U.S. patent application number 09/682125 was filed with the patent office on 2003-01-30 for golf ball holder.
Invention is credited to Childers, Frank.
Application Number | 20030019895 09/682125 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 24738316 |
Filed Date | 2003-01-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030019895 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Childers, Frank |
January 30, 2003 |
GOLF BALL HOLDER
Abstract
A holder for golf balls is disclosed that is clipped to the belt
or pants of a golfer. The container has a flared opening at the top
and has a constricted opening at the bottom. Golf balls are placed
in the top opening. The golf ball holder allows for a ball to be
removed from the top opening by inserting a finger through the
front opening and pushing the top golf ball out of the top flared
opening. Pushing the golf ball from the bottom opening may retrieve
the remaining golf ball. The golf ball holder works equally well
for a right or left-handed person. Apertures are provided in the
top surface of the golf ball holder to accept and securely hold
golf tees and a golf ball marker. Finally, an area for advertising
company or organizations names or logos is provided on the front of
the golf ball holder.
Inventors: |
Childers, Frank; (Ponca
City, OK) |
Correspondence
Address: |
MARTIN S. HIGH
P.O. BOX 217
STILLWATER
OK
74076
US
|
Family ID: |
24738316 |
Appl. No.: |
09/682125 |
Filed: |
July 25, 2001 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
224/251 ;
224/271 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 57/20 20151001;
A63B 55/20 20151001; A45F 2005/026 20130101; Y10S 224/918 20130101;
A63B 47/001 20130101; A45F 5/021 20130101; A45F 5/02 20130101; Y10S
224/919 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
224/251 ;
224/271 |
International
Class: |
A45F 005/00 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A portable golf ball holder comprising: the said top surface
forming an oblong top opening with the minor axis slightly larger
than that of the diameter of a regulation golf ball thereby
allowing easy insertion of a regulation golf ball through the said
top opening the said bottom surface forming a nearly circular
bottom opening slightly smaller than that of a regulation golf
ball; the said front surface forming a front opening smaller than a
regulation golf ball; the said front opening located wherein a
finger can be inserted through the said front opening to force a
golf ball through the said top opening into the palm of that hand
thereby allowing for removal of a regulation golf ball using only
one hand by either a left or right-handed person; the said
cylindrical enclosure forming a slightly flattened back surface
containing a vertical extension formed integrally with the top rear
portion of the said top and the top portion of the said back
surface; the said vertical extension forming an extension of the
back surface; the said vertical extension containing a circular
extension that protrudes from the said back surface that can be
engaged into a belt clip.
2. The golf ball holder according to claim 1 wherein said top
surface forms two apertures that can each securely accept a golf
tee.
3. The golf ball holder according to claim 2 wherein the said front
surface forms an aperture to accept and securely retain a golf ball
marker.
4. The golf ball holder according to claim 3 wherein the said front
surface contains an area to permanently or interchangeably affix
company or organization name or logo or other advertising.
5. The golf ball holder according to claim 4 wherein the said
bottom surface is flat so that the golf ball holder stands upright
when placed on a flat surface.
6. The golf ball holder according to claim 5 wherein the said golf
ball holder is manufactured from polymeric material.
7. The golf ball holder according to claim 5 wherein the said golf
ball holder is manufactured from polymeric composite material.
8. The golf ball holder according to claim 5 wherein the said golf
ball holder is manufactured from polypropylene or polyethylene.
9. The golf ball holder according to claim 5 wherein the said golf
ball holder is manufactured from one member of a group consisting
of wood, leather and metal.
10. The golf ball holder according to claim 5 wherein the said belt
clip is a commercially available belt clip commonly used to secure
cellular telephones.
11. The golf ball holder according to claim 5 further wherein the
said belt clip is comprised of: a front leg and a back leg that are
hingedly connected with a bridge that allows the said front leg and
said back leg to be compressed at one end thereby expanding the
opening at the opposite end; the bottom portion of the said front
leg forms a curvature that allowing the bottom portion of the front
leg to be essentially perpendicular to the top portion of the said
front leg; the said bottom portion of the said front leg forming a
lip that allows for a secure interference fit with the belt or
waistband of the user; the bottom portion of the said back leg
forms a curvature forming an angle of between 45 degrees and 90
degrees with the top portion of said rear leg.
Description
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to holding golf balls in an
accessible, portable manner that may be carried on the golfer's
belt, pocket, or pants or attached to the golf bag. When playing a
game of golf, it is very common to lose a golf ball or desire to
change to a clean golf ball. Usually the golfer must reach into
their pants or jacket pocket or the accompanying golf bag to
retrieve a new golf ball. This tends to disrupt a golfer's
concentration and is disruptive to the golfer. Further, when a
golfer plays on a wet day or early in the morning with dew on the
grass, the golf balls typically become very wet. Most golfers carry
their golf balls in their pants or jacket pocket. Unfortunately,
this typically makes the pants or jacket pocket very damp and
soiled from the dirt, grass and water that accumulate on the golf
ball thereby wetting, soiling and staining the clothing. Finally,
many golf ball holders are fixed to the pants or belt such that
when a golfer bends over, the golf ball holder tilts significantly
enough for the golf balls to fall out of the golf ball holder.
[0002] The objective of the instant invention is to solve these
problems by keeping golf balls in a convenient easily accessible
location and not come into direct contact with clothing and
eliminating the need for repeated use of the pants or jacket
pockets. Further, an additional objective of the instant invention
is to provide a golf ball holder that is easy to use, entails a
modern and unique design, and stores the golf balls in a secure,
yet readily accessible fashion. Finally, the golf ball holder must
be rugged, lightweight, and an attractive golf accessory.
[0003] Other golf ball holders have been proposed and implemented.
The closest in the art, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,553,707
issued to Lion on Sep. 10, 1996, was devised to hold golf balls in
a container consisting of a top and bottom connected by three
elongated elements. A major drawback of this device is that the
ball must be placed into the holder by pushing a golf ball through
two of the elongated elements, thereby pushing two of the elongated
elements in such a manner as to produce an opening large enough to
allow the golf ball to enter. This is a difficult procedure that
makes the holder impractical to use, and may cause the Lion golf
ball holder to break.
[0004] Other previous art includes U.S. Pat. No. 6,168,061 issued
to Harrison on Jan. 2, 2001. Harrison teaches a tray section formed
integrally with a leg section. The golf balls are contained in the
tray section of the invention and the leg section attaches the golf
ball holder to the belt. A major drawback of Harrison is that the
golf balls are not securely contained as in the instant invention.
If the golfer bends down the Harrision invention would tilt and
allow the golf balls to disengage. Further, the Harrison invention
is significantly extended from the golfer's body and would be
uncomfortable to the golfer.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0005] The instant invention is a portable golf ball holder,
comprising: a flared, elongated, slightly flattened, hollow,
cylindrical enclosure having a top surface, a bottom surface, a
front surface, and a back surface. The golf ball holder is most
commonly manufactured from polymer or polymer composite materials.
The top surface forms a oblong top opening slightly larger in
diameter than that of a regulation golf ball, and the bottom
surface forms a bottom opening slightly smaller than that of a
regulation golf ball. The back surface contains a circular
extension that protrudes from the back surface and can be engaged
into various commercially available belt clips commonly used to
secure cellular telephones to the trousers either at the waistband
of the trousers or the belt. The front surface of the instant
invention contains an area that can be used to affix advertising
for a company or organization.
[0006] The instant invention also is comprised of a custom belt
clip, which has a front leg, a back leg, and a bridge that
integrally and hingedly connects the front leg with the back leg.
The front leg forms two circular apertures that can receive the
circular extension from the golf ball holder. On the inside portion
of the front leg, a small lip is formed that aids in securing the
belt clip to the clothing of the wearer. The clip is removed from
the belt by squeezing the top portion of the front and back legs
together to open the bottom portions of the front and back legs.
The back leg is slightly longer than the front leg. The back leg
securely fits around the belt or inside the waistband of the
wearer.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0007] FIG. 1 is a front view of the golf ball holder at a tilted
angle.
[0008] FIG. 2 is a straight front view of the golf ball holder.
[0009] FIG. 3 is a back view of the golf ball holder showing the
back surface.
[0010] FIG. 4 is a right view of the golf ball holder.
[0011] FIG. 5 is a left view of the golf ball holder.
[0012] FIG. 6 is a top view of the golf ball holder.
[0013] FIG. 7 is a bottom view of the golf ball holder.
[0014] FIG. 8 is a front and side view of a custom belt clip for
the golf ball holder.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] With the objectives of the invention in mind, and with the
purpose of the invention as embodied and broadly described herein,
a portable golf ball holder 10 is provided, comprising: a flared,
elongated, slightly flattened, hollow, cylindrical enclosure having
a top surface 15 and a bottom surface 16. The golf ball holder can
be manufactured from a variety of materials, but most commonly is
manufactured from blow molded polymer, injection molded polymer or
polymer composite materials. The top surface 15 forms a oblong top
opening with the minor axis slightly larger in diameter than that
of a regulation golf ball thereby allowing easy insertion of a
regulation golf ball through the top opening. The bottom surface 16
forms a bottom opening slightly smaller than that of a regulation
golf ball.
[0016] The slightly flattened shape of the slightly flattened,
hollow, cylindrical enclosure forms a back surface 11 that is
flattened so that the enclosure can be comfortably worn against the
body of the golfer or mounted flush against an inanimate object,
such as a golf bag.
[0017] The top surface contains a vertical extension 17 that
protrudes from the top rear portion of the top surface. The
vertical extension also forms an extension of the back surface. The
back surface contains a circular extension 13 that protrudes from
the back surface that can be engaged into various commercially
available belt clips commonly used to secure cellular telephones to
the trousers either at the waistband of the trousers or the belt or
engaged with a clip specifically designed to be used with the
instant invention. The top surface may form apertures that may
accept and securely hold a golf ball marker.
[0018] The top surface 15 of the enclosure that forms the top
opening is an approximately circular surface flattened on the back.
The top surface also forms two apertures 12 that can each
separately receive and securely hold a golf tee.
[0019] The bottom surface 16 that forms the bottom opening is an
approximately circular surface flattened on the back. The bottom
surface also contains a horizontal lip 14 that insures the golf
balls remain in the enclosure by providing a stop to prevent the
golf ball from falling out the bottom of the enclosure. The front
surface contains an area 18 that can be used to advertise a
company, business or organization by printing or labeling that
particular company, business or organization's logo or name
directly onto the surface on the front bottom area reserved to be
used exclusively for advertising purposes. This name will be
permanently affixed onto that advertising area.
[0020] The instant invention is designed to be used with
commercially available belt clips commonly available for attaching
cellular phones to the belt of the user. However, there are some
disadvantages of using some of these belt clips with the golf ball
holder. For example, some of the clips are small and not capable of
comfortably holding the weight of the golf ball holder and two golf
balls. Therefore, a custom designed belt clip has been invented to
accompany the golf ball holder. This custom belt clip is shown in
FIG. 8.
[0021] The custom belt clip, given in FIG. 8, has a front leg 20, a
back leg 21 and a bridge 22 that hingedly connects the front leg
with the back leg. The front leg forms two circular apertures that
can receive the circular extension 13 from the golf ball holder.
The front leg also forms a rectangular shaped aperture that
connects the two circular apertures. The bottom of the front leg
contains a curvature resulting in the bottom portion of the front
leg becoming essentially perpendicular to the main portion of the
front leg. The bottom of the rear leg contains a curvature
resulting in the bottom portion of the rear leg forming an angle of
between 45 and 90 degrees to the main portion of the rear leg. On
the inside portion of the front leg, a small lip 23 is formed that
aids in securing the belt clip to the clothing of the wearer. The
clip is removed from the belt by squeezing the top portion of the
front and back legs together to open the bottom portions of the
front and back legs. The back leg 21 is slightly longer than the
front leg 20. The back leg securely fits around the belt or inside
the waistband of the wearer. The bridge 22 is manufactured from
resilient plastic material which allows the user to compress the
top portion of the front and back legs thereby opening the bottom
of the front and back legs allowing the clip to be placed over the
belt, pocket or waistband of the user.
[0022] The instant invention is best used by affixing the holder to
a custom made or commercial belt clip and in turn affixing the clip
to the belt or waistband of the golfer. The golfer stores golf
balls in the clip by dropping two balls into the opening formed by
the top surface 15. When a golf ball is needed, the golfer places
his finger into the opening formed by the bottom surface 16 thereby
pushing the golf ball out through the opening formed by the top
surface. A company logo or other advertisement can be placed on the
area 18 on the front surface.
* * * * *