Another hogan opinion poll…….😬

[weakputt]

11 hours ago, Swingingk said:

Success!  I found my archived data.  Turns out I'm not just a club ho but a picture ho too.  Haha

 

Through my various acquisitions over the years combined with data gathered from multiple threads and conversations here on wrx, I have gathered these observations.  Some are factual (actual pictures) and some anecdotal:

 

There were at least two variations of the Radial iron offered by the Hogan company but I'll defer to calling them "early" and "late".  The early versions were supposedly forged where the later ones were cast.  The early versions had a very pronounced "booty", ie: a rather obvious very low muscle bulge and corresponding wide sole which was very round and bouncey.  This is where the name came from Radial or "radius".  This wide sole and extremely low muscle protrusion is similar for each iron throughout the set.  

In the second or late variation the pronounced muscle bulge and wide sole are similar in the long irons but begin to ease back and become less and less obvious from the 7 through Equalizer (pw) to the point where the shortest irons look quite normal as compared to other irons.  Upon observation with side-by-side comparison one can see clearly the differences in overall shape of the head and design of the muscle in the short irons.  These differences can be hard to see in individual irons but luckily there is a dead giveaway between these models - the later model has a line under the Radial stamping on the sole of the club as can be seen in the pictures. 

Through play I have personally found that the later versions are much more playable than the early type.  The Hogan company must have realized that there were shortfalls in the early design and released a better one in the later design.  Many of us lean heavily toward forged irons vs. cast and I am this way too, but in this case I would definitely recommend the later cast model with the line under the sole stamp.  

 

Note the obvious difference in head shape between versions:  (Wilson Button-back for contrast)

Which Radial was forged and which was casted? Is the "line under" RADIAL the forged model?

[Swingingk]

21 minutes ago, weakputt said:

Which Radial was forged and which was casted? Is the "line under" RADIAL the forged model?

The early model without the line under were supposedly forged steel whereas the later model with the line under the "Radial" sole stamp were cast steel.

[BIG STU]

On 2/5/2022 at 11:24 PM, OnTheBag said:

I'm a Ben Hogan fan and have been for a long time.  It rivals my life long love affair with Ping clubs.  IMHO, the greatest all around Hogan irons are the '99 Apex.  But if you're looking for classics, I would suggest the '71 or '72 Apex irons.  Someone with a better memory than me, can give you the correct year, but they were choice blades.  I had a hand-me-down set in the late '70s.  

 

Stu or one of the other aficionado's will have better info.  I was a classic player, but was never a club guru.  If I hit them well, they stayed in my bag.  If not, they were quickly sold.

I am not a real Hogan Guru per say even though I love Apex Shafts. I do like Hogan wedges though. I have owned very few sets of Hogans even though I have a set of rough 54 Precisions that I play now and again. I did have a scrap yard set of Grinds which I liked the heads but the new style #5 shafts were too much for me even pre accident. I gave them to a member on another golf site because he wanted a set and mine were gathering dust and rust in the corner of my shop. Besides the important part for me was I had rescued them from the metal shredder and they lived for someone else to enjoy. To be honest some of the 70s Hogans I did not like or they did not fit my eye with the underslung Hoesels. But that is just me. But with all, being said I would play the 99 Apex with the correct shafts in a heartbeat

[Foozle]

12 hours ago, Jiggered said:

Nice study @Swingingk, checking my Hogan years chart I see that the first Radial came out in 1983 but I remember others too from around that time, Wilson for instance.

Do you know who was the first to start the trend?

To give them their full title, as The Haig deserves; "Walter Hagen Haig Ultra Contour Sole Fluid Feel WH365" bear a striking resemblance to the early Radials. 

These are from 1968 i believe. Anyone know of a club with a longer title?

[mbwannab]

To be honest, I’m not sure I understand how the bulge in the back helps, doesn’t everyone always talk about the leading edge?

 

[JShaw]

The PCs are my all time favorite Hogan iron. I haven't played them all but I have played several. My order of preference would be:

PCs

72 Apex

93-94 Ft Worth forged

Apex II black cameo

Redlines (I really wanted to like these as they are beautiful, but we don't seem to get along)

 

I also have the Precisions an Sunbursts but haven't played them enough to rank them.  They do have a great feel for sure. I used to have a set of the 80 Directors.  They were surprisingly forgiving but didn't have the feel of their brethren.  

[BIG STU]

5 hours ago, mbwannab said:

To be honest, I’m not sure I understand how the bulge in the back helps, doesn’t everyone always talk about the leading edge?

 

The bulge in the back does 2 things adds more bounce which some folks need plus it adds weight down low. The bulge is just a wider sole basically and that adds weight down low. There are lots of ways to skin a cat so to speak and this is just one of them

[mbwannab]

4 hours ago, JShaw said:

The PCs are my all time favorite Hogan iron. I haven't played them all but I have played several. My order of preference would be:

PCs

72 Apex

93-94 Ft Worth forged

Apex II black cameo

Redlines (I really wanted to like these as they are beautiful, but we don't seem to get along)

 

I also have the Precisions an Sunbursts but haven't played them enough to rank them.  They do have a great feel for sure. I used to have a set of the 80 Directors.  They were surprisingly forgiving but didn't have the feel of their brethren.  

May I ask why PC’s are your favorite? Seems like most here like them but don’t rank them high due to a tiny sweet spot. I’d like to assume that you’re just an awesome striker of the ball, but please expound….

[JShaw]

21 minutes ago, mbwannab said:

May I ask why PC’s are your favorite? Seems like most here like them but don’t rank them high due to a tiny sweet spot. I’d like to assume that you’re just an awesome striker of the ball, but please expound….

I certainly wouldn't consider myself an awesome striker of the ball but I'd say I'm a solid striker, at least when I get to play more than once a month.

 

Despite the popular opinion on this forum regarding the tiny sweet spot of the PCs, that has not been my experience.  I have a much harder time finding the sweet spot consistently on the Redlines.  The PCs give me the ball flight I'm looking for whereas I can hit spinny moonballs with the Redlines and the Ft Worths despite them all having Apex 4 shafts. I also prefer how the club head blends into the hosel on the PCs to most other Hogans.  The 72 Apexes are somewhat similar.  The Redlines and Apex II seem clunky or too boxy to me in this regard.  The 93-94 Ft Worth seem to be somewhere in between.  I also think the offset of the PCs fits my eye well when over the ball.  I like the 72s in this regard as well. 

 

 

[mbwannab]

1 hour ago, JShaw said:

I certainly wouldn't consider myself an awesome striker of the ball but I'd say I'm a solid striker, at least when I get to play more than once a month.

 

Despite the popular opinion on this forum regarding the tiny sweet spot of the PCs, that has not been my experience.  I have a much harder time finding the sweet spot consistently on the Redlines.  The PCs give me the ball flight I'm looking for whereas I can hit spinny moonballs with the Redlines and the Ft Worths despite them all having Apex 4 shafts. I also prefer how the club head blends into the hosel on the PCs to most other Hogans.  The 72 Apexes are somewhat similar.  The Redlines and Apex II seem clunky or too boxy to me in this regard.  The 93-94 Ft Worth seem to be somewhere in between.  I also think the offset of the PCs fits my eye well when over the ball.  I like the 72s in this regard as well. 

 

 

There’s offset on a hogan blade!? 🤣 I prefer little to no offset myself👍🏻 I think it just looks nicer

[Nard_S]

3 hours ago, mbwannab said:

There’s offset on a hogan blade!? 🤣 I prefer little to no offset myself👍🏻 I think it just looks nicer

99 Apex has sizable offset.

[mbwannab]

Probably isn’t a lot of blades with near zero offset is there? 🧐

[Nard_S]

Let me elaborate. The 99's have 3mm-4mm of offset. "Neutral" is really & truly 2mm (.079"). Honest? I care little about offset, I played 99's from 2015-2018, went to 681's (@2mm), went to Maruman SX 40 with JDM reverse offset. The wedges have 3mm. I love all of them. Hogan's are not known for onset (less than 2mm). The 92-94 Fort Worth are not onset nor are the 72 Precisions both of which I also own. Have seen Hogan's with 1mm, but they were custom builds. Wish I bought those but that's another story.

 

 

 

 

,,

[BIG STU]

3 hours ago, mbwannab said:

Probably isn’t a lot of blades with near zero offset is there? 🧐

Off the top of my head the only ones I remember are the KZG ZO blades--- The ZO meaning Zero Offset of course. I know most old Mac blades like I play have minimal offset but I have never measured them. They just fit my eye so all is right with me

[mbwannab]

On 2/6/2022 at 4:09 PM, Nard_S said:

I really love the '92-'94 FT Worth's. Last set released with big guy still there. They are gorgeous in the flesh. Somewhat muscley & boxy which is a bit of departure, I have a set, they're so pretty I don't play them. The pix is from an old listing but mine look the same. 

So since you don’t play those, do you have a set of hogans you enjoy playing?

[JShaw]

17 hours ago, mbwannab said:

There’s offset on a hogan blade!? 🤣 I prefer little to no offset myself👍🏻 I think it just looks nicer

To me most Hogans look like they have more offset than other blades, especially when comparing them to other offerings of the corresponding time period.  I don't know the numbers.  How the club looks behind the ball is what matters most to me.  

 

If you like zero to no offset the Tommy Armour 986 tour blades will be right up your alley.

[Nard_S]

3 hours ago, mbwannab said:

So since you don’t play those, do you have a set of hogans you enjoy playing?

Played 99 Apex for 3 years. Switched out to Maruman's and Titleist 681 purely out of shaft & weight reason. The Fort Worths may get bag time, would do those over 99's at this point. But blade of the month club is not something I like to do.

[jmcf1949]

I’m on my third and last set of mid 80’s Apex PC’s. I liked the first set so much I bought two more. They are great irons that feel solid if you’re swinging well.

[NRJyzr]

On 2/9/2022 at 9:01 PM, mbwannab said:

Probably isn’t a lot of blades with near zero offset is there? 🧐

 

On 2/10/2022 at 10:39 AM, JShaw said:

To me most Hogans look like they have more offset than other blades, especially when comparing them to other offerings of the corresponding time period.  I don't know the numbers.  How the club looks behind the ball is what matters most to me.  

 

If you like zero to no offset the Tommy Armour 986 tour blades will be right up your alley.

 

 

JShaw has it, the 986 Tours are the Emperor of No Offset.  I'll see about scrounging up an address pic I've got lying around...

 

[nitram]

I agree with the selecting older Apex. I learned to play on my first set of '72 Apex and still have them. Any of them from the 70's will serve you well. May I also suggest the '88 and '94 Apex? They were excellent irons in their own right. I understand you wanting something from the FTW Hogan era but think you're selling yourself short by not considering the '99 Apex. IMHO, they are the best Hogan iron I've ever played.

Edited February 12, 2022 by nitram
spelling

[NSCohen17]

‘88 Redlines, ‘92 Ft. Worths and, of course, the ‘99 Apexes. All great. The Ft. Worths are the smallest/most demanding of those 3, I believe, but they’re also the last ones to sport that little screw on the hosel. 

Edited March 26, 2022 by NSCohen17

[jmcf1949]

On 2/6/2022 at 12:45 PM, Foozle said:

I have a set of BH Grinds, they were my first and most modern set of Hogan's.

Owning a set of Hogan blades had been a dream of mine since my teens but took over 30 years to realise! I went for Grinds as I read somewhere they were closest to Mr Hogan's preferred  grind - I think I know differently now. Anyway you can imagine to anticipation and excitement of playing them......and the disappointment! They just felt dead off the face and lacked the feel and pureness I was expecting. Please do not let that put you off as someone had put a set of s300's in mine and whilst that is a shaft I normally like, I much prefer the Apex shaft that they probably had originally 

I don't have '62 Powerthrusts but do have '61's and prefer the '59 Starbursts to those. The '63 IPT's are sweet and worth a try if you can find a set.

The elephant in the room are '84 PC's which come with a reputation for bring difficult which I personally don't think they deserve. My issue with those is a micro dot nitrous button set somewhere in the face which, if detonated, will slingshot the ball 20% further than intended! Again, please don't be afraid to try them.

Experimenting is all part of the fun and joy, you will sometimes be surprised by what works for you. 

I’m on my third set of PC’s. I’ve saved the softest feeling Apex 4 shaft for last. If you find the sweet spot they are wonderful. Don’t like them in the cold though.

[northplatteriver]

For anything post 1960 I would have to say the 1992 Ft. Worth's.  When your ready to go to the 1950's where it all started I would say the 1959 Hogan Sunburst Saber is my favorite Hogan club of all time.  The design of the Precision from the 50's has provided DNA for more blades than we can count as has been noticed and mentioned many times in other posts by regulars of this forum.  It was and still is revolutionary.  I believe the 1959 Saber is Hogan's perfected form of the Precision.  After the 59 Saber I think he basically said I can't get any better and headed in another completely different direction with the 1960 Power Thrust.  I have played many Hogan models from the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's and sold all of them except my long hosel Precisions, and two sets of 1959 Sunburst Sabers.  The only set of Hogan's I did not play that I wished I would have, were the Redline's.  

[jmcf1949]

On 2/6/2022 at 2:32 AM, Foozle said:

I think I have around 15 sets of Hogan blades in my collection, all pre 1990. 

If you want absolute classic then you need to be looking at '50's Precision models but these can be expensive. The '59 Sabre or Starburst model on which I believe later Personal models are based represent a slight tweak on Precisions making them a little more compact and absolutely stunning to look at. However, from a playability point of view these very early Hogan's lack any form of bounce and turf interaction can be axe like! I think the name "Precision" relates to the skill level required!

I have been playing '88 Redlines for a few seasons and think these offer an excellent compromise between classic blade shape, looks and playability.

However,as OnTheBag suggests, many peoples vision of a classic Hogan blade are the '70's Apex. I personally would avoid the '72 model where the muscle pad was moved up the face and find the '73-76 Apex a better all round set.

Whatever you go for, you will not regret it and will enjoy playing with them.

I can’t get over how much the early Precisions look like my Mizuno MP 14’s.

[Foozle]

4 hours ago, jmcf1949 said:

I can’t get over how much the early Precisions look like my Mizuno MP 14’s.

Or rather how much your MP14's look like Precision's.

This is because Mr Hogan basically got it right first time - arguably tweaked to absolute perfection by the Starburst model - and created a bloodline still replicated today in the form of Mizuno's brand new Mizuno Pro's!

[Hickory4ever]

5 hours ago, Foozle said:

Or rather how much your MP14's look like Precision's.

This is because Mr Hogan basically got it right first time - arguably tweaked to absolute perfection by the Starburst model - and created a bloodline still replicated today in the form of Mizuno's brand new Mizuno Pro's!

I second the motion. 

[NRJyzr]

There are also MacGregor irons in between Hogan and Mizuno; there was an MT model, or two, that had a similar shape.

 

When Mizuno started their blade line, it was said they used MacGregor designs as their guide book.  So happens that one of their choices was an analogue of an analogue.  🙂

 

[baetown415]

I'm partial to the Apex II's, but I know I'm in the minority on that one. For me personally, few irons from 6 to wedge (Equalizer) have framed the ball as nicely.

[BirdiesAndBunkers]

Fantastic thread lads! Awesome engagement, and getting my juices flowing

 

My personal quick and dirty answer is late 50s Precisions if you can manage to find a set that doesn't cost you a kidney, and late 70s Medallions with cameo. You really cant go wrong though! 

 

Young guy here, who quickly took to manically hunting older Hogan blades locally over the last year and change after coming accross a beauty set of 1960 Power Thrust at a local thrift shop. This started an itch I can't seem to stop scratching (I'm sure many of your can relate). I set a lofty goal of finding a full set of all Hogan irons from late 50s - mid 80s "in the wild" without taking the eBay shortcut. Somehow taking the scenic route has been far more satisfying 

 

For about ~850$US ($1100CAD as I live in Canada), I've managed to build a collection of 17 full sets, all found locally (with exception of one unique set online). Sold three sets of other modern brands I had lying around to finance the ongoing collection. If your patient and keep an eye out, come accross plenty of great oldies. 

 

For ~20 years I played forged MacGregor PCB irons from '01, but these last two years I feel so much more connected to the game by playing these far more challenging older sticks! And DANG they all look sweet in the bag. 

 

Happy to share some images if there are particular sets that anyone would like to eyeball. Most of what I've found so far have their original shafts, and I have kept on all of the original grips as well. The collecting hasnt been limited to Hogans, but they are undoubtedly the loveliest brand from that period to gaze at.

 

The quick list in semi-chronological order (as best as I've been able to piece together) is as follows: '57-59 Precision with serial number 102, '60 Powerthrust, '61 Powerthrust, '63 IPT, '64 PTIII, '65 PC-5,  67' PC-7 Princess, '69 Bounce Sole 1+, '69 Bounce Sole 1+ (Slazenger model), '73 Apex (Slazenger model), '74 Director, late 70s Medallion (with rare black cameo instead of copper coin), '80 Director, '81 Apex White cameo, '83 Apex II Black cameo, '90 Apex Grind. 

 

Been playing the Precisions lately, and absolutely in love. sharp as hell front edge, but man they feel nice and are very satisfying when struck well.

 

Happy playing lads

 

 

Edited June 23, 2022 by BirdiesAndBunkers

[BirdiesAndBunkers]

Overhead shot of most of the 3 irons, and the unit I quickly built out to store and showcase, with the man himself on the wall! 

 

Cheers lads (and ladies)!