U.S. patent application number 12/070454 was filed with the patent office on 2008-06-19 for adjustable putter head.
Invention is credited to Duane Charles John.
Application Number | 20080146372 12/070454 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46330147 |
Filed Date | 2008-06-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080146372 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
John; Duane Charles |
June 19, 2008 |
Adjustable putter head
Abstract
The present invention is an improved putter that assists a
player in perfecting a putt stroke during practice and repeating it
with the same club during play. The shaft is attached to the
clubhead such that it can swivel from a practice configuration to a
play configuration. The putter also comprises a hosel with an
attached alignment cap having lobes which matingly engage a series
of recesses on the clubhead to secure the clubhead to the shaft.
The putter conforms to the Rules of Golf so that the player does
not have to change clubs between practice and play. The club may be
used for either a right or left-handed stroke.
Inventors: |
John; Duane Charles;
(Phoenx, AZ) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ETHERTON LAW GROUP, LLC
5555 E. VAN BUREN STREET, SUITE 100
PHOENIX
AZ
85008
US
|
Family ID: |
46330147 |
Appl. No.: |
12/070454 |
Filed: |
February 19, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11229072 |
Sep 15, 2005 |
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12070454 |
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10920596 |
Aug 16, 2004 |
7041004 |
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11229072 |
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10351495 |
Jan 23, 2003 |
6776727 |
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10920596 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
473/341 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63B 60/02 20151001;
A63B 53/0433 20200801; A63B 69/3676 20130101; A63B 53/0416
20200801; A63B 53/0487 20130101; A63B 2053/0491 20130101; A63B
53/0441 20200801; A63B 69/3685 20130101; A63B 53/065 20130101; A63B
53/007 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
473/341 |
International
Class: |
A63B 53/04 20060101
A63B053/04 |
Claims
1. A clubhead comprising: a. one or more weight cavities for
receiving one or more removable weights; b. one or more
substantially circular recesses aligned with the weight cavities;
and c. an alignment cap comprising one or more substantially
circular lobes which mate with the recesses such that the alignment
cap retains the removable weights within the weight cavities.
2. The clubhead of claim 1 further comprising: a. a top and bottom
wherein the recesses are defined along the top; and b. a base plate
attached to the bottom.
3. The clubhead of claim 2 wherein the base plate comprises a
series of grooves oriented along the line of putt.
4. The clubhead of claim 2 further comprising one or more ejection
apertures extending through the bottom into the weight
cavities.
5. The clubhead of claim 1 wherein the alignment cap is removable
to provide access to the weight cavities.
6. The clubhead of claim 1 further comprising an attachment
structure connected to the alignment cap, wherein the attachment
structure can be adjusted from a tightened position to a loosened
position, such that the attachment structure fixes the alignment
cap securely within the recesses in the tightened position and
allows the lobes to be disengaged from the recesses in the loosened
position.
7. The clubhead of claim 6 wherein the attachment structure is a
retention screw.
8. The clubhead of claim 7 wherein the alignment cap is rotated
about the retention screw, with respect to the recesses, to provide
access to the weight cavities when the retention screw is in the
loosened position.
9. A clubhead for a putter, the clubhead comprising: a. a top and a
bottom; b. one or more recesses defined along the top; c. one or
more weight cavities for receiving one or more removable weights,
each weight cavity disposed between the top and bottom and aligned
with a recess; d. an alignment cap comprising one or more lobes
shaped to matedly fit within the recesses such that the alignment
cap retains the removable weights within the weight cavities; and
e. a retention structure attached to the alignment cap such that
the alignment cap cannot be removed, but one or more lobes can be
disengaged from the recesses and the alignment cap rotated about
the retention structure to provide access to the weight
cavities.
10. The clubhead of claim 9 further comprising a hosel attached to
the alignment cap, the hosel configured to receive a putter shaft
and fix it to the clubhead.
11. The clubhead of claim 10 wherein the hosel comprises one or
more alignment marks.
12. The clubhead of claim 9 wherein the retention structure is a
retention screw.
13. The clubhead of claim 12 further comprising a retention
aperture in the bottom through which the retention screw
passes.
14. The clubhead of claim 9 wherein the recesses, lobes, and weight
cavities are substantially circular.
15. The clubhead of claim 9 wherein a removable weight comprises a
biasing member for holding the weight in place in the weight
cavity.
16. The clubhead of claim 9 further comprising a base plate having
a series of grooves oriented along the line of putt, the base plate
connected to the bottom.
17. The clubhead of claim 9 further comprising a side connected to
the top and bottom.
18. The clubhead of claim 17 wherein the side comprises one or more
weight windows through which the interior of the weight cavities
can be seen.
19. The clubhead of claim 17 wherein the side comprises one or more
alignment apertures.
20. A clubhead comprising: a. one or more weight cavities for
receiving one or more removable weights; and b. a base plate
attached to the bottom of the clubhead, the base plate having a
series of grooves oriented along the line of putt.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of and is a
continuation-in-part of co-pending application Ser. No. 11/229,072
filed Sep. 15, 2005, which is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No.
10/920,596 filed Aug. 16, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,041,004, which
is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 10/351,495 filed
Jan. 23, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,776,727, all of which are hereby
incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates to putters that can be used for
practice and play, with either a right or left-handed stroke.
Specifically, this invention is a putter rotatable from a first
position to strike a golf ball with a practice face of a clubhead
to a second position to strike a golf ball with a play face of the
clubhead. The putter includes a rotatable hosel and alignment cap
that are fixable to the clubhead to form a single unit, in
compliance with the USGA Rules of Golf.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Golf is governed by The Rules of Golf as approved by the
United States Golf Association and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club
of St. Andrews, Scotland, referred to herein as the USGA Rules. The
most current rules are available from www.USGA.org. A typical game
of golf is played on a course having 18 holes and a golfer may
carry up to fourteen clubs with him during play. An average golfer
uses over 80 strokes to complete the game, and typically half of
those stokes are putts. Therefore, the putter is by far the most
important of the regulation 14 golf clubs in a golfer's bag, and
improved putting will improve a player's score more than
improvement in any other stroke.
[0004] Consequently, thousands of devices and methods have been
devised to help a golfer improve his putting, ranging from the
practical to the absurd. Most of these devices do not conform to
the design of clubs specified by the USGA Rules, however, and
therefore are used during practice only. The golfer must switch
putters to play a round of golf, thus changing the primary tool
with which he perfected his stroke. As a result, the putt strokes
during play are seldom as good as during practice. It would be
advantageous, then, to provide a putter that conforms to the USGA
Rules so that the golfer can use the same putter in practice as in
play.
[0005] Under the USGA Rules, the putter shall have a shaft and a
head, fixed to form one unit. When the golf club is in its normal
position to address the ball, the shaft shall be aligned so that
the projection of the straight part of the shaft onto the vertical
plane through the toe and heel shall diverge from the vertical by
at least 10 degrees. Further, the projection of the straight part
of the shaft onto the vertical plane along the intended line of
play shall not diverge from the vertical by more than 20 degrees.
The USGA Rules further require that the clubhead meet specific
criteria. For example, the distance from the heel to the toe of a
putter shall be greater than the distance from the play face to the
back. These rules limit the orientation of the shaft to the
clubhead, and therefore the balance of the putter, a major factor
in aligning the ball and in putting consistently.
[0006] The penalty for playing a game of golf with a putter that
does not conform to the USGA Rules is disqualification from the
game. However, with the many rules pertaining to the design of
putters, it is difficult to design a club that provides quality
training features for practicing and yet can be used for play. It
is desirable to provide a single putter that can be converted from
a practice putter to a play putter that conforms to USGA Rules.
[0007] For putters that are convertible from practice to play, one
of the most difficult USGA Rules to comply with relates to
"providing a putter with a shaft and a head, fixed to form one
unit." The fit between the clubhead and shaft must be extremely
tight as to be essentially one unit.
[0008] It would also be desirable for a golfer to practice with
putters of various weights to determine which weight makes the most
accurate puts. Further, as a golfer's stroke changes over time, the
golfer may want to change the weight of the putter. While a golfer
can buy several putters each of a different weight, multiple
putters are expensive and each one has its own characteristics that
require the golfer to practice with to become accurate. It would be
desirable to have a single putter that allows the golfer to change
its weight.
[0009] During the putt stroke, the clubhead passes above the solid
ground by only a very short distance. The length and density of the
grass on each green may vary, causing the friction against the
putter to vary accordingly. It would be desirable to have nearly
constant friction against the putter on every green, so that a
uniform putt stroke could be used from green to green. One way to
make the friction as constant as possible is to reduce it as much
as possible.
[0010] Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to
provide a putter with a clubhead that is capable of rotating from a
first position to strike the ball with a practice face to a second
position to strike the ball with play face in which the shaft and
clubhead that are fixed so securely that they form essentially one
unit. It is another object of this invention to provide a putter
that enables the golfer to change its weight. It is another object
to provide a putter in which the friction between the clubhead and
grass is minimized. It is also an object of this invention to
provide a putter that enables the golfer to determine which strokes
are the best during practice so that he may practice those strokes
repeatedly and learn to stroke the ball consistently in play. It is
another object of this invention to provide a single putter that
can be used for both practice and play. It is a further object of
this invention to provide a putter in which the shaft always
diverges at least 10 degrees from the sole of the clubhead,
regardless which orientation the golfer holds the puffer when
addressing the ball.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention is a putter with a clubhead that
rotates from a first position to strike the ball with a practice
face to a second position to strike the ball with a play face. The
putter includes a hosel with an attached alignment cap that fits in
mated recesses defined by the clubhead so that the shaft and
clubhead are fixed as essentially one unit. The clubhead of the
present invention also enables one or more weights to be inserted
within the clubhead to alter the clubhead's weight. Finally, the
putter includes a base plate attached to the bottom of the clubhead
to reduce any friction that may be present between the green and
the clubhead.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the putter showing the
practice face;
[0013] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the putter showing the play
face;
[0014] FIG. 2a is a perspective view of the putter showing the play
face without a play insert;
[0015] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the practice
face;
[0016] FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of the putter showing the
alignment cap rotated out of alignment;
[0017] FIG. 5a is a top perspective view of the clubhead with the
alignment cap, hosel and shaft removed;
[0018] FIG. 5b shows a weight.
[0019] FIG. 6 shows a cross section taken along line 6-6 of FIG.
1.
[0020] FIG. 7 illustrates a partially-exploded bottom perspective
view of the putter;
[0021] FIG. 8 illustrates a golfer practicing a right-handed putt
stroke with the practice-face;
[0022] FIG. 9 illustrates a golfer playing a right-handed putt
stroke with the play face.
[0023] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of
the clubhead showing alignment marks and the practice face;
[0024] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of
the clubhead showing alignment marks and the play face without a
play insert;
[0025] FIG. 12a is a top perspective view of an alternate
embodiment of the clubhead with the alignment cap, hosel and shaft
removed;
[0026] FIG. 12b shows a weight having a rubber gasket;
[0027] FIG. 13 shows a cross section taken along line T-T of FIG.
10;
[0028] FIG. 14 illustrates a partially-exploded bottom perspective
view of an alternate embodiment of the putter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0029] The present invention comprises a putter having a shaft 12
attached to a clubhead 11 with a hosel 13. See FIGS. 1-7 and 10-14.
The present device may be used with shafts of any length. The hosel
13 includes an alignment cap 18 that firmly secures clubhead 11 to
shaft 12 to form a unit that is not conveniently taken apart. The
clubhead 11 has two faces, a practice face 14 and a play face 15.
Only the play face 15 is used as a striking surface during play,
thereby conforming with a USGA Rule that a clubhead have only one
striking face. The shaft 12 is attached to the clubhead 11 in such
a way that the clubhead can rotate from a practice position to a
play position, keeping the shaft in the same position relative to
the golfer. See FIG. 1 which shows the practice face 14 of the
clubhead 11 in the play position for a right handed golfer. FIG. 2
shows the play face 15 of the same putter. FIG. 8 shows a
right-handed golfer 80 making a putt stroke with the practice face
14 and FIG. 9 shows the same golfer 80 making a putt with a play
face 15.
[0030] The shaft 12 is attached to the hosel 13 as shown in FIG. 4.
The hosel 13 may have one or more alignment marks for aligning the
clubhead 11 along the line of putt, such as an alignment line 7 or
alignment circles 8. The alignment line 7 or alignment circles 8
may function independently or in cooperation with additional
alignment marks on the alignment cap 18, such as one or more
perpendicular alignment lines 9 which are obscured by the shaft 12
when the putter is aligned perpendicular to the line of putt. The
hosel 13 is attached to the alignment cap 18, which cooperates with
one or more mated structures in the clubhead 11 to align the shaft
12 and the clubhead 11. As used herein, "attached" means that the
parts are integral with each other or are separate components that
have been connected to each other. In the preferred embodiment, the
alignment cap 18 includes three lobes 24a, 24b, and 24c which
engage three mated recesses 26a, 26b, and 26c which are defined by
the clubhead 11. See FIGS. 4 and 5a. In the preferred embodiment,
the recesses 26 are connected to each other, but non-connected
recesses 26 could be used and fall within the scope of the present
invention. In alternative embodiments, the number of mated lobes
and recesses can be increased or decreased, and the shape of the
lobes and recesses can be changed, for example from circular to
square, ovoid, triangular or other shape. Additionally, instead of
lobes and recesses, pins, pegs or other types of protrusions could
be placed on the alignment cap 18 to engage apertures, holes or any
other type of recess located on the clubhead 11. Alternatively, the
clubhead could have protrusions that mate with apertures in the
alignment cap.
[0031] When three lobes 24 are used, a center lobe 24b is designed
to fit within a center recess 26b defined by the clubhead 11. See
FIGS. 4 and 5a. The remaining two side lobes, 24a and 24c in turn
engage corresponding recesses 26a and 26c. The mated structures
ensure that the shaft 12 and the clubhead 11 are aligned and
tightly secured to each other.
[0032] As shown in FIGS. 6 and 13, a first attachment structure
causes the alignment cap 18 to be rotatably retained to the
clubhead 11. The first attachment structure may also fix the
alignment cap 10 securely to the clubhead, or a second attachment
structure may be used for that purpose. In the first attachment
structure, a retention screw 40 is aligned through a mated
retention aperture 41 that extends through the clubhead 11 and into
the alignment cap 18. The retention aperture 41 has smooth
sidewalls where it goes through the clubhead 11 but the retention
aperture is matedly threaded in the alignment cap 18 to securely
receive the retention screw 40. The retention screw 40 may be
screwed into the retention aperture 41 to a tightened position
where the alignment cap 18 is fixed securely within the recesses,
making the putter essentially one unit to satisfy USGA rules. The
retention screw 40 can then be partially screwed out of the
retention aperture 41 to a loosened position, wherein the alignment
cap 18 can be separated from the clubhead 11 distance "A" while
still being retained thereto, so that it swivels freely. The
retention screw 40 may take the form of a regular screw, a Chicago
screw, rivet, detent and socket pair, or other device that allows
the alignment cap 18 to be rotatably retained to the clubhead.
Preferably the retention screw 40 is a hex screw or some other
screw with a head that would be difficult or time-consuming to
remove while on a golf course. The distance "A" that the alignment
cap 18 can be separated from the clubhead 11 is greater than or
equal to the thickness "B" of the alignment cap 18. This
facilitates the rotation of the shaft from a practice position to a
play position and allows access to the weight cavities 46.
[0033] In the second attachment structure, a set screw 42 is
aligned through one of two mated set apertures 43 that extend
through the alignment cap 18 and into the clubhead 11. The clubhead
portion of the set aperture 43 is matedly threaded to securely
receive the set screw 42. See FIG. 6. The portion of the set
aperture 43 in the alignment cap 18 can be smooth-walled or
threaded. As a result, when the set screw 42 is in place, the
alignment cap 18 cannot be separated from the clubhead 11. This
prevents the rotation of the shaft 12 and fixes the shaft 12 and
the clubhead 11 together to form essentially one unit. Preferably
the set screw 42 is a hex screw or some other screw with a head
that would be difficult or time-consuming to remove while on a golf
course.
[0034] The clubhead 11 is switched from a practice position to a
play position by unscrewing the retention screw 40 to the loosened
position. If a set screw 42 is used, the set screw 42 is removed so
that the shaft 12 may be pulled away from the clubhead 11. Once the
hosel 13 and alignment cap 18 are free of their seated position in
the clubhead 11, the clubhead 11 is rotated approximately 180
degrees relative to the shaft 12. The hosel 13 is guided to its
seated position by placing lobes 24a, 24b, 24c within recesses 26a,
26b, 26c and the play face 15 is now facing the ball. The process
is completed by returning the retention screw 40 to the tightened
position and, if used, re-inserting and tightening set screw 42
into the other set aperture 43.
[0035] In the preferred embodiment, the clubhead 11 has recesses 46
to hold removable weights. See FIGS. 5a and 5b. The recesses are
referred to herein as weight cavities 46. One or more weights 38
may be inserted into each weight cavity 46 to adjust the weight of
clubhead 11 to the golfer's liking. See FIG. 5b. Preferably the
weights 38 fit snugly in the weight cavities 46. To facilitate a
snug fit, the weights 38 may include a biasing member such as a
rubber gasket 53, shown in FIG. 12b. A golfer can vary the weight
of clubhead 11 by using equally-sized weights 38 made of different
materials that have different densities. For example, aluminum
weights would cause the club to weigh less than brass weights,
which would weigh less than lead weights. Preferably only a single
weight 38 is placed within each of the cavities, which complies
with USGA Rules, but alternatively several weights 38 can be placed
in cavities. Preferably, the weight cavities 46 are aligned with
the recesses 26 such that the weights are retained within the
weight cavity by the alignment cap. Aligning the weight cavities 46
will also make it easier to load the weights 38 and to manufacture
the clubhead.
[0036] Further, in the preferred embodiment, the clubhead 11 has
one or more apertures on the practice face 14 that allow the golfer
to see the weight 38 in the weight cavity 46 without having to
remove the alignment cap 18. By using weights of different colors,
whether painted or simply by the nature of the material used, the
golfer can quickly determine which weights are in the clubhead and
therefore the weight. These apertures are referred to herein as
weight windows 51. Referring to FIGS. 12a, 13, and 14, the clubhead
11 may also have one or more ejection apertures 52 that extend
through the bottom of the clubhead into the weight cavities 46. The
golfer may insert a tool into the ejection aperture 52 to push the
weight 38 out of the weight cavity 46. Preferably, the ejection
apertures 52 are large enough to allow the golfer to insert the
same screwdriver he would use to loosen the retention screw 40.
[0037] As described in the related applications and patent, the
practice face 14 has a substantially circular insert, referred to
as a practice insert 16. The practice insert 16 is convex relative
to the practice face 14, and the practice face 14 shape ranges from
elliptical to spherical. The curved shape limits the number of
points at which the practice face 14 can strike a golf ball in
order for the golf ball to move in a straight line perpendicular to
the practice face 14, referred to as the line of putt. Hitting the
center of the golf ball with the center of the practice face 14
will cause the golf ball to move on the perpendicular line.
However, if the golfer hits the golf ball with any part of the
practice face 14 other than the center of the practice insert 16,
the golf ball will veer off the perpendicular line. The farther
away from the center of the practice insert 16, the worse the veer
angle will be.
[0038] Preferably the practice insert 16 is an ellipse. With an
elliptically practice insert 16, the veer is relatively small at
short radii from its center, thereby being somewhat forgiving to a
less-than-perfect stroke. This approximates the amount of
forgiveness of putts in play, because slight deviations for a
perfect line of putt will not prevent the golf ball from falling in
the hole. However, as the veer angle grows increasingly larger
farther away from the center of the practice face 14, the "penalty"
for a bad stroke increases as the strokes become increasingly
off-center. A spherical practice insert may also be used; it
provides a less forgiving center, but a more forgiving perimeter,
as the veer angle changes relatively less than at the perimeter of
an elliptical practice insert. The "penalty" for a bad stroke is
constant regardless of how off-center the stroke is. It is likely
that a better golfer will use the spherical practice insert to fine
tune his putt stroke.
[0039] In addition to the curvature of the practice insert 16, the
present invention includes a number of alignment apertures 50 for
assisting the golfer in visualizing a straight line to the ball or
other desired point. Each alignment aperture is made in the
clubhead 11 to receive a lightweight post that extends
substantially perpendicularly from the practice face 14. A
conventional drinking straw is suitable for the post, as is it
extremely lightweight and most convenient to obtain at a golf
course. Preferably, the diameter of each aperture is made to enable
a drinking straw to be inserted and held in place snugly simply by
friction. A post can be inserted in any one or more of the
alignment apertures, in whichever placement the golfer finds it
assists his alignment the best. In the preferred embodiment, the
practice face 14 has two alignment apertures, however more are
acceptable.
[0040] The play face 15 may also have a substantially circular
insert, referred to as a play insert 17. The play insert 17 is
inwardly parabolic relative to the play face 15, ranging from flat
to concave. A flat striking face is required under USGA Rules, so a
flat play insert should be used when playing a round of golf.
Alternatively, the play insert 17 can be omitted such. See FIG.
2a.
[0041] A parabolic-shaped play insert is self-correcting to some
degree, because the curve of the insert will urge the golf ball to
the center of the parabola before redirecting the ball away from
the play face. A parabola is the set of all points in a plane
equidistant from a fixed point (called the focus) and a fixed line
(called the directrix). The formula for a parabola is
generally:
y = x 2 4 p ##EQU00001##
[0042] Thus, when p is large, the curvature of the play insert 17
is great and the ball is strongly urged to the center of the
parabola. As the parabola flattens out, that is, as p becomes
small, the play insert 17 provides less assistance in getting the
ball to travel on the putt line perpendicular to the play face.
When the parabola is flat, that is, when y is constant, the
striking face is flat, and the putter 10 provides no
self-correcting assistance to the golfer. Preferably, the play
insert 17 is flat so that the putter 10 conforms to USGA Rules.
FIGS. 1-3 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the clubhead 11
having a curved practice insert 16 and flat play insert 17.
[0043] As shown in FIG. 7, the clubhead 11 includes a base plate 62
that is attached to the clubhead 11, preferably by friction fit,
although, glue, another adhesive, at least one screw, or any other
attachment mechanism may suffice. The base plate 62 preferably has
a cross section to minimize the amount of head surface that comes
into contact with green. The base plate 62 may be smooth or,
preferably, include a series of ridges 66 creating grooves aligned
along the line of putt that allow grass to pass through them
thereby reducing the amount of friction between clubhead 11 and the
ground. The grooves aid in combing the green thus aiding the golfer
in holding the head perpendicular to the intended line while the
stroke is in the critical phase of moving across the green.
Preferably, the base plate 62 has apertures (not shown) through it
to permit access to the retention screw 40 and ejection apertures
52 while the base plate is attached to the clubhead 11. The golfer
may carry several interchangeable base plates 62 having grooves of
various sizes and spacing, which the golfer may use depending on
personal preference, weather conditions, or amount of wear due to
use.
[0044] The clubhead is made of any durable material, and preferably
metal such as aluminum, brass or steel. The practice insert 16 is
also made of a durable material, but preferably a hard composite
material such as a polymer that provides for a satisfying "thunk,"
such as Surlyn.RTM. thermoplastic resin sold by the E.I. DuPont
DeNemours and Company, which was the first and most durable cover
material that revolutionized the construction of the golf ball when
it was introduced in the 1980s. The play insert 17 is made of
durable materials, metal or composite, and preferably the same
material as the practice insert 16 so that the feel of the practice
stroke is the same as the stroke during play.
[0045] One USGA Rule requires that the projection of the straight
part of the shaft 12 onto the vertical plane through the toe and
heel shall diverge from the vertical by at least 10 degrees. In
other words, the angle between the shaft 12 and the sole of the
club must be less than 80 degrees. FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate a
golfer 80 practicing a right-handed putt stroke into hole 83. The
golfer uses the practice face 14 to hit the ball and improve his
aim. By rotating the putter approximately 180 degrees in his hands,
the golfer can use the same putter 10 and the same stance to putt
in play. FIG. 9 illustrates the same golfer putting in play, using
the play face 15 as the striking face.
[0046] While there has been illustrated and described what is at
present considered to be the preferred embodiment of the present
invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that
various changes and modifications may be made and equivalents may
be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the true
scope of the invention. Therefore, it is intended that this
invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed,
but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within
the scope of the appended claims.
* * * * *
References