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Ben Hogan GS53: Value and performance in new metal woods

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The Ben Hogan Golf Company has made huge strides with its direct-to-consumer model, starting with its irons, moving to wedges, and then putters. The next product coming from Hogan to offer golfers value and performance are the Ben Hogan GS53 metal woods, named after the year 1953 when the man himself won the Masters, U.S. Open, and Open Championship.

Ben Hogan GS53 driver and woods

The new line is lead by the GS53 driver with Flight Control technology. Offered in both 9 and 10.5-degree models, the Flight Control hosel allows golfers to change the loft of the driver a total of two degrees from stated loft (one degree up, one degree down).  The hosel also allows golfers to change the lie angle and face angle from square to open or closed.  Like with all modern adjustable drivers, these switches can be made quickly and easily using a torque wrench, but what separates the GS53 from many drivers is the shaft (and grip) doesn’t change position, meaning you can tinker with your settings to your hearts content and you never have to worry about your grip changing position.

When it comes to getting into the details of the construction, I’m going to let the engineers at Hogan take it for a minute

“The GS53 utilized a design feature called Face Flex.  This allowed them to create an ultra-thin face at different thicknesses … from toe to heel and sole to crown to increase the size of the Effective Hitting Area (EHA) across the entire face.  Face Flex ensures maximum distance on shots struck in the center of the club face and minimizes distance loss on off-center hits.  Additionally, the score lines are precision milled into the forged face at exact and consistent depths and, combined with bulge and roll that is precisely engineered for the specific geometry of the face, provide exceptional accuracy.”

Speaking to the GS53 fairway woods, they are being offered in three loft options: 3-wood (14 degrees), 4-wood (17 degrees), and 5-wood ( 18 degrees). The head shapes are traditional pear-shaped and all feature a shallow face design to make shots from the fairway as easy as shots from the tee. Like the GS53 driver, the fairway woods utilize two-piece construction — a stainless steel body joined to a C455 maraging steel forged faceplate This multi-material design helps designers precisely position weight to maximize MOI and push ball speed to the limit. The lofts on the fairway woods are specific and there are no adjustable hosels.

Initially being offered in right hand only, the GS53 driver is priced at $300, while the fairway woods are $200 — these are attractive prices thanks to Hogan’s direct-to-consumer model that also include three premium aftermarket shafts, in multiple flexes and weights

  • Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black (low trajectory)
  • Tensei CK Blue (mid trajectory)
  • UST Mamiya Helium (high trajectory)

Recognizing that many golfers want to personally experience equipment before they purchase, the company offers a simple, risk-free demo program. For more information or to purchase the GS53 driver or fairway woods visit www.benhogangolf.com

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Ryan Barath is a club-fitter & master club builder with more than 17 years of experience working with golfers of all skill levels, including PGA Tour players. He is the former Build Shop Manager & Social Media Coordinator for Modern Golf. He now works independently from his home shop and is a member of advisory panels to a select number of golf equipment manufacturers. You can find Ryan on Twitter and Instagram where he's always willing to chat golf, and share his passion for club building, course architecture and wedge grinding.

6 Comments

6 Comments

  1. Ld

    May 13, 2019 at 6:22 pm

    LOL
    it’s steel not titanium is why it’s cheaper
    Duh

    • Rascal

      May 14, 2019 at 1:27 am

      That keyboard is such a liability for you.

    • GB

      May 14, 2019 at 8:40 am

      The driver has a titanium body. As far as the fairways go like most on the market the body is made of steel.They have a video on their site that talks about the construction.

  2. golfraven

    May 13, 2019 at 4:31 pm

    Well done Hogan for those wonderful woods. Played my last Hogan driver a decade ago and enjoyed it. Great looks and price. Hope those will be on Ebay in 1-2 years then I may give it a try.

  3. Eric

    May 13, 2019 at 11:40 am

    Look the looks of the new Hogan’s. I used to play the last incarnation of Hogan Driver and love the looks of the new one. Hope it sells well.

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Equipment

Rickie Fowler’s new putter: Standard-length Odyssey Jailbird 380 in custom orange

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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article. 

…The Jailbird craze hasn’t really slowed down in 2024, either. According to Odyssey rep Joe Toulon, there are about 18-20 Jailbird putter users on the PGA TOUR.

Most recently, Akshay Bhatia won the 2024 Valero Texas Open using a broomstick-style Odyssey Jailbird 380 putter and Webb Simpson is switching into a replica of that putter at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship.

Now, Fowler, who essentially started the whole Jailbird craze, is making a significant change to his putter setup.

Fowler, who has had a couple weeks off since the 2024 RBC Heritage, started experimenting with a new, custom-orange Jailbird 380 head that’s equipped with a standard 35-inch putter build, rather than his previous 38-inch counter-balanced setup.

According to Fowler, while he still likes the look and forgiveness of his Jailbird putter head, he’s looking to re-incorporate more feel into his hands during the putting stroke.

He told GolfWRX.com on Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Championship that the 38-inch counterbalanced setup “served its purpose” by helping him to neutralize his hands during the stroke, but now it’s time to try the standard-length putter with a standard-size SuperStroke Pistol Tour grip to help with his feel and speed control.

Although Fowler was also spotted testing standard-length mallets from L.A.B. Golf and Axis1 on Tuesday, he confirmed that the custom Odyssey Jailbird 380 is the putter he’ll use this week at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship.

Head over to PGATour.com for the full article. 

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Whats in the Bag

Akshay Bhatia WITB 2024 (May)

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Driver: Callaway Rogue ST Max LS (9 degrees @7.2, 2 grams lead tape heel, 4 grams toe)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X (44 7/8 inches, tipped 1 inch)

Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max D (9 degrees @7)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X

3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max (15 degrees @13.9)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 8 X (43 inches, tipped 1.5)

Hybrid: Callaway Apex UW Prototype (19 degrees @17.8)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 10 X

Irons: Callaway X Forged UT (21 degrees) Buy here, Callaway Apex TCB Raw (5-PW)
Shafts: KBS $-Taper 125 S+

Wedges: Callaway Jaws Raw (50-10S @49, 54-10S, 60-08C @61)
Shafts: KBS Hi-Rev 2.0 135 X

Putter: Odyssey Versa Jailbird 380
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Split

Grips: Iomic

Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour

More photos of Akshay Bhatia’s WITB in the forums.

 

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Whats in the Bag

Emiliano Grillo WITB 2024 (May)

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Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (9 degrees @10)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX

3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond (15 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Blue RDX 70 TX

5-wood: Cobra LTDx Prototype (18.5 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Blue RDX 70 TX

Irons: Callaway Apex TCB (4-9)
Shafts: Project X 6.5

Wedges: Callaway MD3 Milled (46-08S), Callaway Jaws Raw (50-10S, 54-10S, 60-08T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5
Grip: SuperStroke Zenergy Flatso 1.0

Grips: Golf Pride MCC

Check out more in-hand photos of Emiliano Grillo’s clubs here.

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