Gear: Ben Hogan Icon irons
Price: $770 (chrome) for seven clubs (4-PW), $800 (black)
Specs: Forged irons with a progressive center of gravity and V-sole design
Available: Pre-orders for chrome clubs are being taken now. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, orders for Black clubs will be available soon.
The new Hogan Icon irons are for accomplished golfers who want to curve and turn the ball in different directions and control its flight, not for golfers who struggle to repeat their swing or who need extra forgiveness. Instead, Hogan makes Edge irons for mid- and higher-handicap players.
In the Icon’s address position, golfers will see virtually no offset, a short blade length and a thin topline. The lofts are very traditional, with the 5-iron being 26 degrees and the pitching wedge at 46 degrees.
What golfers won’t see is a weight pad on the back of the heads that the company calls a Progressive Center of Mass system. The long irons have more mass positioned low in the heads, which pulls the center of gravity down and encourages higher-launching shots. The center of gravity rises progressively through the mid-irons and peaks in the short irons. The benefit is good players should be able to flight their approach shots down with their scoring clubs for enhanced distance and trajectory control.
To help the clubs work through the turf more efficiently, the Icon irons have a V-sole that lifts the leading edge. By designing more bounce into the sole, the Icon irons should be less apt to dig and slow down through the impact zone.