US3910581A

US3910581A - Golf game board apparatus

Info

Publication number: US3910581A
Application number: US521559A
Authority: US
Inventors: Murray T Nicholson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1974-11-07
Filing date: 1974-11-07
Publication date: 1975-10-07
Anticipated expiration: 1992-10-07

Abstract

A golf game in which a plurality of fairways are provided on playing cards or boards preferably simulating an actual golf course, i.e., there could be nine boards with a fairway on each side of the board simulating the eighteen fairways of an actual golf course. Each fairway is marked with distance lines and upon teeing off the player throws a chance number, such as with three dice, which together with a conversion table, indicates how far the player has driven the ball. At that time another chance indicia such as a spinner card is provided corresponding to each fairway, indicating where on the fairway the ball landed, such as in the rough, sandtraps, watertraps, etc. Other chance indicia are provided for each hole for fairway shots, green shots, etc., along with special dice for indicating the number of putts required after the green is reached.

Description

Oct. 7, 1975 United States Patent 1191 Nicholson [54] GOLF GAME BOARD APPARATUS [57] ABSTRACT A golf game in which a plurality of fairways are provided on playing cards or boards preferably simulating an actual golf course, i.e., there could be nine boards with a fairway on each side of the board simulating the eighteen fairways of an actual golf course. Each fairlnventor: Murray T. Nicholson, 4086 Apore St., La Mesa, Calif. 92041 Nov. 7, 1974 [22} Filed:

1211 Appl. No.2 521,559

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS traps, watertraps, etc. Other chance indicia are pro- Jewe" 273/134 CG vided for each hole for fairway shots, green shots, etc., Moneks. 273/134 AD along with special dice for indicating the number of putts required after the green is reached.

Primary ExaminerDelbert B. Lowe Attorney, Agent, or FirmRichard K. Macneill 3 Claims 15 Drawing Figures 9 HOLE PAR 5 55I YARDS US Patent D et/1,1975 Sheet 1 of2 3,910,581

55l YARDS l 1 1 3 3 1 H516 I; 2 F 8 U.S. Patent Oct. 7,1975 Sheet 2 of2 3,910,581

. 3 HOLE PAR 4 I80 YARDS F g. 12 F1g,13

I 8/ 65 20' I 80 w 5 I5 I I5 6, 5 A L) HQLED OUT HOLED oufli) 30' 7 1o FA! RWAY z' g lo 4' 25 Lg? I.v 3 Long- Shqfl Chip 8 Pitch Putts m Lap. 1 1

1 GOLF GAME BOARD APPARATUS PRIOR ART The following patent was discovered in a preliminary patentability search, H. H. Ristow, U.S. Pat. No. filed Nov. l2, I929.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a golf game and more particularly to a golf game in which specific fairways have a plurality of chance controlled devices for indicating advancement of the hall toward the hole.

According to the invention, a golf game is provided in which a plurality of fairways on a playing board can simulate actual fairways on actual golf courses. In its preferred form, there would be I8 playing board fairways which could be implemented with nine cards, for example, with a fairway on each side. Fairways, of course, vary in their given pars and each has a plurality of chance controlled devices for indicating the length of the drive or putt and the character of the drive as, for example, whether the drive will land on the fairway or in a sandtrap, etc. Hence, a very realistic game is provided simulating actual playing conditions on a given golf course.

An object of the present invention is the provision of an improved golf game. 7

Another object of the invention is the provision of a golf game which simulates actual playing conditions.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a golf game in which an existing golf course can be simulated.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of separate chance controlled devices for simulating the actual geography of each fairway.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated as the same become better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals designate like parts throughout the Figures thereof and wherein:

FlG..1 is a top view of a typical par fairway playing board;

FIG. 2 is a tee card corresponding to the fairway of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top view of a fairway card associated with the fairway of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a green card the fairway of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 illustrates conventional dice utilized with the present invention; a

FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 illustrate special dice associated with green shots of the present invention;

F IG. 9 illustrates a long/short fairwaycard associated with all of the fairways of the present invention;

FIG. 10 illustrates a chip and pitch card utilized with all of the fairways of the present invention;

FIG. 11 illustrates a putt card associated with all of the fairways of the present invention;

FIG. 12 illustrates a par 4 fairway card for utilization in the present invention;

FIG. 13 illustrates a tee card for utilization with the fairway of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 illustrates a green card for utilization with the fairway of FIG. 12; and

associated with DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING Referring to FIG. 1, a fairway board is shown generally at 21 having a fairway impressed thereon generally shown at 22 with a tee 23 and green 24 with a hole 26 thereon. A plurality of markers 27 are shown in various stages of play, two of which are disposed on a yard scale which would be typical of a 55l-yard fairway. A plurality of sand traps 28 are disposed on fairway 22 together with water trap 29, hedge 31, and trees 32. The wavy line outlining the fairway indicates the rough area 33.

Referring to FIG. 2, a tee card 34 is shown with various indicia such as sand, unplayable lie, rough and water areas thereon, with the in-between areas on the fairway.

Referring to FIG. 3, a fairway card 36 is shown having the indicia sand, unplayable lie, sand and rough with the in-between areas indicating the fairway.

Referring to FIG. 4, green card 37 is shown having the indicia water, sand, twenty yards left, sand, ten yards right, sand and holed-out, with in-between areas indicating the green.

Referring to FIG. 5, typical dice are shown at 38.-

Referring to FIG. 6, a folded out die is shown at 39 having numerical indicia of 1 or 2 on each face.

Referring to FIG. 7, an unfolded die 41 is shown having numerical indicia 1, 2 or 3 on each face thereof.

Referring to F IG. 8, a folded out die 42 is shown having numerical indicia 1, 2 or 3 on each face thereof.

Referring to FIG. 9, a long/short card is shown at 43 having unplayable lie areas and fairway areas thereon.

Referring to FIG. 10, a chip and pitch card is shown having various numerical indicia around the periphery thereof, together with a holed-out area.

Referring to FIG. 11, a putt card is shown at 46 having various numerical indicia around the periphery thereof and including a holed-out portion.

Referring to FIG. 12, a fairway playing board 47: is shown having a fairway 48 impressed thereon which in-. cludes a tee area 49 and green area 51. The green area 51 has a hole 52 thereon. Various sand traps 53 are indicated on the fairway together with a hedge 54 and a plurality of trees 56. Typical player markers 27 are shown on board 47.

Referring to FIG. 13, a tee card is shown havingone sand area illustrated; an unplayable lie area, an out-ofbounds area, and a rough area, which are surrounded by green areas corresponding to the fairway of board 47.

Referring to FIG. 14, green card 58 is illustratedhaving four sand areas; a ten-yard left area, a fifteen-yard right area, and a holed-out area. This card corresponds to the green of fairway 48.

Referring to FIG. 15, a spinner board is shown generally at 59 having a tee and fairway spinner 61, a green spinner 62, a long-short spinner 63, a chip and pitch spinner 64, and a putt spinner 66. The individual spinners and cards of FIGS. 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 13 and 14 are constructed so that the cards are inserted from the top through an opening indicated by the dotted lines above the spinners,

OPERATION To begin play, each player selects a different colored marker 27 (FIGS. 1 and 12) and begins play at the first tee, such as 23 of FIG. 1, in any numerical order. The order of play on subsequent holes could be determined by the result of the previous hole or holes, such as having the highest scorer of a previous hole going first and the lowest scorer on the previous hole going last. TEE SHOTS For tee shots on par 4 or par 5, the player will throw three standard dice (FIG. and add up the total number shown on the dice. The player then consults the yardage chart illustrated below to determine the distance the shot has traveled. Immediately thereafter he spins the tee shot spinner, such as 34 of FIG. 2, which corresponds to the particular fairway he is on to find out the quality of his shot. He then advances his marker to that location on the playing board. A distance scale is supplied with each hole. Each of the players proceed in the manner outlined above until they have all taken a tee shot.

YARDAGE CHART:

DISTANCE MARKER LINES The distance marker lines on each hole give the distance to any given point from the tee; and additional number on the other side of a distance marker can give the distance from the exact spot in the fairway to the center of the green so on any given shot after a player has'thrown the dice and consulted the yardage chart, he knows how far his shot has traveled. He then simply places his ball marker that distance shown on the scale. Each green is 40 yards deep from the front to the rear so'that a player can determine if his shot has landed on the .green. PAR 3 HOLES AND APPROACH SHOTS On par 3 holes and on all fairway and approach shots a player must designate which type of club he is using before he throws the dice (Note: a driver or a No. 1 wood may only be used from the tee). This is important because the total number shown on the dice will vary as far as yardage goes depending on which club is used, i.e., wood or iron. A player may throw from 1 to 3 dice for his shot depending on the players own preference.

For example, if the marker is two hundred yards from the center of the green, he may decide to use an approach wood or an iron for his next shot. This choice of club selection is strictly up to each player. This is very important with respect to the game because the choice of club and the number thrown on the dice will determine how far the ball travels on any given shot. The choice of club and the number of dice thrown can also determine whether a player scores an eagle, double-eagle, or even a hole-in-one. The choice of the number of dice also allows the player to play it safe or go for broke.

All approach shots are made by first establishing the distance needed to reach the center of the green. This is done by each player after the tee shot has been played and the marker placed at the appropriate marker line in the fairway. By checking the distance numerals on the opposite side of the scale he can determine the distance from that point to the center of the green. The player then consults the yardage chart to determine what number on the dice will give him that appropriate distance. After this has been determined, the club is then selected, e.g., approach wood or iron; the dice are then thrown. If the player is successful in reaching the green with his approach shot he then spins the green spinner shown at 62 in FIG. 15, with the appropriate green card, such as card 37 of FIG. 4, placed therein. He then spins the putt spinner 66 (FIG. 15), on which is placed the putt card 46 (FIG. 1 l This will indicate how far from the pin his marker has stopped. Before a player can spin the green spinner he must actually have gotten the required number of yards needed to place him on the green. If he is long or short of the green with an approach shot, he must then spin the long/short spinner 63 on which long/short card 43 (FIG. 9) has been placed. This reading will tell him where his shot stopped. If an approach is long or short of the green, and the players long/short spin leaves him safely in the fairway, he then is ready to play his next shot. If his approach shot has left him within 30 yards of the green, whether long or short, the player is within chipping and pitching distance, and when his next shot is played, he then spins the chip and pitch spinner 64 (FIG. 15) on which the chip/pitch card 44 (FIG. 10) is placed. This will indicate the distance from the pin the pitch or chip has placed him. The same rule applies to a shot left or right of the green when a player spins the green spinner 62. Once a player is safely on the green, he is ready to putt.

One unique aspect of the game is that the exact pin placement of a particular hole is not shown. Instead, the object is to reach a green and then spin the putt spinner to determine how far from the pin the ball has stopped. Since each green is measured from front to rear, the players are not forced to throw an exact number on the dice to reach the green. For example, a 9 on the dice would put the players ball in the center of the green; then a 7, 8, 10 or I 1 would still leave the ball on the green although long or short of the center of the green.

PUTTING As in the actual game of golf, putting in this game gives the advantage to the player who can get his ball closer to the hole on his approach shot. Three dice are used for putting. A putt within the range of 10 feet is thrown with a die 39, for example. Putts from 1 l to 25 feet are thrown with a die 41, for example, and all putts longer than 25 feet are thrown with a die 42, for example. The odds of holing-out a putt from a shorter distance are greater than from a longer distance, therefore the odds of one or two putting are greater with the dice 39 and 41 than with die 42.

Pin placements on the greens vary so the player does not known exactly how close to the pin his shot lies until he spins putt spinner 66 after he has successfully landed on the green by spinning green spinner 62. A green may be 120 feet from front to rear and a player may put his ball on the rear section of the green. After he spins putt spinner 66, he may find he is only 3 feet from the pin, or 100 feet. He must then throw the die which corresponds to that length of putt. CHIPPING AND PITCHING All shots within 30 yards of a green are designated as a chip or pitch shot and the chip and pitch spinner 64 is used. The area on card 44 in which the spinner stops tells the player how far he must putt for his next shot. He then throws 2 putting die accordingly. SHOTS WITHIN ONE HUNDRED YARDS A player whose shot is 100 yards or less to within 30 yards of the green has two options from which to choose. He may throw the dice and use each increment as 5 yards (21 5 would equal 25 yards), or he may elect to throw only one die and use the yardage chart used for all other shots. LONG OR SHORT SHOTS If a player throws the dice and the numbers thrown show that his shot was long (i.e., over the green), or short of the green, he must then spin the long/short spinner 63 to determine where his shot landed. EacI? green is marked on the board showing its length; therefore there are many different numbers a player may throw and still remain on the green.

HAZARDS AND PENALTIES OUT OF BOUNDS Designated by O.B. (FIG. 13), add a penalty shot and hit again from the same spot as before. WATER Add a penalty shot and play your next shot from the same point as the shot that went into the water from a point behind the water, keeping the location where the ball dropped into the water between the marker and the green.

SAND TRAPS (Fairway and greens) The player must roll two dice and to get out of the sand safely he must roll above a 4. If he does not he has then left his ball in the sand. If he is successful in throwing above a 4, he then rolls again to see how far his shot has traveled. Note: If a player is in the sand around the green and successfully rolls above a 4, then he spins the chip and pitch spinner 64 to see how far from the pin his ball has stopped. ROUGH If a players ball is in the rough, throw the dice as usual but subtract ten yards from the total because of the rough. UNPLAYABLE LIE An unplayable lie is one in which the player cannot successfully hit his ball. Add one penalty stroke and play the next shot when it is the players next turn.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing disclosure relates to only a preferred embodiment of the invention, and that it is intended to cover all changes and modifications of the example of the invention herein chosen, for the purposes of the disclosure, which do not constitute departures from the spirit and scope of the invention.

The invention claimed is:

l. A golf game apparatus comprising:

a plurality of cards, each of said plurality of cards having at least one simulated golf fairway on at least one surface thereof;

each of said at least one fairway having a simulated green area therein and a tee;

a plurality of marks spaced along each of said fairways for designating simulated distances from'the tee;

a first chance control device for determining the length of a drive from a tee;

a second chance control device for determining the character of said drive; and

a third chance control device for determining the number of putts on a green, said third chance control device consisting of a spinner card indicating distance on the green from the hole and a plurality of dice, each of said plurality of dice having a unique number combination.

2. The golf game apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

said second chance control device consists of a spinner and one of a plurality of spinner cards, each of said one of a plurality of spinner cards being associated with a separate one of said simulated golf fairways.

3. A golf game apparatus comprising:

a plurality of marks spaced along each of said fairways for designating simulated distances from the tee;

a first chance control device for determining the length of a drive from a tee;

a second chance control device for determining the character of said drive, said second chance control device consisting of a spinner and a plurality of different selectively usable spinner cards, each of said spinner cards being associated with a separate one of said simulated golf fairways; and

a third chance control device for determining the number of putts on a green.

Claims

1. A golf game apparatus comprising: a plurality of cards, each of said plurality of cards having at least one simulated golf fairway on at least one surface thereof; each of said at least one fairway having a simulated green area therein and a tee; a plurality of marks spaced along each of said fairways for designating simulated distances from the tee; a first chance control device for determining the length of a drive from a tee; a second chance control device for determining the character of said drive; and a third chance control device for determining the number of putts on a green, said third chance control device consisting of a spinner card indicating distance on the green from the hole and a plurality of dice, each of said plurality of dice having a unique number combination.

2. The golf game apparatus of claim 1 wherein: said second chance control device consists of a spinner and one of a plurality of spinner cards, each of said one of a plurality of spinner cards being associated with a separate one of said simulated golf fairways.

3. A golf game apparatus comprising: a plurality of cards, each of said plurality of cards having at least one simulated golf fairway on at least one surface thereof; each of said at least one fairway having a simulated green area therein and a tee; a plurality of marks spaced along each of said fairways for designating simulated distances from the tee; a first chance control device for determining the length of a drive from a tee; a second chance control device for determining the character of said drive, said second chance control device consisting of a spinner and a plurality of different selectively usable spinner cards, each of said spinner cards being associated with a separate one of said simulated golf fairways; and a third chance control device for determining the number of putts on a green.