Golf club head

• US 7,303,487 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2005
• Issued: 12/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Original Assignee: SRI Sports Limited (Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited)
• Inventors: Kumamoto, Tomio
• Primary Examiner(s): Passaniti; Sebastiano
• Application Number:
  US11/079,183
• Publication Number:
  US 20050215354A1
• Time in Patent Office: 994 Days
• Field of Search: 473345-349
• US Class Current: 473/345
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2209/02 with reinforcing fibres, e.g. carbon, polyamide fibres
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0433 with special sole configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0437 with special crown configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0466 wood-type

Abstract

A golf club head having face, crown, sole and side portions, and comprising a metal head base body (M) having at least one opening and a cover (FR) arranged in the opening and made of a material having a specific gravity smaller than the base body, wherein when the head is sectioned into head toe side portion (1t) and head heel side portion (1h) by a vertical plane including a normal line drawn from a head center of gravity to a face surface, the surface area of The cover covering a portion of the opening included in the head toe side portion is larger Than the surface area of the cover covering a portion of The opening included in the head heel side portion, and the weight of the head heel side portion (1h) is from 55 to 75% of the entire weight of the head.

Claims

1. A golf club head comprising:

a face portion hitting a ball;

a crown portion connected to the face portion and forming an upper surface of the head;

a sole portion connected to said face portion and forming a head bottom surface;

a side portion extending between said crown portion and said sole portion from a toe of the face portion through a back face to a heel, and

a neck portion having a shaft insertion hole,

wherein the golf club head includes a head base body made of a metal material and provided with at least one opening portion, and a cover body arranged in said opening portion and made of a lower specific gravity material having a specific gravity smaller than said metal material, said head base body including said face portion, said neck portion, a crown main wall portion forming a main portion of said crown portion, a sole main wall portion forming a main portion of said sole portion, and a side main wall portion forming a main portion of said side portion,

wherein said opening portion includes at least one of a crown opening portion open in said crown portion, a side opening portion open in said side portion and a sole opening portion open in said sole portion,

wherein in a head toe side portion and a head heel side portion obtained by virtually sectioning the head by a vertical surface including a normal line drawn from the center of gravity of the head to the face surface in a standard state of being mounted on a horizontal surface at prescribed lie angle and loft angle, a surface area St of a portion of said cover body closing a portion of said opening portion which is located in said head toe side portion is made larger than a surface area Sh of the remaining portion of said cover body closing a portion of said opening portion which is located in said head heel side portion, and a weight Wh of the head heel side portion is set to 55 to 75% of the entire weight of the head, and

wherein the shortest distance from the head'"'"'s center of gravity to the axial center line of said shaft insertion hole is from 20 to 45 mm.

2. A golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein a specific gravity of said low specific gravity material is 1.0 to 2.0, and a specific gravity of said metal material is 4.0 to 10.0.

3. A golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said low specific gravity material is constituted by a fiber reinforced resin.

4. A golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein in said standard state, a moment of inertia around a vertical axis passing through a head gravity point is 3300 to 5500 (g·

cm²), and a head volume is 300 to 500 (cm³).

5. A golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said opening portion is structured such that said crown opening portion, said side opening portion and said sole opening portion are connected, and is constituted by one extending to said sole portion from said crown portion across said side portion on a rear side of the head.

6. A golf club head as claimed in claim 1, wherein said head base body has a single opening portion formed in at least one of said crown portion, said side portion and said sole portion.

7. A golf club head comprising:

a head base body including a face portion hitting a ball, a crown portion connected to said face portion and forming an upper surface of the head, a sole portion connected to said face portion and forming a head bottom surface, a side portion extending between said crown portion and said sole portion from a toe of said face portion through a back face to a heel, and a neck portion having a shaft insertion hole, and having at least one opening portion fonned in at least one of said crown portion, said side portion and said sole portion; and

a cover body arranged in said opening portion,

wherein said head base body is made of a metal material, and said cover body is made of a composite material having a specific gravity smaller than said metal material and comprising a matrix resin and a fiber as a reinforcing material having an elastic modulus of 200 to 460 GPa,

wherein in a head toe side portion and a head heel side portion obtained by virtually sectioning the head by a vertical surface including a normal line drawn from the head'"'"'s center of gravity to the face surface in a standard state of being placed on a horizontal surface at prescribed lie angle and loft angle, the surface area St of a portion of said cover body closing a portion of said opening portion which is located in said head toe side portion is larger than the surface area Sh of the remaining portion of said cover body closing a portion of said opening portion which is located in said head heel side portion, and the weight Wh of the head heel side portion is from 55 to 75% of the entire weight of the head, and

wherein the shortest distance from the head'"'"'s center of gravity to the axial center line of said shaft insertion hole is from 20 to 45 mm.

8. A golf club head as claimed in claim 7, wherein said head base body has a single opening portion extending from said crown portion to said sole portion through said side portion on a rear side of the head.

9. A golf club head comprising:

a face portion hitting a ball;

a crown portion connected to the face portion and forming an upper surface of the head;

a sole portion connected to said face portion and forming a head bottom surface; and

a side portion extending between said crown portion and said sole portion from a toe of the face portion through a back face to a heel,

wherein the golf club head includes a head base body made of a metal material and provided with at least one opening portion, and a cover body arranged in said opening portion and made of a lower specific gravity material having a specific gravity smaller than said metal material,

wherein said opening portion includes at least one of a crown opening portion open in said crown portion, a side opening portion open in said side portion and a sole opening portion open in said sole portion,

wherein in a head toe side portion and a head heel side portion obtained by virtually sectioning the head by a vertical surface including a normal line drawn from the head'"'"'s center of gravity to the face surface in a standard state of being mounted on a horizontal surface at prescribed lie angle and loft angle, a surface area St of a portion of said cover body closing a portion of said opening portion which is located in said head toe side portion is larger than a surface area Sh of the remaining portion of said cover body closing a portion of said opening portion which is located in said head heel side portion, and a weight Wh of the head heel side portion is set to 55 to 75% of the entire weight of the head, and

wherein said at least one opening portion is formed so that said crown opening portion, said side opening portion and said sole opening portion are connected to form a single opening extending from said crown portion to said sole portion across said side portion on a rear side of the head.

10. A golf club head as chimed in claim 9, wherein said cover body is in the form of a band.