Muscle-back, with insert, iron type golf club head

• US 9,908,018 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2014
• Issued: 03/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dunlop Sports Co. Ltd. (Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited)
• Original Assignee: Dunlop Sports Co. Ltd. (Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited)
• Inventors: Roberts, Douglas E., Garner, Trent E., Wolfe, Kevin A., Stone, Daniel J., Beck, Christopher J., Harman, Todd D., Newsome, Brent L., Wallans, Michael J., Radcliffe, Nathaniel J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Passaniti, Sebastiano
• Application Number:
  US14/333,922
• Publication Number:
  US 20140329615A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,328 Days
• Field of Search: 473324-350, 473287-292
• 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 53/005 Club sets
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0408 characterised by specific dimensions, e.g. thickness
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0416 Heads having an impact surface provided by a face insert
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0433 with special sole configurations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0458 with non-uniform thickness of the impact face plate
• 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 60/54 with means for damping vibrations

Abstract

A muscle-back iron golf club head includes a blade-like upper mass, a muscle-like lower mass, a planar front surface, a top surface, a sole surface, a heel surface, a toe surface, and a rear surface having a first contour. A recess is in the rear surface, the recess having a first portion in the blade-like upper mass and a second portion in the muscle-like lower mass. An insert may be provided in the recess, and such insert may substantially fill the recess and may include a back surface having a second contour which is different from the first contour of the club head rear surface.

Claims

1. A plurality of wedge-type golf club heads, each of which when oriented in an address position, comprises:

a striking face having the same loft angle of between 44 degrees and 66 degrees with respect to horizontal plane;

a sole portion;

a rear surface opposite the striking face, the rear surface including a muscle portion at least partially bounded by the sole portion, and defining a recess that extends into the muscle portion toward the striking face, the recess also defined by a bottom surface portion and a perimeter wall portion of said rear surface; and

wherein each of said plurality of club heads has a different bounce and is provided with either a high bounce and a positive step portion that protrudes from said bottom surface and/or said perimeter wall, or a low bounce and a negative step portion that is recessed into the bottom surface and/or said perimeter wall.

2. The golf club heads of claim 1, further comprising:

a sole having a toe width w_t greater than or equal to 0.88 in. and a heel width w_h greater than or equal to 0.75 in.

3. The golf club heads of claim 1, wherein each club head of said plurality of club heads additionally comprises an insert located within the recess so that a rearwardly exposed surface of the insert is opposite the striking face of the club head.

4. The golf club heads of claim 3, wherein the insert has a length measured in a heel to toe direction and a height measured in a top to sole direction that is less than the length.

5. The golf club heads of claim 3, wherein the rearwardly exposed surface of the insert has indicia thereon.

6. The golf club heads of claim 3, wherein the insert has a specific gravity of between 0.9 and 3.0.

7. The golf club heads of claim 6, wherein the specific gravity is between 0.95 and 1.7.

8. The golf heads of claim 3, wherein the insert has a Shore hardness of about 25 A to about 95 A.

9. Thegolf club heads of claim 3, wherein the insert comprises a resilient material.

10. The golf club heads of claim 9, wherein the insert comprises at least one of a polymer, a fiber reinforced plastic, and a low density metal.

11. The golf club heads of claim 3, wherein each club head of said plurality of club heads additionally comprises an insert located within the recess so that a rearwardly exposed surface of the insert is opposite the striking face of the club head, and wherein said inserts in said plurality of club heads, are substantially identical.

12. The golf club heads of claim 1, wherein the recess has a shape such that the recess is substantially symmetrical about at least one axis.

13. The golf club heads of claim 1 wherein each club head of said plurality of club heads additionally comprises a sole surface having a leading edge, whereby the high bounce is provided by a bounce angle of the sole surface extending from the horizontal plane upon which the club head rests at the address position, upwardly to said leading edge, said bounce angle being between ten and about eighteen degrees, and the low bounce is provided by said sole surface and said bounce angle of between about zero to ten degrees.

14. The golf club heads of claim 1, wherein the rear surface of each club head of said plurality of club heads and a size of said recess in said rear surface of each club head of said plurality of club heads are substantially identical in each of said plurality of club heads.

15. The golf club heads of claim 1, wherein each club head of said plurality of club heads additionally comprises an insert located within the recess so that a rearwardly exposed surface of the insert is opposite the striking face of the club head, and the rearwardly exposed surfaces of the inserts in said plurality of club heads, are substantially identical.