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Ben Hogan GS53 Max Driver Review

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SuperStroke
Got some more on course swings with this guy today.

caught a few early out on the toe, one was on a tee box near the driving range and several people turned and looked, ha. it's loud out there. both the toe shots led to pretty big hooks which is not something I had really seen before.

The rest of the drives were the same as I had been seeing dead straight to a little fade. Dancing around the center the sound is so much better and the shots are Soooo playable.
 
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I'll have some more thoughts coming this week. I now have an original GS53 head as well and have had a chance to compare them at the range. I thought it was interesting that the Max has a lighter head than the original. They weighed 193g vs 199g respectively, without adapter.
 
41 and windy but just arrived at the range for a showdown. Original vs. Max heads and a new shaft is in the mix.

Going to experiment with something softer but heavier to see if it helps with tempo. I put a Hogan tip on a PX Evenflow black 5.5 75g and tipped it half an inch. It plays at 44.75" D5 in the Original head.
 
Max on the right. A bit of carbon is visible where the original is all titanium. You can see some differences in shaping but it's not drastic.
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It was an interesting comparison today. They're are things I like and dislike about both heads.

The original GS53 sounds fantastic but I just can't elevate it enough. While I did hit some really nice ones they were a very flat penetrating trajectory. I played my last round with this head and saw the same on the course. If you want low spin bullets that run then this can work. Hard to say on forgiveness but I had some bad ones that were way worse than anything I hit with my M2. I think it's more of a low spin issue.

Overall I hit the Max better and found a nice groove at one point with the Evenflow shaft. This head launches way easier. The biggest problem is the sound. It's just too loud and a sound I don't care for. I'd be curious how a lithe hot melt changes that.
 
Put some atrocious swing on this guy today. Many of them ended up in the fairway or really close. 🤯 distance was hurt a bit but the forgiveness mixed with low spin on good hits is crazy.
 
I've had a wandering eye with driver release season. The gs53 max put those to bed today. :LOL:
 
Got a chance to hit the GS53 on the simulator the other day and matched a few of the thoughts I had in the few rounds I was able to play with it before the season ended. For comparison’s sake, here are my drivers:

1. GS53 Max with Project X Black Smoke 6.0, 45” shaft
2. Cleveland HB Launcher with Graphite Design ADBB-6, 44” shaft
3. Taylormade M5 Tour with Project X HZRDUS Yellow 6.0, 45” shaft

The GS53 Max fits perfectly in-between the HB Launcher and the M5 tour in terms of trajectory and forgiveness. Like the M5, the GS53 has a more penetrating flight, though that could be due to the similar shafts by Project X. The HB with the BB-6 shaft feels like it peaks twice as high as the GS53/M5, and continues to be the most forgiving driver in my arsenal. The GS53 is close enough to the HB to be in the conversation (M5 doesn’t apply) and has 2 great things going for it: feel and distance. I’m getting the same amount of distance with the GS53 (~270 yards total averages) as the m5 (~270) and a bit more than the HB (~260).

The GS53 looks and feels the best of the 3, and I’m pumped every time I get a chance to pull it out on the course. It’s got classic looks that just about anyone should get along with: classic black carbon composite top with a small BH logo to align the ball and a matching black (titanium) face that is clean and tall. Sound is great to me (remember, I’m coming from the Cleveland HB Launcher) and the ball shoots off of the face like a rocket. Hard to tell on a simulator, but in my rounds I remember the driver having a more “solid” feel to it than many drivers I’ve tested that have a sort of trampoline-like feel to them. I wouldn’t say either feeling is better or worse, but the GS53 firmly sits in the “solid” category regardless of where you hit it on the face.

In all, I can’t wait to spend more time with this one when the season rolls around again in 2022. It does a lot of things very well and I can say confidently that there are pretty much zero drivers on the market at this price that can compete with what you get in the GS53 Max. I’m curious about some of the other shafts available for this one and would recommend using the BH trial program to see which works best for you, if interested. I would have loved to have tried this head on the UST Helium Ben Hogan has available on their website.
 
Stock shot is just this flat, low spin piercing 15 yard fade. super playable, with one way miss which has not been a thing in a driver for me like ever.

haven't even played with the flight control. but think I might try to turn it to 9.5* (0.5* up) which will close the face 1* as well.

don't want to create a 2-way miss but curious what that does as a competitor has entered the arena for this year.
 
I still have a love/hate relationship with this driver. Center contact absolutely goes but I still believe the original GS53 is better for me with off-center contact. We have been basically playing in mud for the past week and a half so have used this driver with the Autoflex shaft to get launch and height up.
 
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Welcome back to the bag.

7/8 fairways.
Only miss was going 10 feet over a green on a par 4. 😳

Also going to need @DannyLe to keep the 6F5 helium around.
 
hit longest drives of the year on 3 holes at home course yesterday. :LOL:
7/11 fairways. (and 2 of those were less than 3 or 4 feet off.)

I was dumb for trying to replace you, I am sorry. :love:
 
Just ordered the GS53 Max from eBay and it’s in great shape but… the crown is all black and not see through to the carbon fiber weave. All other aspects of it are the GS53 Max. Anyone know why this is? Thanks
 
Matt said:
Just ordered the GS53 Max from eBay and it’s in great shape but… the crown is all black and not see through to the carbon fiber weave. All other aspects of it are the GS53 Max. Anyone know why this is? Thanks
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Are you sure you ordered the Max and not original?
 

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That looks like someone painted the crown?
 
huh, :unsure:

was going to say it looked like someone painted it themselves, but the starburst is on there too. I'm stumped.

I'd probably lightly sand away at the crown.
 
It does look like a tape job done on here doesn’t it? And it goes all over the crown
 

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mattgolfer406 said:
It does look like a tape job done on here doesn’t it? And it goes all over the crown
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It looks as if it is vinyl wrapped. What made you buy it?
 
JB said:
That looks like someone painted the crown?
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That was my thought also when I looked at the picture of the crown.
 
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