His parents were György Hodobay and Anna Mihalics; he had nine siblings, including Antal Hodobay, a Greek Catholic priest. He was ordained a priest on December 18, 1878. He served as a canon in Eperjes from 1900 and was also titular abbot of St. Benedict. His villa in Eperjes was featured on a postcard. His wife was Ilona Mária Rojkovich; they had three children. His wife passed away in 1888. During his mission in America, he had numerous conflicts with Hungarian pastors serving abroad. In 1904, Pope Pius X appointed him protonotary. In 1906, the Hungarian government nominated him to the Vatican as a candidate for the position of American Hungarian Greek Catholic bishop, but the Holy See rejected the nomination, and his appointment as visitator was revoked in March 1907. In 1907, he received the Middle Cross of the Order of Franz Joseph. He died of a heart attack; his grave is in Eperjes.