Method of golf club performance enhancement and articles resultant therefrom

• US 20040192466A1
• Filed: 04/03/2004
• Published: 09/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Triple Tee Golf, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Triple Tee Golf, Inc.
• Inventors: Gillig, John P.
• Granted Patent: US 7,128,660 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 473/334
• 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 53/0408 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 53/0437 with special crown 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 53/0475 with one or more enclosed cavities
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0487 for putters A63B53/065 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/02 Ballast means for adjusting the centre of mass A63B60/24, A63B60/54 take precedence

Abstract

The performance of a golf club may be enhanced through the provision of a void space behind a face plate and above the sole plate, to decrease club weight and provide single or combinations of selectable weighting elements within volumetric coordinates of an orthonormal matrix about the void space. The weighting coordinates are provided in response to ball strike, flight analysis and physiologic observation of the golf strike swing. Ball backspin, trajectory, penetration and hook or slice may be modified through the use of a definable weighting strategy.

Claims

1. A method of golf club performance enhancement, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) provision of a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) in a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which said sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, the steps of selectably employing at least two of the following club weighting strategies;

(i) to modify backspin, providing within said void space, weighting means at a low Y, low Z coordinate to increase backspin or at a high Y, high Z coordinate to decrease backspin;

(ii) to modify ball penetration, providing within said void space weighting means at a high Y, high Z coordinate to maximize penetration or at a low Y, low Z coordinate to minimize penetration;

(iii) to modify ball trajectory, modifying weighting means within said void space at a low Z-coordinate to increase trajectory or at a high z-coordinate to decrease trajectory; and

(iv) to compensate for ball hook or slice, providing weighting means within said void space at a low X-coordinate to compensate for hook or a high X-coordinate to compensate for slice.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, in which said club weighting strategies further include:

(v) to control ball ballooning, providing weighting means within said void space at a low X, high Y, high Z, coordinate to minimize said ballooning or at a high X, low Y, low Z, coordinate to maximize said ballooning.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, in which said selectable weighting means comprises golfer-replaceable elements.

4. The method as recited in claim 2, in which said selectable weighting means comprise golfer-replaceable elements.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, in which said weighting means comprises a weight which is non-uniform along one or more of said X, Y and Z axes.

6. The method as recited in claim 3, in which said selectable weighting means comprises golfer-replaceable elements.

7. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, comprising:

a weighting strip secured substantially along a Y3 position of said void space, at a Z1 height, and having a length corresponding to the X1 to X3 locations.

8. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, for narrowing the sweet spot of the face of said club, comprising a weighting element positioned at about a (X2, Y1, Z2) coordinate.

9. An article resultant of the method of claim 1 for broadening the sweet spot of the golf face, comprising:

a horseshoe-like weighting element secured symmetrically about a virtual (X2, Y) plane in said void space, having its ends at about (X1, Y1, Z2) and (X3, Y1, Z2) coordinates and a center of said element at about a (X2, Y2, Z1) position.

10. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, comprising:

a propeller-like weighting element having a center at about a (X2, Y2, Z1) position in said void space and having blades thereof projecting toward (X1, Y1, Z2), (X3, Y1, Z1) and (X2, Y3, Z1) position of said void space.

11. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, comprising:

a strip-like weighting element secured within all inner walls of a face and sidewalls of said void space at a Z1 level.

12. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, comprising:

a strip-like weighting element secured over said void space at about a (Y3, Z2) position and spanning all X positions.

13. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, comprising:

a strip-like weighting element secured over said void space at about a (Y2, Z2) position and spanning all X positions.

14. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, comprising:

a planar area weighting element secured at a rear of said void space along an X-axis thereof and defining a surface substantially a (Z, X) plane at a Y3 location thereof.

15. An article resultant of the method of claim 1, in which said weighting means comprises said sole plate when XY weighting at a Z1 level of said coordinate system is desired.

16. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a weighting strip secured substantially along a Y3 position of said void space, at a Z1 height, and having a length corresponding to the X1 to X3 locations.

17. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club for broadening the sweet spot of a face of said club, comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a horseshoe-like weighting element secured symmetrically about a virtual (X2, Y) plane in said void space, having its ends at about (X1, Y1, Z2) and (X3, Y1, Z2) coordinates and a center of said element at about a (X2, Y2, Z1) position.

18. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a strip-like weighting element secured within all inner walls of a face and sidewalls of said void space.

19. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a strip-like weighting element secured over said void space at about a (Y3, Z2) position and spanning all X positions.

20. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a strip-like weighting element secured over said void space at about a (Y2, Z2) position and spanning all X positions.

21. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a sole plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a planar area weighing element secured at a rear of said void space along an X-axis thereof and defining a surface substantially at a (X, Z) plane at a Y3 location of said void space.

22. In a virtual X, Y, Z orthonormal coordinate system in which a plate is partially congruent with a bottom-most xy plane thereof, in which said face plate intersects a forward-most XZ plane thereof, and in which a heel and hostel side of said club intersects a YZ plane thereof substantially at an origin of said coordinate system, and further in which an increase in X-axis value corresponds to a direction of a toe of said club, an increase in Y-axis value corresponds in direction to a rear of said club, and an increase in Z-axis value corresponds to increase in height above said sole plate, a golf club comprising:

(a) a club head having a void space behind a face plate of said club and above a sole plate thereof; and

(b) a planar area weighing element secured at Z1 and defining a surface substantially in a (X, Y) plane, said planar area comprising said sole plate.