Fairway wood center of gravity projection

• US 9,700,769 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2014
• Issued: 07/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Co., Inc.
• Original Assignee: Taylor Made Golf Co., Inc.
• Inventors: Hoffman, Joseph Henry, Beach, Todd P., Kronenberg, Marc, Penney, Michelle, Johnson, Matthew David, Sargent, Nathan T., Willett, Kraig Alan, Greensmith, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): Passaniti, Sebastiano
• Application Number:
  US14/575,745
• Publication Number:
  US 20150105177A1
• Time in Patent Office: 936 Days
• Field of Search: 473287-292, 473324-350
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2053/0491 with added weights, e.g. changeable, replaceable
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2209/00 Characteristics of used materials
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2209/02 with reinforcing fibres, e.g. carbon, polyamide fibres
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/02 Joint structures between the head and the shaft
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/023 adjustable angular orientation
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0408 characterised by specific dimensions, e.g. thickness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0412 Volume
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0433 with special sole configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/045 Strengthening ribs
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0466 wood-type
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/047 iron-type
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0487 for putters A63B53/065 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/06 adjustable
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/52 with slits

Abstract

A golf club head includes a body defining an interior cavity. The body includes a sole positioned at a bottom portion of the golf club head, a crown positioned at a top portion, and a skirt positioned around a periphery between the sole and crown. The body has a forward portion and a rearward portion. The club head includes a face positioned at the forward portion of the body. The face defines a striking surface having an ideal impact location at a golf club head origin. Embodiments include club heads for a fairway wood that at least one of a high moment of inertia, a low center-of-gravity, a thin crown and a high coefficient of restitution. A sleeve for easily disconnecting a shaft to the club head allows for selective adjustment of the head'"'"'s loft and lie angle.

Claims

1. A golf club head, comprising:

a body defining an interior cavity, a sole portion positioned at a bottom portion of the golf club head, a crown portion positioned at a top portion, the body also having a forward portion and a rearward portion and a maximum above ground height; and

a face positioned at the forward portion of the body;

wherein,

the body height is less than about 46 mm,

the face has a loft angle greater than about 13 degrees, and

the golf club head has a center of gravity (CG) projection of less than about 3 mm above a center of the face,

wherein the crown has a thickness less than about 0.65 mm over at least about 70% of the crown;

a sleeve for adjustably securing a shaft to the golf club head to selectively adjust at least one of a loft angle, lie angle and face angle of the club head.

2. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the CG projection is less than about 1.4 mm above a center of the face.

3. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the coefficient of restitution is about 0.82.

4. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the coefficient of restitution is 0.82 or greater.

5. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein a volume of the golf club head is less than about 240 cm³.

6. The golf dub head of claim 1, further comprising a channel defined in the sole adjacent the face and extending into the interior cavity of the club head, wherein a portion of the sole being located between the face and the channel.

7. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein a coefficient of restitution of the golf club head measured at the center of the face is 0.80 or greater.

8. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein a coefficient of restitution of the golf dub head measured at the center of the face is 0.81 or greater.

9. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the golf club head has an above ground center-of-gravity location, Zup, less than about 19.0 mm.

10. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein an average characteristic time is about 241 microseconds.

11. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein a mass of the golf club head is between about 185 grams and about 245 grams.

12. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein a mass of the golf club head is between about 200 grams and about 220 grams.

13. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the golf club head is formed of at least one alloy of titanium.

14. The golf club head of claim 1, wherein the golf club head is formed of at least one alloy of steel.

15. A golf club head, comprising:

a body defining an interior cavity, a sole portion positioned at a bottom portion of the golf club head, a crown portion positioned at a top portion, the body also having a forward portion and a rearward portion and a maximum above ground height;

a face positioned at the forward portion of the body;

a channel defined in the sole adjacent the face and extending into the interior cavity of the club head;

added weight positioned rearward of the channel,

wherein the channel has a greatest vertical dimension of at least 20% of the height of the face;

wherein a portion of the sole being located between the face and the channel; and

a sleeve for adjustably securing a shaft to the golf club head to selectively adjust at least one of a loft angle, lie angle and face angle of the dub head.

16. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the channel has a greatest vertical dimension of at least 30% of the height of the face.

17. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the coefficient of restitution measured at a center of the face is about 0.82.

18. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the coefficient of restitution measured at a center of the face is at least 0.82.

19. The golf club head of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more weight ports formed in the body; and

at least one weight configured to be retained at least partially within one of the one or more weight ports.

20. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the channel defined in the sole adjacent the face includes an added weight received in the channel.

21. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the CG projection is lower than about 2.0 mm above a center of the face.

22. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the CG projection is lower than about 1.0 mm above a center of the face.

23. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein a coefficient of restitution of the club head measured at the center of the face is 0.80 or greater.

24. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein a coefficient of restitution of the golf dub head measured at the center of the face is 0.81 or greater.

25. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the golf club head has an above ground center-of-gravity location, Zup, less than about 19.0 mm.

26. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein an average characteristic time is about 241 microseconds.

27. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein a mass of the golf club head is between about 185 grams and about 245 grams.

28. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein a mass of the golf club head is between about 200 grams and about 220 grams.

29. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the golf club head is formed of at least one alloy of titanium.

30. The golf club head of claim 15, wherein the golf club head is formed of at least one alloy of steel.

31. A golf club head, comprising:

a body defining an interior cavity, a sole portion positioned at a bottom portion of the golf club head, a crown portion positioned at a top portion, and the body also having a forward portion and a rearward portion and a maximum above ground height; and

a face positioned at the forward portion of the body;

a channel defined in the sole adjacent the face and extending into the interior cavity of the club head and a portion of the sole being located between the face and the channel;

wherein, the golf club head has a center of gravity (CG) projection of less than about 3 mm above a center of the face;

wherein the crown has a thickness less than about 0.65 mm over at least about 70% of the crown;

wherein a coefficient of restitution of the golf club head measured at the center of the face is 0.80 or greater;

wherein a mass of the golf club head is between about 185 grams and about 245 grams;

wherein a portion of the golf club head is formed of at least one alloy of titanium;

wherein a maximum dimension from the forward portion to the rearward portion is greater than about 85 mm;

wherein the golf club head has an above ground center-of-gravity location Zup measured in mm;

wherein the golf club head has a moment of inertia about the center-of-gravity z-axis Izz measured in kg-mm²;

wherein a rotational moment of inertia about the center-of-gravity z-axis Izz is related to the above ground center-of-gravity location Zup by the equation Izz≧

13·

Zup+105;

a sleeve for adjustably securing a shaft to the golf club head to selectively adjust at least one of a loft angle, lie angle and face angle of the club head.