Hogan Apex & Classic Blades Question...

[TimV]

Always played his Hogan’s with their Apex 4 shafts. PC, red lines (both models) and ultimately the Apex IIs. Would have loved to play the Apex IIs with Rifle 5.5s, JPs all time fave shaft. He looks back on his twenty plus years of Hogan irons use as wonderful times. He still has two sets of ApexIIs, such a lovely club. Kind small head by today’s standards. You take out the 2,3 iron...see if you really do have a fine swing each and every time.

Probably should take them out to see how far his swing has atrophied!

 

Who is "He" or is that 'The Royal He?'

[rex235]

To me, the best Hogan Irons ever were the 1999 Apex. Forged in Japan.

 

Guia-

 

1999 Ben Hogan Apex irons..... Contract design by Jeff Sheets of Sheets Design Group

 

"The set was so perfectly shaped that Endo was able to laser scan each head and cut the forging dies without creating any masters. This is seldom done with hand ground clubs....."

 

Adam Beach also writes-

 

"For the treasure hunters out there a set of ’99 Hogan Apex blades can be found for a song. Hit a set and you too will be singing."

 

RH Only.

[BIG STU]

To me, the best Hogan Irons ever were the 1999 Apex. Forged in Japan.

 

Guia-

 

1999 Ben Hogan Apex irons..... Contract design by Jeff Sheets of Sheets Design Group

 

"The set was so perfectly shaped that Endo was able to laser scan each head and cut the forging dies without creating any masters. This is seldom done with hand ground clubs....."

 

Adam Beach also writes-

 

"For the treasure hunters out there a set of ’99 Hogan Apex blades can be found for a song. Hit a set and you too will be singing."

So you know Adam too!!! Good guy

RH Only.

[rex235]

Stu-

 

It was Adam's article in a 1999 review on Jeff Sheets and the design of the 1999 Hogan Apex Irons.

 

It's a good read, and pretty much explains the Ben Hogan forged blade design history and Jeff Sheets mindset behind the '99 Apex irons.

 

Again, RH Only.

 

Heres another part of the Article- "As a group of ex-Hogan employees, Tom (Stites)and his staff were vehemently against Spalding re-launching Hogan using a game improvement club."

[Steele47]

About a month ago I had a few too many and picked up a set of 1999 Apex's 3-PW, Apex 3 shafts with original Hogan grips on them. Grips are cord and old and therefore unplayable. But I'm not gonna play them anyway. It would be sacrilege to hit them in my view.

 

But whats really weird is the red paint fill on the 6 iron and Equalizer is gone. Everything else looks perfect.

 

The serial numbers are all matching and are on stickers just below the bottom of the grip. Does that sound right?

[hnryclay]

Yes, most used clubs for someone that drives the ball 225-230.

[rex235]

Steele-

 

...So you picked up the '99 Apex irons just to look at them?

[northplatteriver]

Hello,

 

Not posted for a long while. I'm hoping someone can help me out...

 

bit of background first -

 

I picked up a set of McGregor DX2's from ebay, wanting to try some old school blades, just to mess with over winter. Oooh they are nice. They look fantastic.

 

Normally I'm playing Taylor Made Burners, but the McGregor's feel much more consistent off the face - distance wise. Lofts are totally different, I think there's about a 1.5 to 2 club difference, i.e. Taylor Made 7 iron goes on average same distance as the McGregor 5 iron.

 

So I think started thinking, maybe I'll trade the McGregors in and look for a set of blades from the 70's, then 80's and then 90's and so on. Then one of my golfing mates started eulogising about the best set he ever played with....HOGAN APEX, BH Grind (early 90's).

 

And I thought, b*gger it, I'll go straight for those...

 

In searching I can see Apex Grind and BH Grind, is there a difference? And if so, how could I ( can I ) tell from photo's of the club?

 

If anyone wants to suggest great blades over the decades, I'd be interested in that too!

 

Cheers

Bob

I have played many Hogan blades. Of the post 1970 designs my favorite by far is the 1992 Ft. Worth Redline Apex, followed by the 1973-1975 Sunburst Apex. Love the Ft. Worths until I lucked into my first set of 1957 Precisions and that was it for anything post 1962 for me. I love the heavy heads on the Precisions, Sunburst Sabers and the Power Thrusts. Have always heard the 1988 Redlines are ones from post 1970 that always seem to be highly rated, but have never had the privilege of hitting a set. Hard to go wrong with any forged Hogan club, but that is my two cents.

[birly-shirly]

About a month ago I had a few too many and picked up a set of 1999 Apex's 3-PW, Apex 3 shafts with original Hogan grips on them. Grips are cord and old and therefore unplayable. But I'm not gonna play them anyway. It would be sacrilege to hit them in my view.

 

But whats really weird is the red paint fill on the 6 iron and Equalizer is gone. Everything else looks perfect.

 

The serial numbers are all matching and are on stickers just below the bottom of the grip. Does that sound right?

 

Sacrilege to hit them? Bernhard Langer's a devout man, but you need to have seen the state of his 99s.

[Steele47]

Steele-

 

...So you picked up the '99 Apex irons just to look at them?

 

 

lol. That's what it looks like for now. A friend of mine bought a set new when they came out way back then and ever since I wanted a set. I played Cameo's and FG-17's as a kid before giving in to Eye2 in mid 80's. I've just always appreciated Hogan's. At any rate, the 99's were a total impulse buy brought on by late night blurred thinking and believing my 'best offer' price would not be accepted.

 

When they arrived I was shocked. It's obvious they've never been hit. I don't see myself playing them. I'm good with my S55's right now. Again, I find it incredibly weird the paint fill on soles of the 6 and E are gone like whoever had em was gonna take all paint fill off the numbers but then thought better of it.

 

Yeah I've seen pics of Langer's 3 iron at least. I think he hung onto the 3 and maybe the 4 mismatching rest of his set. Not sure. Condition of his doesn't surprise me though. I saw him in person once at the Hope have a little, shall we say, intense discussion with his clubs after a missed shot.

[Porker]

[Porker]

[Porker]

Apex 99’ all the way... here’s mine with a frankin set 6-pw FTX’s

Finally got the pic posted.... Not sure why it's upside down?

[Chris122]

'Cos you're in the southern hemisphere and standing on your head mate!

[Porker]

'Cos you're in the southern hemisphere and standing on your head mate!

I should have anticipated that you cheeky so an so..

[TimV]

:cheesy: :cheesy: :cheesy:

[Chris122]

Senoj,

 

Here is a nice picture of the 1990-92 Apex BH Grinds.

 

 

 

I :heart: these irons but not made for lefty's!

 

Edit to add;

 

There was a cheap set on ebay UK,I nearly convinced myself to start playing right-handed...at 65...arthritic...is that too optimistic? LOL

 

Apex shafts are something else...I have 3 sets of Apex II irons fitted with 1) Apex 3, 2) Vector, 3) DG S300.

I find the S300 set the best to play with followed by the Vectors and then Apex 3 which feel too soft for my taste,initially I thought it might be an age thing but the (nominally) same shaft in Apex Plus and FTX irons feel the same,I do hit the odd well struck shot and always feel that it could have somehow been better even when flushed.

I realise there's no direct comparison between the shafts I mentioned but how does an Apex 3 compare with DG R300 or Apex 4 with S300?

Further edit to explain that 'it might be an age thing' was in reference to the age of the shafts not me although it might be applicable.

[rex235]

Chris-

 

Will ask my Hogan club man, who got one of those Apex letters back in 1993., after the Masters.

 

In the Golfwrx Podcast, Larry Bobka went on about how Tiger Woods, even though under contract to play Titleist,, raved about a set of Hogan irons he was "killing" on the range. Bobka still has them

 

My guess is they were a set of irons from friend Mark O'Meara when he was with Hogan, but then, more than likely, a RH only model.

 

Bobka also confirmed Tiger's Titleist irons were forged by ENDO.