INTRODUCING: The Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon
Zach BlassComplications are where watch manufacturers display their technical prowess. Traditional functionalities such as perpetual calendars or rattrapante chronographs are, well, complicated to manufacture. But Hublot is anything but traditional, developing pioneering materials through their “art of fusion” philosophy as well as some out-of-the-box complications you will not find anywhere else. The Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf, previously introduced in green carbon as a limited edition, presented an interesting timepiece for golfers worldwide – giving those hitting the green a mechanical means of tracking the hole, number of shots and total score on the dial. This time around the watch is back, but with a different coloured case and strap in the form of the Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon. It’s a limited edition like its predecessor, so don’t hesitate too long if it tickles your fancy.
The watch is quite large, with a diameter of 45mm and thickness of 18.2mm, but odds are if you play golf religiously enough to want this hole, shot and score keeper on your wrist, you have the forearms to pull it off. Normally when I discuss a case finish you’ll find I describe things as either satinated or polished. Here, however, neither of the traditional finishes dominate its appearance. Instead we have predominantly matte-finished black accents, and some brushed black accents, that compliment the chequered-like texture of the carbon fibre and its orange texalium upper found on the majority of the case. On the left 8′ side of the 100 metre water-resistant case you have a reset pusher, and on the right, flanking each side of the crown, a shot pusher at 2′ and hole pusher at 4′. These intuitive pushers allow you to mechanically track your stats on the course with ease.
Its open-worked dial has a lot going on, but Hublot has designed the layout to be very legible. The matte black finish makes things very easy to read, and the “hole” and “shot” disc backgrounds are colour coded to match the pushers they coincide with – the hole count visible via black on white and shot count visible via black on yellow. There is no running seconds hand to the dial, in its centre you have strictly the hours and minutes. The luminescent tips of each hand point towards a matte black outer minutes track and applied hour indices, each of the indices also filled with SuperLuminova®. Because the discs are tied to the golf complications, you also will not find a calendar complication on the dial. Just the time and your golf score – all you really need while on the course.
Via Hublot’s interchangeable strap system, you can quickly swap between the two included straps at your leisure. Depending on your preference, you can either sport the Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon Limited Edition on its black rubber strap with carbon fiber texture décor and orange calf leather strap upper – secured by a black ceramic and black-plated titanium deployant buckle clasp – or an additional orange fabric strap with velcro and black-plated aluminium buckle.
Inside, powering the Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon and its complications, is the automatic MHUB1580 movement with a weekend-proof 72 hours of power reserve. Visible beneath the sapphire glass of its exhibition caseback, you can take in its future-forward industrial aesthetic – with its matte-finished bridges and a winding rotor brushed and chamfered for added flair.
Hublot Big Bang Unico Golf Orange Carbon price and availability:
Case Material | Carbon Fiber & Upper Layer Orange Texalium |
Diameter | 45mm |
Thickness | 18.2mm |
Water-Resistance | 100m |
Dial | Matte Black Skeleton |
Strap | Black Rubber with Carbon Fiber Texture Décor and Orange Calf Leather Strap. Black Ceramic and Black-plated Titanium Deployant Buckle Clasp. Additional Orange Fabric with Velcro Black-Plated Aluminium Buckle |
Movement | MHUB1580 |
Power Reserve | 72 hours |
Complications | Time, Date, Golf Hole, Shot, and Total indicators |
Price | $32,500 USD (Limited Edition 100 pcs.) |