AU638311B2

AU638311B2 - Improved putter

Info

Publication number: AU638311B2
Application number: AU72032/91A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Karsten Solheim
Original assignee: Karsten Manufacturing Corp
Current assignee: Karsten Manufacturing Corp
Priority date: 1990-10-01
Filing date: 1991-03-01
Publication date: 1993-06-24
Anticipated expiration: 2011-03-01
Also published as: AU7203291A; KR960001934B1; CA2035632C; KR920007653A; JPH04226679A; CA2035632A1; JPH084644B2

Description

63831 COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA PATENTS ACT 1952 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION NAME ADDRESS OF APPLICANT: Karsten Manufacturing Corporation 2201 West Desert Cove Phoenix Arizona 85029 United States of America S NAME(S) OF INVENTOR(S): Karsten SOLHEIM ADDRESS FOR SERVICE: DAVIES COLLISON Patent Attorneys 1 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, 3000.

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR THE INVENTION ENTITLED: Improved putter The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us:- BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates in general to golf clubs and more particularly to a putter structure having an improved balanced design.

4 DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART As is well known by everyone who plays golf, putting has [plagued all types of players, and the quest for improved putters and putting techniques never ends. As recently as about 30 years ago, engineering principles were applied to the design of putters reo for the first time, and a design which became known as "heel-toe balanced" was devised. Prior to this innovation, putters where for the most part essentially flat, platelike structures commonly referred to as "blade" putters.

Briefly, a putter designed in accordance with the "heel-toe balance" principle has its mass concentrated in the heel and toe of the putter head. This provides an increased moment of inertia that causes the putter head to resist twisting whenever the golf Sball is struck at a point on the putter face which is away from the "sweet spot" of the putter. Such a putter is disclosed in my U.S. Patent No. 3,042,405 which issued on July 3, 1962.

In addition to having the heel-toe balance, my putter design disclosed in Patent No. 3,042,405 has another design feature which is commonly referred to as "face balance". A face balanced putter is one having equal moment arms, i.e. the concentrated masses at the heel and toe are equally distant from the axis of rotation.

This is accomplished by connecting the shaft of the nutter centrally between the toe and the heel of the putter so that it is la located proximate the center of gravity.

The face balancing design concept has been accomplished in another manner such as that fully disclosed in U.S. Patent No.

3,954,265 issued on May 4, 1976 to David L. Taylor. In this case, the shaft is attached to the putter head proximate the heel, and the shaft is bent into a special configuration. The special bends in the shaft are located at its lower end, to conform to the Rules of Golf as defined by the United States Golf Association and the Royal and Ancient regulating body of Sco l and. The shaft bends locate the longitudinal axis of the shaft, as defined by the straight portion of the shaft, so that the axis will pass through o, the center of gravity of the putter head.

o: I have been marketing another unpatented variation of a putter incorporating the face balanced design concept which I have identified as the putter. In this particular putter the shaft is bent so that the longitudinal axis of the straight portion of the shaft will intersect a line which extends normally from the oWWW* S face of the putter head with that line also containing the center oe~i of gravity of the putter head. This particular version of the r face balanced design concept adds a still further putter head stabilization feature to the art of putter head design. By off-setting the shaft axis forwardly of the center of gravity of the putter head, a lever arm is added to the moment of inertia of the putter head about the rotational axis of the shaft. This, of course, further increases the moment of inertia in comparison to a face balanced putter which has its axis of rotation passing through the center of gravity.

Even though the fully balanced prior art putters described above are theoretically ideal, many golfers shy away from center shafted putters, putters with bent shafts, and putters without a hosel. The reasons for this vary considerably, but it all reduces down to personal preferences and what a golfer feels comfortable using.

The most popular putters used today have a hosel extending 2 upwardly from proximate the heel of the putter head a distance of from about two to three inches relative to the sole of the head.

The lower end of the shaft is usually secured in a socket-like boss formed on the upper end of the hosel. Such putters are typically heel-toe balanced but are not face balanced due to the rearward disposition of their upwardly extending hosel.

A particular prior art putter marketed under the tradename ZAAP by the Tommy Armour Golf Company, has a hosel and is both heel-toe balanced and face balanced. To accomplish such balancing, the ZAAP putter has its hosel extending upwardly and o* forwardly from proximate the heel of the head at about a 450 angle and the socket-like boss is disposed at an angle of about 1250 relative to the hosel.

The angular orientation of the hosel of the ZAAP putter may disturb some golfers by distracting or otherwise interfering with the high degree of precision visual alignment required for good putting. In addition to such possible optical distraction, the ZAAP putter is configured so that the rotational axis defined by the putter's shaft passes through the center of gravity of the putter and thus lacks the additional stabilizing influence provided by off-setting the shaft axis forwardly of the putter's face so that the shaft axis intersects with the imaginary line Swhich extends formally from the face of the putter head and contains the center of gravity of the putter.

Therefore, a need exists for a new and useful putter which overcomes some of the shortcomings and disadvantages of the prior art.

In accordance with the present invention, a-n and improved putter is disclosed which is configuedre o provide a high moment o*S of inertia to resist tw is upon the occurrence of off-center hits. Addi l y, the putter of the present invention is 2 a tw^ 0234q/lfg 4 *o S S. S 5

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S* S S *S S S...e *c~n S.6> According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a face-balanced golf club for putting comprising: a) a putter head having a face, a toe and a heel and having a centre of gravity which is located within said putter head and lies on an imaginary line that extends normally relative to the face of said putter head; b) an elongated shaft having a longitudinal axis and a lower end; and c) a hosel having a leg portion with a lower end and an upper end, said leg portion extending upwardly and generally vertically frm its lower end which is attached to said putter head proximate the heel of said putter head to its upper end which is disposed above said putter head, an arm prrtion integral with the leg portion and extending at approximately a right angle from the upper end of said leg portion in a direction that is forwardly offset relative to the face of said putter head, and a boss on a forwardly extending end of the arm portion to which the lower end of said shaft is attached, said hosel being configured so that an extension of the longitudinal axis of said shaft intersects the imaginary line of said putter head at point which is forwardly disposed relative to the centre of gravity and the face of said putter head.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a face-balanced golf putter comprising: a putter head having a face for impacting a golf ball, a toe and a heel, said putter head having a centre of gravity which lies on an imaginary line that extends substantially normally to the face of said putter head, said face having a sweet spot arranged such that when a golf ball is impacted at said sweet spot no twisting forces are exerted on said putter head, said sweet spot also lying on said imaginary line; an elongated shaft having a longitudinal axis and a lower end; a hosel for connecting said putter head to said elongated shaft, said hosel including a leg portion, a cantilever arm and a boss;

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0234q/lfg said hosel leg portion having a lower end which is attached to said putter head intermediate said imaginary line and said heel, said hosel leg portion also having an upper end which is disposed above said putter head, said hosel leg portion extending upwardly and generally vertically from said lower end to said upper end; said cantilever arm of said hosel being integrally connected with said upper end of said hosel leg portion and extending therefrom at approximately a right angle in a forward direction relative to said putter head; said boss being integrally connected to a forwardly extending end of said cantilever arm for receiving said S. lower end of said elongated shaft; and said hosel leg portion and said cantilever arm being C* CC S configured for positioning said boss and said elongated

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shaft so that an extension of said shaft longitudinal axis intersects said imaginary line at an intersection point "o which is located substantially forwardly of both said sweet spot and said centre of gravity.

Preferably th3 golf club further comprises first and second mass concentrators located at the toe and heel of the putter head respectively. The first and second mass concentrator and the putter head may be configured so that the centre of gravity is disposed substantially centrally of putter head intermediate the top and heel thereof.

The foregoing and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself will be more fully understood from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the putter of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view of the putter shown in Figure i.

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0234q/lfg -6- Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the putter of the present invention.

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S *S 0 5@ DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring more particularly to the drawings, Figures 1 and 2 show the first embodiment of the putter of the present invention which is indicated generally by the reference numeral 10. The putter 10 includes a putter head 12 having the usual face 14 for impacting a golf ball (not shown), a toe 16 and a heel 18.

In accordance with the present invention, the putter further includes a hosel 20 of special configuration which will hereinafter be described in detail. Although not fully em illustrated, it will be understood that as is customary in the art, an elongated shaft 22 has its lower end fixedly attached to the upper end of the hosel 20, and the shaft defines a longitudinal axis 24 and will have the usual grip (not shown) mounted on its upper end.

As is well known, every body has a center of gravity which by definition is a point at which all the weight of the body can be considered as being concentrated. In the putter head 12, the center of gravity is indicated at the point CG. An imaginary line 26 which is normal to the face 14 of the putter head 12 and passes through the CG will also contain a point 28 on the face 14 of the putter head. That point 28 is known in the art as the "sweet spot" of the golf club. When a golf club, the putter 10 in this case, is swung so that its swing path is coincident with the imaginary line 26 and the golf ball is impacted at the sweet spot 28, a maximum energy transfer will occur, and no twisting forces will be exerted on the putter head. However, if the ball is hit in an off-center location relative to the sweet spot 28, a force will be exerted on the putter head 12 which will tend to cause the head to rotate about the longitudinal axis 24 of the shaft 22.

More specifically, if the impact point is off-set toward the toe 16 of the putter head 12, the club will tend to rotate in a clockwise direction. Similarly, if the impact occurs at a location which is off-set toward the heel 18 of the putter head 12, the putter 10 will tend to rotate in a counterclockwise direction.

Such undesirable rotation of the putter head 12 will, of course, be resisted by inertia, and the putter 10 of the present invention is configured to maximize the moment of inertia. To achieve this objective, the putter head 12 as seen best in Figure 2 is provided with a first concentration of mass Ml at the toe 16 of the putter head 12 and a second concentration of mass M2 at the heel 18 thereof. By definition, the moment of inertia of any body Iwith respect to any axis is the sum of the products obtained by multiplying each elementary mass by the square of the distance from the axis. The putter design wherein the mass concentrations are located at the toe and heel, as in the putter 10 of the present invention, is known as heel-toe balance. More specifically, the masses Ml and M2 are located at some distances from the longitudinal axis 24 of the shaft 22, and thus the putter of the present invention is provided with improved stability resulting from heel-toe balancing.

Another design feature which enhances putter stability is .known in the art as face balancing, and this occurs when the mass concentrations Ml and M2 are equally distant from the longitudinal axis 24 of the putter shaft 22. And, stability will be further improved if the distances of the masses Ml and M2 are maximized within practical limits. Both of these design objectives are accomplished in the putter 10 of the present invention by the hereinbefore mentioned especially configured hosel As seen best in Figure 1, the hosel 20 includes a vertical leg portion 30 which extends from proximate the heel 18 of the putter head 12 and is bent over at i;s upper end to provide a cantilever arm 32 which extends forwardly of the putter head 12.

A socket-like boss 24 is formed on the extending end of the cantilever arm 32, and the lower end of the putter shaft 22 is fixed in the boss 34 as hereinbefore mentioned. The hosel described above is of generally conventional configuration except 8 that the vertical leg portion 30 is longer than usual and the length of that leg is calculated to locate the longitudinal axis 24 of the putter shaft 22 so that it intersects the imaginary line 26 at a point 36.

Therefore, it will be seen that the special hosel configuration described above will locate the longitudinal axis 24 of the shaft 22 so the distances of the masses Ml and M2, as indicated by the imaginary lines 38 and 40 respectively, are equally distant from the axis 24 about which the putter will tend S. to rotate upon the occurrence of an off-center hit. Further, the distances indicated by the lines 38 and 40 are maximized within practical limits due to the intersection point 36 being off-set forwardly of the putter head 12.

In addition to the above described putter head stabilization design features, another advantage inherently results from the forwardly located intersection point 36. In that the center of gravity CG by definition is the point where all the weight of the club head 12 may be considered as being concentrated, the CG will act as a mass concentration point. Therefore, this mass concentration coupled with the distance between the CG and the axis intersection point 36 produces another moment of inertia which resists twisting of the putter 10 upon the occurrence of an off-center hit.

In accordance with the present 'ivention, the same objectives can be accomplished by the putter shown in Figure 3 wherein this second embodiment of the present invention is indicated generally by the reference numeral 42.

The putter 42 is provided with the same putter head 12 which, as hereinbefore described, includes the face 14, the toe 16 and the heel 18. The difference between the two putters 10 and 42 is in the hosels, and the hosel of this second embodiment is indicated generally by the reference numeral 44. The hosel 44 has a vertically upstanding leg 46 which is of normal length as compared to the longer than usual length of the leg 30 of the 9 hosel 20 of the putter 10. Similarly however, the hosel 44 has a bent over cantilever arm 48 which extends forwardly with respect to the putter head 12, and a socket-like boss 50 is provided on the extending end of the cantilever arm 48. The longitudinal axis 24 of the putter shaft 22 is brought into the desired intersecting alignment with the imaginary line 26 by selecting the location along the length of the putter head 12 from which the vertical leg 46 extends upwardly.

It will be understood that the design concepts described above as "heel-toe balancing" and "face balancing" are both well e known in the art. However, I believe that the hereinbefore described putters 10 and 42 of the present invention are novel in that this is the first time that those design objectives have been accomplished by using a forwardly off-set hosel which adds the further degree of stability resulting from an increase in the lengths of the distances indicated by the imaginary lines 38 and 40, and by providing an elongated moment arm which operates in conjunction with the mass concentration CG. Also, I believe that these objectives are all accomplished by a hosel configuration which is preferred by many and does not distract from the visual alignment task of a golfer.

While the principles of the invention have now been made s clear in illustrated embodiments, there will be immediately obvious to those skilled in the art, many modifications of structure, arrangements, proportions, the elements, materials and components used in the practice of the invention and otherwise, which are particularly adapted for specific environments and operation requirements without departing from those principles.

The appended claims are therefore intended to cover and embrace any such modifications within the limits only of the true spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A face-balanced golf club for putting comprising: a) a putter head having a face, a toe and a heel and having a centre of gravity which is located within said putter head and lies on an imaginary line that extends normally relative to the face of said putter head; b) an elongated shaft having a longitudinal axis and a lower end; and c) a hosel having a leg portion with a lower end and an upper end, said leg portion extending upwardly and generally vertically from its lower end which is attached to said putter head proximate the heel of said putter head to its upper end which is disposed above said putter head, an arm portion integral with the leg portion and extending at approximately a right angle from the upper end of said leg portion in a direction that is forwardly offset relative to the face of said putter head, and a boss on a forwardly extending end of the arm portion to which the lower end of said shaft is attached, said hosel being configured so that an extension of the longitudinal axis of said shaft intersects the imaginary line of said putter head at point which is forwardly disposed relative to the centre of gravity and the face of said putter head.

2. A golf club as claimed in claim 1 and further comprises first and second mass concentrators located at the toe and heel of said putter head respectively, said first and second mass concentrators and said putter head being configured so that said centre of gravity is disposed substantially centrally of said putter head intermediate the toe and heel thereof.

3. A face-balanced golf putter comprising: a putter head having a face for impacting a golf ball, a toe and a heel, said putter head having a centre of gravity which lies on an imaginary line that extends substantially normally to the face of said putter head, said .face having a sweet spot arranged such that when a golf ball I 0234q/lfg 12 is impacted at said sweet spot no twisting forces are exerted on said putter head, said sweet spot also lying on said imaginary line; an elongated shaft having a longitudinal axis and a lower end; a hosel for connecting said putter head to said elongated shaft, said hosel including a leg portion, a cantilever arm and a boss; said hosel leg portion having a lower end which is attached to said putter head intermediate said imaginary line and said heel, said hosel leg portion also having an upper end which is disposed above said putter head, said hosel leg portion extending upwardly and generally vertically from said lower end to said upper end; said cantilever arm of said hosel being integrally connected with said upper end of said hosel leg portion and 0, extending therefrom at approximately a right angle in a forward direction relative to said putter head; said boss being integrally connected to a forwardly extending end of said cantilever arm for receiving said lower end of said elongated shaft; and said hosel leg portion and said cantilever arm being configured for positioning said boss and said elongated shaft so that an extension of said shaft longitudinal axis intersects said imaginary line at an intersection point which is located substantially forwardly of both said sweet spot and said centre of gravity.

4. A golf club substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. DATED this 19th day of March, 1993. KARSTEN MANUFACTURING CORPORATION By Its Patent Attorneys DAVIES COLLISON CAVE NT^