Ben Hogan Precision Milled Putters

[JB]

Right now on Insta, we are giving this one away at THPGolf

 

[JB]

Last day to enter the contest mentioned in the above post. Closes today and winner announced tomorrow.

 

[jbuck31]

Got another round in with this beauty and the confidence continues to grow.
I'm playing the BHB02 and it fits very well with my SBST stroke. The putter is 33.5" in length with a Superstroke Mid slim 2.0 grip. The black DBM finish on the head along with the single alignment line on the top really set up nicely for my eye and help me keep the putteface square up to my line. The greens I played were not quite as fast as the ones at the Hogan event, but they were double cut and rolled due to a tournament that had just completed so they rand quick and very true. The balance of the head and the feel of the ball coming off the face allowed me to stay confident and aggressive on longer putts. When struck on the sweet spot, there is a nice firm feel of the ball coming off the club. If I was off just a bit, the feel was not harsh, but noticeable that it was not on the sweet spot.
My typical miss is a pull (left) with the putter, this round I did not have any pull misses. Concentrated on SBST and releasing the head past my hands. (Thanks @JDax for the tip) as it was one of my better putting days in a while.
I look forward to getting back out and getting this in play. Right now, this club is very safe in the bag.

 

[Qwkz51]

Had a solid day with the BHM01, really figuring out speed control with it. I'm not blowing them by the hole. Most are putting the brakes on 1-2' around the hole. I nearly drained a 40' putt today for bird. Perfect speed, about 4" outside the cup. Probably my favorite club in the entire Hogan lineup.

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[Thrillbilly Jim]

I chose the Ben Hogan BHM01 mallet putter to complete my bag at the Ben Hogan Experience. I chose the mallet-style putter because I have a very straight back and through putting stroke. I also played a very traditional, non forgiving, bent metal on a stick putter...the Wilson 8802 non-milled, since I was 14 years old. I wanted a putter that was easy to align and provided some help with off-centered hits. In preparation for the Ben Hogan Experience, I purchased a Cleveland Huntington Beach Soft #12 mallet putter to finish my other bag. The BHM01 has a single bend shaft with 0.185" offset, a head weight of 370g, 2 degrees of loft, 70 degree lie angle, and is face balanced. The HBS #12 has a single bend shaft with full shaft offset, 370g head, 3 degrees of loft, 70 degree lie angle, and is also face balanced.
I also chose the Super Stroke Flatso 1.0 Traxion grip. I play a midsize grip plus a wrap on my other clubs, but I do not like a large putter grip. I feel like I lose the feel and consistency of the putt with a larger grip. My Cleveland came stock with an oversized 1.25 flat putter grip which I will be changing over to the same SS Flatso. I have the grip, just haven't changed it yet. Also, my BHM01 is playing at 35.5" long. I feel like when I play a 34-35" putter, I am crouched over and my putting stroke suffers. I am hoping the longer putter shaft will keep me more upright and help the stroke be more consistent.
Initial thoughts- Very impressed with this BHM01 putter! The milling on the face seems to be of a better machining process than that of my Cleveland...smoother and more precise. I liken it to if you have ever machined a brake rotor or piece of metal. The Ben Hogan milling seems to be done at a lower speed to produce a nice pattern like slow cutting a brake rotor. The Cleveland milling changes from heel to center to toe...with the center being rough/aggressive. Like when you fast cut a brake rotor. I like the black DBM finish of the Hogan. It provides a really nice contrast to the ball. The finish seems to be of a good quality...the same as on the black Ft. Worths and Equalizer wedges. With the finish first being offered on the bladed irons back last August/September, the reviews of it have been extremely positive and I have no doubt that will be the case with the putters as well. I find the BHM01 to be extremely easy to align. Even more than the Cleveland, that has more alignment aids. The Cleveland starts to get a little busy when aligning it. I use one long sharpie line on the side of my ball, that with the mallet alignment aid, turns into a really long, very straight putting path. You can tell very quickly if your putter is open/closed at address. Even though both putters have the same head weight, I find the BH putter to "feel" heavier. This could be a mental thing...might be the slightly longer shaft? The BHM01 does roll the ball further with the same length stroke than the Cleveland. Initial roll with this putter is pure and very repetitious. I like the head cover...the colors and patterns blends in nicely with the other Ben Hogan offerings.
Downfalls of this putter are...I would like the alignment line to carry onto the top of the mallet blade. It is definitely a "mid-mallet" putter. I wouldn't mind it being a little larger. The putter cover would be better with a magnet and not velcro. I am still not sold on the $250 price. It is hard to ask someone to fork over that much money on a product they can't try. Plus, that $250 puts it in the Stroke Lab category. I am a huge Ben Hogan mark! Me and Sox_fan might be neck and neck...and if I was looking to purchase a new putter in that price range...I would go Stroke Lab every day of the week and twice on Sunday. On the flip side of that...my Cleveland HB Soft was $130. A huge bargain actually. I know all these putters are manufactured differently and have different materials and construction processes. If this putter was $200, it would be a no brainer! I just do not think the average consumer would chose the Ben Hogan offerings over the bigger OEMs at the same price point. But, if you are in the market for a high quality, fully cnc machined putter this should be on your radar.
I will get out this week to do some head to head comparison testing between the Ben Hogan and Cleveland putters and post my results.

 

[Thrillbilly Jim]

Continued...

 

[annsguy]

Love the putter cover but this is the one category where I have to feel it. Also I dont see the value proposition with the putters like I do the rest of the brand. They seem high. But I am cheap.

 

[Thrillbilly Jim]

Love the putter cover but this is the one category where I have to feel it. Also I dont see the value proposition with the putters like I do the rest of the brand. They seem high. But I am cheap.

The price is a conversation piece for many of the Ben Hogan Experience participants. When you compare it to other fully Cnc machined putters the $250 is a bargain for what you are getting. If you compare it to insert or cast putters, it's extravagant! It's hard to get someone to drop that kind of cash, on something as personal as a putter, sight unseen. To the testament of Ben Hogan Golf, the more putters they give away and get into the hands of the public, the more people become brand aware. And, I haven't heard many negatives about these putters overall. Quality, performance, price...3 aspects of the whole BH line up.

 

[Qwkz51]

The price is a conversation piece for many of the Ben Hogan Experience participants. When you compare it to other fully Cnc machined putters the $250 is a bargain for what you are getting. If you compare it to insert or cast putters, it's extravagant! It's hard to get someone to drop that kind of cash, on something as personal as a putter, sight unseen. To the testament of Ben Hogan Golf, the more putters they give away and get into the hands of the public, the more people become brand aware. And, I haven't heard many negatives about these putters overall. Quality, performance, price...3 aspects of the whole BH line up.

Exactly what I was coming in to say. You have to compare apples to apples. Comparing it to a cast head putter with a polymer insert isn't doing either justice. There are plenty of examples of those putters, they have their fans. So do Scotty and Bertinardi for good reason. You have to compare the process to compare the prices. You could get a poop emoji putter that works well for you too. It's all in what you like. I like Scotty putters, this for the money is on par with Cameron putters for a couple hundred less. What hurts these putters are: they aren't a known commodity(they don't have a reputation to sell themselves) and they aren't in every box store in America.

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[DataDude]

Glad to see a couple of others having success with the BHB02. IMO if you are a strait back strait through putter this is a great putter for you. The other milled options for a putter like this are $400 and up. Scotty Cameron hasn't even made a putter this face balanced in 2 or 3 years. Swag made a limited edition one last year in a run of 400, you can buy it on eBay for $900. We are not talking about your cast ping or Oddyssey putter quality here this is a really nice putter made with a high quality finish. They are a fantastic value IMO and the BHB02 has helped me make a lot of putts.

 

[Qwkz51]

I had 5 putts outside 8' today that due to a positive alignment mark and a club that is easy to swing just dropped in. I don't know if it's a new found philosophy on putting that I wasn't trying to find or a putter that just feels that good that it plays true. The feel off the face is soft but it has a nice click to let you know when you've hit it correctly. This might be the putter that never leaves my bag, I'm very high on it so far!

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[LLIB]

I still love the feel and look of this putter. It sets up perfectly for me and works for my SBST stroke. The ball rolls true and I don’t have any problems starting it on my line.

I’m still struggling with the BHB02 on anything over 10’. Inside that it’s pretty much money. And I do pretty well on lag putts over 20’. It’s the makeable 10’-20’ that I’m having a hard time with. I just can’t seem to get them to the hole. I think it’s a little lighter than I prefer. I’m gonna give it a few more rounds to see if I can adjust. If not I’ll add some lead tape to bring the weight up.

 

[OhioGolfer]

Today was the day I've been waiting for with the putter. I have been rolling a lot of great putts lately but couldn't get much to fall. It all came together and I made 6 putts outside of 8 feet in route to my best score of the year. Had zero 3 putts and a lot of 1 putts from getting up and down as well as 2 birdies. Now that I have got used to the super stroke grip I don't think I could play without one, funny because I thought it would be the one thing I would hate the most.

 

[Qwkz51]

Echoing @Ohiogolfer but the BHM01 was excellent today. I normally sit somewhere between 36-40 putts per 18. Today I had 3-4 putts outside 10 feet that I rolled in and didn't miss any inside 5' until #18 to give me 34 putts on the day. While not exactly a PGA worthy accomplishment, it's note worthy for me.

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[OhioGolfer]

Today was another great day putting. Best shot of the entire day was a 20 plus foot putt I made off of the fringe for birdie on my 5th hole. I also made a 12-15 foot par save (First video) and a 10-12 foot birdie putt (2nd video). Starting to really gain confidence in this putter and it's translating to some good scores.

 

[Thrillbilly Jim]

Copying OG here... 12 foot birdie putt on 18.

 

[LLIB]

I’m struggling to get used to the lighter weight of the BHB02 on our sluggish greens. I had a really good round yesterday that could’ve been special but I left numerous par and birdie putts short. I’m going to try adding some lead tape to get the weight up because I really, really like this putter. The look and feel are perfect. It rolls the ball really well and I don’t want to give up on it. Hopefully I can get it sorted out because it’s the one club that’s really holding me back right now

 

[OhioGolfer]

I’m struggling to get used to the lighter weight of the BHB02 on our sluggish greens. I had a really good round yesterday that could’ve been special but I left numerous par and birdie putts short. I’m going to try adding some lead tape to get the weight up because I really, really like this putter. The look and feel are perfect. It rolls the ball really well and I don’t want to give up on it. Hopefully I can get it sorted out because it’s the one club that’s really holding me back right now

I think you can get it right man. The feel on the face is incredible, and if you get the weighting right you will be set.

 

[LLIB]

I think you can get it right man. The feel on the face is incredible, and if you get the weighting right you will be set.

I know, it’s a great putter. I’m not giving up, it’s just gonna take some trial and error

 

[Sox_Fan]

I rolled a lot of putts on my indoor greens yesterday with the BHB03. One thing that really stuck out to me was the awesome end over end roll this putter produces. I have gamed many high end and much more expensive putters and I don't recall any of them putting a better roll on the ball than this putter. The feel / sound is still quite addictive to me as well.

 

[Awstyn]

I rolled a lot of putts on my indoor greens yesterday with the BHB03. One thing that really stuck out to me was the awesome end over end roll this putter produces. I have gamed many high end and much more expensive putters and I don't recall any of them putting a better roll on the ball than this putter. The feel / sound is still quite addictive to me as well.

Still following this thread.

Trying to describe the feeling on contact of the BHB03 was/is hard for me. The best word I can come up with is "depth." Sound, vibration, heck I don't know. Hard, Soft, Clicky, Muted... none of that stood out to me. The feelings of contact just seemed to stick with me a bit longer (and perhaps all mental imagination), but that gave me confidence with my distance control.

My current gamer rolls the ball well, I don't feel like I gained much on that. The standard loft is a little lower with Ben Hogan's Milled. I play on some shag, and some fast greens, so that changes. Did great on carpet though.

 

[LLIB]

Played a couple rounds over the past few days and I think I’ve got it figured out. I made a grip change and I’m not leaving mid range putts short anymore. Actually at first I was blowing them by the hole. Once I got used to actually getting the ball to the hole I started putting pretty well. So I guess for now I have two grips, one for fast greens and one for slow greens.

 

[OhioGolfer]

Played a couple rounds over the past few days and I think I’ve got it figured out. I made a grip change and I’m not leaving mid range putts short anymore. Actually at first I was blowing them by the hole. Once I got used to actually getting the ball to the hole I started putting pretty well. So I guess for now I have two grips, one for fast greens and one for slow greens.

That's what I like to hear man, hope it continues for you.

 

[Thrillbilly Jim]

After trying the BHM01 putter today...@Johan185 texted me asking the specs on my putter so he could order his tonight! That's how legit these putters are!

 

[jbuck31]

Played a couple rounds over the past few days and I think I’ve got it figured out. I made a grip change and I’m not leaving mid range putts short anymore. Actually at first I was blowing them by the hole. Once I got used to actually getting the ball to the hole I started putting pretty well. So I guess for now I have two grips, one for fast greens and one for slow greens.

That’s great news, glad you figured it out and can continue to enjoy the putter


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