Golf Clubs and Golf Club Heads

• US 20110021283A1
• Filed: 07/21/2009
• Published: 01/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/21/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Karsten Manufacturing Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Inventors: Hatton, Philip J., Oldknow, Andrew G.V.
• Granted Patent: US 8,216,088 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/291
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2053/0491 with added weights, e.g. changeable, replaceable
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/04 Heads
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0416 Heads having an impact surface provided by a face insert
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0425 the face insert comprising two or more different materials
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0433 with special sole configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0437 with special crown configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/047 iron-type
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0475 with one or more enclosed cavities
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/06 adjustable
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/00 Details or accessories of golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/02 Ballast means for adjusting the centre of mass A63B60/24, A63B60/54 take precedence

Abstract

A golf club includes a golf club head having a body, a ball-striking face member and one or more mass members. The body extends from a shaft-attachment structure. The ball-striking face member is located on a front surface of the body. The body is configured to releasably accommodate a first mass member in a first region on its back surface and a second mass member in a second region on its back surface. At least one of the first and second mass members may be releasably attached to the back surface. The ball-striking face member may have an average density that is less than the average density of the body. The mass members may have an average density that is more than the average density of the ball-striking face member and/or of the body. The mass distribution of the club head may be customized via the selection and attachment of a particular mass member. The golf club head may be an iron-type golf club head.

Claims

1. A head for an iron-type golf club comprising:

an iron-type body extending from a shaft-attachment structure, the iron-type body having a first average density; and

a ball-striking face member located on a front surface of the iron-type body, the ball-striking face having a second average density that is less than the first average density;

wherein the iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate a first mass member on the back surface of the iron-type body, and

wherein the iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate a second mass member on the back surface of the iron-type body.

2. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 1, wherein the iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate first and second mass members having different shapes.

3. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 1, wherein the iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate the first mass member adjacent to substantially the entire back-surface peripheral bottom edge of the iron-type body and to releasably accommodate the second mass member adjacent to substantially the entire back-surface peripheral top edge of the iron-type body.

4. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 1, wherein the iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate the first mass member adjacent to substantially the entire back-surface peripheral edge of the iron-type body.

5. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 1, further comprising:

the first mass member releasably attached to the back surface of the iron-type body.

6. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 5, wherein the first average density is less than an average density of the first mass member.

7. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 5, wherein the first mass member is located adjacent at least a portion of the peripheral back-surface edge of the iron-type body.

8. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 5, further comprising:

the second mass member releasably attached to the back surface of the iron-type body.

9. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 1,

wherein the back surface of the iron-type body includes one or more channels extending along the peripheral back-surface edge of the iron-type body, and

wherein the one or more channels are configured to accommodate the first and the second mass members at least partially within the channels.

10. The head for the iron-type golf club according to claim 1, wherein the ball-striking face member forms at least a portion of a front-surface peripheral edge of the head.

11. A golf club comprising:

an iron-type golf club head according to claim 1; and

a golf club shaft attached to the iron-type golf club head.

12. An iron-type golf club comprising:

a golf club shaft;

an iron-type golf club body attached to the shaft, the body extending from a heel region to a toe region and having a front surface and a back surface; and

a ball-striking face member located on the front surface of the body, wherein an average density of the ball-striking face member is less than an average density of the body, and

wherein the body has a mass member accommodating feature on the back surface of the body, the mass member accommodating feature located adjacent to the peripheral back-surface edge of the body and configured to releasably accommodate a first mass member, having a first shape, on the back surface.

13. The iron-type golf club according to claim 12, wherein the body is configured to interchangeably accommodate a second mass member, having a second shape different from the first shape, with the first mass member.

14. The iron-type golf club according to claim 12, wherein the body is configured to simultaneously accommodate a second mass member with the first mass member.

15. The iron-type golf club according to claim 12, wherein the mass member accommodating feature includes one or more channels extending at least partially along the peripheral back-surface edge of the body.

16. The iron-type golf club according to claim 15, wherein the channels are configured to accommodate the first mass member in a first region of the channels and wherein the channels are further configured to accommodate a second mass member in a second region of the channels.

17. The iron-type golf club according to claim 15, wherein the channels are configured to accommodate the first mass member and wherein the channels are further configured to accommodate a second mass member having a second shape different from the first shape.

18. The iron-type golf club according to claim 15, wherein the channels are configured to accommodate the first mass member adjacent to a peripheral back-surface bottom edge and are further configured to accommodate a second mass member adjacent to a peripheral back-surface top edge.

19. The iron-type golf club according to claim 12, wherein the mass member accommodating feature includes one or more threaded fastener holes.

20. The iron-type golf club according to claim 12, further comprising:

a first mass member releasably accommodated by the first mass member accommodating feature.

21. The iron-type golf club according to claim 20, wherein the average density of the body is less than the average density of the first mass member.

22. A system for customizing the mass distribution of an iron-type golf club comprising:

an iron-type body extending from a shaft-attachment structure, the iron-type body having a first average density;

a ball-striking face member located on a front surface of the iron-type body, the ball-striking face having a second average density that is less than the first average density;

wherein the iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate first and second mass members on the back surface of the iron-type body, and

further comprising;

the first mass member; and

the second mass member.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein at least one of the first mass member and the second mass member has a third average density that is greater than the second average density.

24. The system according to claim 22, wherein the first mass member has a different shape than the second mass member.

25. The system according to claim 22, wherein the iron-type body is configured to accommodate the first mass member within a first region on the back surface of the iron-type body, and wherein the iron-type body is configured to accommodate the second mass member within a second region on the back surface of the iron-type body.

26. The system according to claim 22, wherein the iron-type body is configured to interchangeably accommodate the first mass member and the second mass member.

27. The system according to claim 22, wherein the iron-type body is configured to simultaneously accommodate both the first mass member and the second mass member.

28. The system according to claim 22,

wherein the back surface of the iron-type body includes a channel extending adjacent to the peripheral back-surface edge of the iron-type body, and

wherein the channel is configured to accommodate at least one of the first and second mass members at least partially within the channel.

29. The system according to claim 22, wherein iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate the first mass member on the back surface of the iron-type body in a region that extends along substantially the entire back-surface peripheral edge of the iron-type body.

30. The system according to claim 22, wherein iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate the first mass member on the back surface of the iron-type body in a region that extends along substantially the entire back-surface peripheral bottom edge of the iron-type body.

31. The system according to claim 22, wherein iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate the first mass member on the back surface of the iron-type body in a region that extends along substantially the entire back-surface peripheral top edge of the iron-type body.

32. The system according to claim 22, wherein iron-type body is configured to releasably accommodate the first mass member on the back surface of the iron-type body in a region that extends along substantially the entire back-surface peripheral bottom and toe edges of the iron-type body.

33. A method for customizing the mass distribution of a golf club head comprising:

providing a golf club body having a ball-striking face member, the body having a first average density and the ball-striking face member having a second average density, the golf club body having first and second regions configured to accommodate the attachment of first and second mass members, respectively;

providing a first mass member having a third average density greater than the second average density; and

attaching the first mass member on a back surface of the golf club body adjacent to a peripheral back-surface edge of the golf club body.

34. The method for customizing the mass distribution of a golf club head according to claim 33, wherein the third average density is greater than the first average density.

35. The method for customizing the mass distribution of a golf club head according to claim 33, further comprising:

providing a second mass member having a different shape than the first mass member; and

attaching the second mass member on a back surface of the golf club body adjacent to a peripheral back-surface edge of the golf club body.

36. The method for customizing the mass distribution of a golf club head according to claim 35, further comprising:

detaching the first mass member from the golf club body prior to attaching the second mass member.