My old set worked well, but had a tendency to dig and cut some impressive divots. I had no problems with turf interaction, especially on the shorter irons. The new sole design is much easier to play than the older knife-like soles. I also chip a fair bit with a eight or seven, and the new heads are great for that. No problems chipping with any of them, no real surprises, maybe a bit more spin than I’m used to, especially on the 61. The 61 worked well from firm sand and moderate sand. The 57 has a touch more bounce that the 61, so it should work better from soft sand, but we don’t have much soft sand at the moment. I have not spent enough time with the 53 and 57 for anything past approaches, where they work well, but getting down distances with this array of wedges will take some time. The 49 is great for chipping and the 61 is great for flippy stuff around the greens.
The grips on the wedges, which are a bit longer than usual, are handy, especially when chipping and on soft little shots. The spin on short shots is impressive I’ve had a bunch of little 40 yard pitches stop right where they hit. The 61 is capable of hitting some of the softest flop shots I’ve ever hit from some really nasty, tight lies. The soles work well and get out of the way when you need to open it up.
It’s really nice having a set seamlessly matches the rest of the set and produces nice consistent distance gaps. I’ve always that the PW was the worst looking club in the Apex set and never really fit with the rest, but in the new Hogans it fits right in and looks great. The short irons look really good, much better than my old Hogans, especially the old E and PW. The satin finish is really nice, the feel and balance are fantastic. They’re very much like my old ’94 Apex, maybe a bit softer in the lines. The mid irons and the TK15 wedges are just beautiful. It held it’s line beautifully and still had a lot of spin, enough to stick on the green. One instance that sticks in my mind was a 180 yard 29-degree, uphill, mishit off the toe. I’ve missed a few off the toe and I’m still getting good height and spin and only losing about five yards off a well struck shot. They’re also pretty darn forgiving, given the head shape. They cut through the rough beautifully and set up nicely. Some might find it disconcerting to see a small head in a long iron, but I quite like it. I noticed it the most chipping and pitching.
It’s solid, with great feedback on misses.
#HOW MUCH IS A SET OF HOGAN IRONS PLUS#
The heads are a bit softer in look than my old Apex Plus irons, and a smidgen smaller, especially in the long irons. The overall feel is a bit more clicky than any of the old irons. I started out with a bang, with an eagle on the first hole I played, hitting the green with a 195 yard 29-degree (six iron?). I’ve been playing with the new irons for about two weeks now, and I think they’ve really got something. I was pretty excited when I heard someone had bought the name and was going to try to bring back the iron set. They just looked like Callaway irons with the Apex name on them. I was never excited about the “Hogans” that Callaway came out with. They don’t surprise me, which ends up being a great thing. It may just be what I’m used to, but I’ve always loved how they feel, how they look, and how they play. The two things I’ve always loved about the Hogans: the feel and the look.
#HOW MUCH IS A SET OF HOGAN IRONS DRIVER#
I’m a 5 handicap, driver swing speed is around 105mph, smooth transition, favor a pretty straight ball. I reshafted them about 8 years ago with Black Golds, a shaft since discontinued by True Temper, but otherwise they’re pretty much stock. I fell out of golf for a bit, but then picked up the 1999 Apex Plus cavity backs and I’ve had them since. My first set was the original Edge, then the Edge GS, then the ’94 Apex. I’ve been playing Hogan irons since I started playing golf in 1989. We tracked down a long-time Ben Hogan iron enthusiast and asked him to offer his take on how irons created by the latest incarnation of the Hogan brand compare to the timeless classics so many of you love.Īs fortuitous coincidence would have it, his name is Ben. Last week we shared our review of the Ben Hogan FORT WORTH 15.