "tall" sports card that you would like to be encapsulated in the new holder, submit for the ReHolder service at just $5 per card.

Need more info?

• Questions for CGC Cards should be sent to [email protected].
• Questions for JSA memorabilia submissions should be sent to [email protected].

All CGC services can be reached at (+1) 855-GRADE10 (855-472-3310). For questions about JSA-only services, call (+1) 973-898-1300.

Please note that the CGC Tall Boy holder is not available for submissions made to CGC's Shanghai, China, office.

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for sports cards, TCGs and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. CGC Home Video provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of videocassettes, DVD, Blu-ray and more. CGC also offers seamless solutions for autograph collectors with CGC Signature Series and JSA Authentic Autograph services.