Tour Ben Hogan's old prototype clubs (including a 1-iron) – 2023 Charles Schwab Challenge

[atursky]

[getair23]

Great pictures.  Hogan was definitely ahead of his time.  This made me think of the front page articles Tom Stites used to write about his time working for Hogan.  

[bifftaco]

Those irons are wild. What are the chances a modern company came out with a model that has "Power Thrust" engraved on them? Take my money lol.

 

That last 1 Wood with the toe notch- would love to see the marketing for that design. No way that physically does anything.....

[QuigleyDU]

Man have club profiles changed... For the better. Those hosel to topline transitions is offensive to my eye. I get that was the style and remember when irons looked like that when I first started. But, everything has gotten so much cleaner. 

[jholz]

11 minutes ago, QuigleyDU said:

Man have club profiles changed... For the better. Those hosel to topline transitions is offensive to my eye. I get that was the style and remember when irons looked like that when I first started. But, everything has gotten so much cleaner. 

 

I'm always astounded by the knife-like leading edge on the irons - and the complete lack of bounce. Boy, could I bury on of those heads about an inch and a half behind the ball....

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

14 hours ago, bifftaco said:

Those irons are wild. What are the chances a modern company came out with a model that has "Power Thrust" engraved on them? Take my money lol.

 

That last 1 Wood with the toe notch- would love to see the marketing for that design. No way that physically does anything.....

 

That notch was called the "Speed slot", though I can't believe it had any effect on the aerodynamics of the club.

 

I suppose it removed some weight from the toe to allow for a larger head, maybe? That's about the only thing I can think of.

[rukahs]

 

 

 

Playing the game back then really was torture.... the guys these day's don't know how good they've got it (inc prize money)

[BIG STU]

27 minutes ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

That notch was called the "Speed slot", though I can't believe it had any effect on the aerodynamics of the club.

 

I suppose it removed some weight from the toe to allow for a larger head, maybe? That's about the only thing I can think of.

Yep you nailed it square in the center. Back in the day I saw some better players use lead tape in the toe to balance it. Way back I knew a hustler who took a rat tailed file in a drill and cut a "speed slot" in a beautiful Toney Penna driver. It never hit right and he gave it to me. Even though I was learning about clubs in those days I hit it some and determined it was off balance. Put some lead tape in the toe where he cut it and it ended up fine. I used common sense and figured Penna designed that club and balanced it. Most Hogan clubs with the speed slot I have torn down had weight in the hosel at the bottom of the shaft. I would say it was a clever Marketing Ploy. Also back in those day a lot of people myself included believed lead tape in the toe helped shut the face and let the club tumble over at impact. Of course later on that was proven wrong

Edited May 24, 2023 by BIG STU

[Ben Berube]

1 hour ago, BIG STU said:

Yep you nailed it square in the center. Back in the day I saw some better players use lead tape in the toe to balance it. Way back I knew a hustler who took a rat tailed file in a drill and cut a "speed slot" in a beautiful Toney Penna driver. It never hit right and he gave it to me. Even though I was learning about clubs in those days I hit it some and determined it was off balance. Put some lead tape in the toe where he cut it and it ended up fine. I used common sense and figured Penna designed that club and balanced it. Most Hogan clubs with the speed slot I have torn down had weight in the hosel at the bottom of the shaft. I would say it was a clever Marketing Ploy. Also back in those day a lot of people myself included believed lead tape in the toe helped shut the face and let the club tumble over at impact. Of course later on that was proven wrong

Great info and details Big Stu!

 

Im 44 and played my fair share of wooden woods.  Still have my grandfathers I inherited.  

 

I heard Curtis Strange say the other day on PGA that the wood heads would sock up water and get super heavy.  So you had to be prepared for this.

 

Now add that the US Open used to be 36h on the final Sunday as a fitness test.  

 

Back then water was for sissies so you have these guys dying, wearing heavy cotton, woods soaked with water, butter knives and a ball that never flies straight in 95* trying to survive!!  

[JungleJimbo]

 

 

 

[stephenj2891]

4 hours ago, rukahs said:

I am 56 yrsold grew up playing hogan blades learn how to become a self taught scratch golfer hitting irons like that the clubs are so much easier to hit now.

 

 

Playing the game back then really was torture.... the guys these day's don't know how good they've got it (inc prize money)

 

[BIG STU]

4 hours ago, Ben Berube said:

Great info and details Big Stu!

 

Im 44 and played my fair share of wooden woods.  Still have my grandfathers I inherited.  

 

I heard Curtis Strange say the other day on PGA that the wood heads would sock up water and get super heavy.  So you had to be prepared for this.

 

Now add that the US Opeorrect on the woods unlcn used to be 36h on the final Sundae etl 

sealed

Back then water was for sissies so you have these guys dying, wearing heavy cotton, woods soaked with water, butter knives and a ball that never flies straight in 95* trying to survive!!  

He is correct on the woods. You had to keep them sealed with shellac or Linseed oil to repel water

[John_Sing]

Regarding the above comment about the Hogan "Speed Slot" in the woods, here is a 1963 advertisement from the AMF/Ben Hogan Company, that I downloaded from somewhere (I don't remember where) off the internet.  Enjoy!

Great to see all these classic Hogan clubs.  I am one of those "Classic and Vintage Golfers" who loves the old classic Hogan clubs, and plays with them for practice purposes and for regular rounds.    Bouncing a golf ball off these old blades (i.e.  Michael Lavery "Whole Brain Power" bouncing a ball off the face of a golf club) really tells you how small (and how sweet!) the sweet spot is on both the old blades and the old persimmons. 

 

But when you bounce the ball, or strike the ball, on the sweet spot.... 🙂  It's like Hogan said, "A well hit golf shot is a feeling that goes up the shaft, right through your hands and into your heart " .
 

[chip75]

2 hours ago, John_Sing said:

Regarding the above comment about the Hogan "Speed Slot" in the woods, here is a 1963 advertisement from the AMF/Ben Hogan Company, that I downloaded from somewhere (I don't remember where) off the internet.  

 

I'd imagine it was a side effect of automotive wind tunnels that were getting popular in the '60s. I'm sure there are gains when you ramp up the speed but they're miniscule when folks swing at 90mph! But if you want to feel the opposite (blobs on sticks are pretty aerodynamic generally speaking), take a large square of cardboard and tape it to your driver face, now give that beauty a swing to feel the drag!

[JungleJimbo]

 

 

 

[JungleJimbo]

https://www.golfwrx.com/714658/spotted-ben-hogans-prototype-clubs-at-the-charles-schwab-challenge/

 

@atursky's article Linked above = has a few more Hogan photos that weren't in this Forum post

e.g. this "proto-hybrid"

 

[elwhippy]

Courses must have been much drier back then. No way could you play a modern, better irrigated, course with such sharp leading edges and narrow soles. Love the black persimmon woods with the red inserts. 

[BIG STU]

1 hour ago, elwhippy said:

Courses must have been much drier back then. No way could you play a modern, better irrigated, course with such sharp leading edges and narrow soles. Love the black persimmon woods with the red inserts. 

Exactly--- Most muni and public courses back in the day did not have fairway irrigation. I know growing up in Piedmont NC the clay based fairways in the summer were as hard as concrete but you could hit down and through a ball with sharp leading edge low bounce blades. You also had to have some swing speed to do that too. 

[John_Sing]

Published May 8th, 2023, by the Fort Worth (TX) Magazine:
 

https://fwtx.com/culture/people/ben-hogan-portrait-of-a-golf-legend/

 

An excellent synopsis of the life of Ben Hogan, especially off the golf course.  The man behind the innovation on display above. 🙂

 

 

Edited May 25, 2023 by John_Sing

[mogc60]

Go look at the photo of Hogans famous 1 iron into 18 at Merion to win the US Open. That’s the fairway of the open. That would be called rough on tour today. Fairways weren’t manicured like greens back then, they were long and the sharper blades got into the turf better. As agronomy improved the need for better sole designs was born 

[golferdude54]

I absolutely love the combination of Tom Stewart/Bobby Jones' flat back design with Hogan's blade-on-blade design.

[MrFlipper]

I see a 71 bounce sole in the left hand bag.

 

Some of the comments here crack me up. It wasn't that long ago. Those clubs are still playable. The 62 power thrust is a classic too.

 

My regular set is the 71 bounce soles lol. I guess I'm a geezer and not ready yet to admit it.