When Hogan decided to cut back on his playing schedule and open up his Fort Worth equipment company in 1953, he noted in a letter to pro shops that he had what he believed were the "finest golf clubs ever made." Just saying those words to an equipment enthusiast usually elicits a feeling of nostalgia for the forged irons that were a staple of the company for more than 50 years.
"These clubs shall be as near perfect as modern day tools and instruments can perform." - Ben Hogan
Since then, the Ben Hogan line has been dormant, fading into memory even as Hogan's legacy itself endures.
Eleven years later, the last shipment of golf clubs with the Ben Hogan name were produced, a victim of business shortcomings more than club quality. "I'm a Hogan disciple," Koehler unabashedly declares. It was the thrill of a lifetime and also the most intimidating. For a three-year period in the 1990s, Koehler actually worked for the legend as the marketing director for the Ben Hogan Company. He is a walking Hogan encyclopedia.īut his association with Hogan is more than just mere fan. Open? The number of 5s Hogan had on his scorecard at the 1950 Greenbrier Pro-Am? The number of consecutive greens Hogan hit during the 1960 U.S. While discussing Hogan's career, he can rattle off stats and records, even the most obscure ones. In his office, Koehler has a variety of Hogan mementoes. That reverance and respect for Hogan continues to this day. His very first set of clubs were cut-down Hogan 5- and 9-irons.
The textbooks of his youth were Hogan's "Power Golf" and "Five Lessons," two of the sport's seminal instructional books. Terry Koehler is a fourth-generation Texan and loves golf, so it's no surprise that he grew up idolizing Ben Hogan.
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