Golf club head

• US 5,931,742 A
• Filed: 09/29/1997
• Issued: 08/03/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yokohama Rubber Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yokohama Rubber Company Limited
• Inventors: Miyamoto, Masahiko, Nishimura, Toshinori
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Kien T.
• Application Number:
  US08/940,018
• Time in Patent Office: 673 Days
• Field of Search: 473/305, 473/308, 473/309, 473/310, 473/311, 473/345, 473/349
• US Class Current: 473/305
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/02 Joint structures between the head and the shaft
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/00 Details or accessories of golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like

Abstract

A metallic hollow golf club head comprising a head main body having a sole and a crown, a shaft insertion hole provided in the crown, and a hosel for supporting an end of a shaft secured to the inner surface of the sole, the top end of the hosel being kept untouched to the shaft insertion hole.

Claims

1. A metallic hollow golf club head comprising a hollow head main body of metal having a sole and a crown, a shaft insertion hole in said crown, and a hosel comprising a hollow tube for receiving a lower end of a shaft and having a bottom end secured to an inner surface of said sole, a top end of said hosel being out of direct contact said shaft insertion hole to permit relative movement between the top end of said hosel and the crown of the head main body when the club head is swung or impacts a ball.

2. The golf club head of claim 1 wherein the hollow head main body is a wood-type golf club head.

3. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the top end of said hosel extends through the shaft insertion hole and protrudes beyond an exterior surface of said crown.

4. The golf club head of claim 3, further comprising elastic material between said shaft insertion hole and said hosel.

5. The golf club head of claim 3, further comprising a flange on the top end of said hosel for sealing a gap between said shaft insertion hole and said hosel.

6. The golf club head of claim 3, further comprising sealing material in a gap between said hosel and said shaft insertion hole.

7. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the top end of said hosel is located inside said crown.

8. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the bottom end of said hosel that is secured to the inner surface of said sole is thicker than the top end of said hosel.

9. The golf club head of claim 1, further comprising ribs on the bottom end of said hosel that are secured to said sole.

10. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein said crown comprises a metal having a low specific gravity, and said sole and said hosel comprise a metal having a higher specific gravity than said metal of said crown.

11. The golf club head of claim 10, wherein said metal having a low specific gravity is selected from the group consisting of titanium and aluminium.

12. The golf club head of claim 10, wherein said metal having a higher specific gravity is selected from the group consisting of copper, steel, brass and tungsten.

13. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein said sole and said hosel are of the same metal.

14. The golf club head of claim 1, said shaft insertion hole comprises an elongated long hole extending from a face side of said head main body to a rear side thereof.

15. The golf club head of claim 1, further comprising filling material filled inside a hollow portion of said head main body for sealing said shaft insertion hole.

16. The golf club head of claim 1, further comprising an air bag contained within a hollow portion of said head main body for sealing said shaft insertion hole.