Dave's Take: Yeti Hopper Flip 8 Cooler Review

[GolfSpy Dave]

Yeti Hopper Flip 8

http://yeti.com/hopper-flip-8-cooler

 

Yeti Triples The Flip

 

Back in May, I reviewed the first Yeti flip-top cooler, the Hopper Flip 12. I ran that cooler through Contents, Coldness, and Cart-ability trials.

 

The hopper Flip 12 was great at holding beers and keeping them cold, but the size was a little large for ideal golf course usage. That said, the Hopper Flip 12 was my go to summer poolside BBQ cooler this summer. I even bought a Yeti Sidekick for it to hold the keys, phone, and such, and it couldn't have worked out better.

 

Yeti has now added two new Hopper Flips to the line-up: A larger Hopper Flip 18, and a smaller Hopper Flip 8. The Hopper Flip 8 is the one whose golf potential caught my eye, and the one that I'm sharing my thoughts about with you today.

 

The Hopper Flip 12 was so close to being the ultimate course cooler. It was just a hair too large. My thinking was that the smaller Hopper Flip 8 could hit the perfect sweet spot, with a size of large enough to carry, but small enough to fit.

 

Yeti's Hopper Flip 8 Specs

 

One of the joys of a day trip is traveling light. The Hopper Flip in a new smaller size is perfect for keeping your food and drinks cold while out in the field. The Hopper Flip 8 has the insulation power only a YETI can offer, and is engineered to be tough – because flying solo doesn't mean you won't get a little dirty. The Hopper Flip 8 is your new day trip MVP.

• Cubed body makes it easy to haul and store
• HydroLokâ„¢ Zipper and wide-mouth opening means great accessibility and visibility to contents
• DRYHIDEâ„¢ SHELL - The Hopper's high-density fabric is waterproof and resistant to mildew, punctures, and UV rays. The liner is made from an FDA-approved food-grade material.
• COLDCELLâ„¢ INSULATION - Closed-cell rubber foam offers far superior cold-holding to ordinary soft coolers.
• Hitchpoint grid to attach accessories
• Double-stitched top handle
• MSRP: $199.99

 

The Hopper Flip 8 has the same Yeti bones as the Hopper Flip 12, and that's a good thing. Yeti is known for making coolers that can withstand punishment while keeping contents cold, or warm if you need it to go that way. Should something go south with your Yeti, they also have one of the best warranty reputations in the business.

 

 

While similar to the Hopper Flip 12, the Hopper Flip 8 does have one fantastic new feature: The Top Handle. Sure, we lose a bit of the flat top surface area, and the Yeti logo, but I welcome the new handle with nothing but enthusiasm. As I said, I used the Hopper Flip 12 quite a bit this summer, and the lack of top handle was a bit inconvenient. Sure, you can just lift the cooler from the shoulder strap or side handle, but as soon as I picked up the Hopper Flip 8 from the top handle, I knew that Yeti made a great decision by adding it. It's so much easier to carry, and it gives you another place to anchor the cooler to things, like a kayak, or a push cart.

 

How Cool is the Yeti Hopper Flip 8

 

Like I did with the Hopper Flip 12, my goal is to see if the Hopper Flip 8 is the go to cooler for the golfer looking to take libations and liquids to the course. Once again, I'm going to focus on three areas: Contents, Coldness, and Cart-ability

 

Contents: Yeti Hopper Flip 8

 

Simply put, Contents is all about what the cooler can carry. There is a fine line here that a cooler must walk along to be ideal for golf. Too large and its bulk decreases its ability for it to fit into the cart, and thus lowers its Evade the Marshall sub-score. Hold too little, and why bring it in the first place?

 

As you probably picked up from the name, the Hopper Flip 8 holds eight beverages, more specifically, canned beverages. The Hopper Flip 8 will swallow eight standard, or tall cans and still retain enough room for ice. Drop the load down to a six-pack, and you can even fit a sandwich and snacks in there.

 

 

Bottles are another story. As you can see from the photo, the lid will not close when filled with bottles, however, if laid on their side, bottles will fit, just not eight of them. If you go the bottle route, it becomes a Yeti Hopper Flip 4-6 depending upon brand. I try not to bring glass to the golf course anyway, so this is not a huge capacity knock for me, but YMMV.

 

 

I have been known to slip a 22oz bomber into my coolers though, and I was pleasantly surprised that one will actually fit in the Hopper Flip 8. The neck will rest above the side insulation, but the lid will zip closed with no issue. In this configuration, it becomes the Yeti Hopper Flip 8+1 (cans and a bomber).

 

Coldness: Yeti Hopper Flip 8

 

The Hopper Flip 8 features the characteristic Yeti construction materials found in the rest of the Hopper line. The Dryhide shell fights off the elements, the Coldcell Insulation keeps everything cold, and the Hydrolok zipper seals the cooler frog-butt tight.

 

That zipper is also airtight by the way. Should you drive the cart into the water hazard, your golf bag will sink, but the Yeti will float, allowing you to retrieve beverages to enjoy while you contemplate how you got to this place in life...

 

This time around, I didn't run a how fast did ice melt experiment to check for coldness. If I'm taking this to the course, I need 4-5 hour results, and not 48-hour statistics. Every time I took it to the course, there was still ice in the cooler at the end of the round. Obviously any beverages still in the cooler at that point would be cold too. For reference, round temperatures ranged somewhere between 85 and 105 °F. Viva Summer!

 

Coldness Bonus: Yeti Ice

 

While I did always have regular ice in the Hopper Flip 8, I also had a two pound block of Yeti Ice in there. Yeti Ice actually took me a bit by surprise. Like you, I've used reusable “blue ice” packs before. Cheap ones from the grocery store have always seemed to work fine, but I think that the Yeti Ice works better because of... SCIENCE!

 

 

You see, the Yeti Ice has a freezing point below that of water, so when the normal ice starts to melt, the Yeti Ice will actually be able to refreeze the water. If you leave a frozen block of Yeti Ice on the counter, it will even collect moisture from the air and pretty quickly become covered in icy frost. You can see that a little in the group photo on the two-pound block (the other two were not frozen).

 

 

As a bonus, the Yeti Ice also fits perfectly into the Yeti coolers. The two-pounder sits nicely atop the cans in the Hopper Flip 8, and the four-pound Yeti Ice does the same in the Flip 12.

 

Cart-ability: Yeti Hopper Flip 8

 

This is probably the category where I had the greatest expectations for the Hopper Flip 8. A profile just a bit smaller than the Hopper Flip 12 suggested that it should fit perfectly in the rear basket of a power cart.

 

And you know what? It does!

 

 

The Yeti Hopper 8 just snuggles right into that basket, and it even leaves some room for your other junk in there as well. The profile is low enough that you don't even really see it in the basket at all from a distance. Toss a jacket over it and you are in full cooler-stealth mode.

 

Attaching this one to the push cart was easy. I just shortened the shoulder strap all the way, looped the strap over the cart console, and then lashed the top handle of the cooler to the cart frame with a bungee cord. Easy rolling and access all round. I did need to unhook the bungee when opening it, but the long zipper would mandate that regardless of how it was attached.

 

 

Now bringing a cooler to the course is an at your own risk activity. Some courses will rupture forehead veins if they see one. Thing is though, the cooler is not the problem, more so it's the contents of that cooler. If you have a course that is really tight on this kind of thing, I have a suggestion for you.

 

Bring it empty.

 

How many times have you bought multiple beers at the course that they then give to you in a plastic bag full of ice? Wouldn't it be better to take the cooler into the bar, and then just add the purchased beers and ice to it? The Yeti Hopper 8 will definitely keep beers colder than a plastic bag. Just a thought.

 

The 8 is Great

 

If my goal was to find the ultimate take to the course cooler, I think that I have accomplished that with the Yeti Hopper 8. It carries enough stuff, keeps it cold, and fits into golf carts like a champ. Other brands out there may have some contenders, but as far as the Yeti line-up goes, the Hopper Flip 8 is the cooler for the course.

 

At $199.99, it's definitely an investment, but this cooler actually should get lots of non-golf usage as well. I find that it also makes a perfect lunch cooler. It will keep your food cold, and if load it up with something warm, and it will stay warm. The volume of the cooler allows you to pack all kinds of food containers inside, and the Yeti toughness should stand up to all but the most vicious daily commute.

 

Plus, after you empty the cooler out at lunch, you'll then have one that's nice and open for filling up with malty goodness on your way home, or even better, to the golf course.

 

Bonus Hopper 8 v. Hopper 12 Action Shots!

 

So not much action happening here, but if you are wondering how the size compares with these two, here you go. By the way, I have one more Yeti Hopper in the review queue, and it's a big one and a road trip is involved!

 

[STUDque]

Well it's about time! I'm constantly trying to find a cooler a cart can hold. More often than not, I end up with some crooked setup that may or may not fall out.

 

Thanks for the scoop and great review Dave!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

[GolfSpy Dave]

Well it's about time! I'm constantly trying to find a cooler a cart can hold. More often than not, I end up with some crooked setup that may or may not fall out.

 

Thanks for the scoop and great review Dave!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

I'm glad I found this one too. It's expensive, but damn near perfect.

[RookieBlue7]

It's identical to the RTIC Lunchbox at more than double the price.  Construction is the same, save the handle on the top.  I have the RTIC lunchbox myself and it's perfect.  I also own a Yeti Tundra as well as a Yeti Hopper 30.  I only bought the Tundra and RTIC, the Hopper 30 was a gift from work.  They're all great coolers, but if it were me, I'd save the coin for greens fees and get the RTIC.