Title:
GOLF SWING TRAINING DEVICE
United States Patent 3687459
Abstract:
A golf swing testing attachment consisting of a bracket which can be attached to the head of a golf club and which carries a pair of spaced depending scribers of different color. The scribers mark an underlying sheet of paper when a practice swing is made, and the relative locations of the scribed tracks indicate the nature of defects in the user's swing. The bracket includes a horizontal arm from which depend resilient legs to which the scribers are attached. The arm may be threadedly secured to an aperture in the club head or to a connecting member which is secured to a strap adapted to be clamped around the club head. This invention relates to golf practice devices, and more particularly to a golf swing testing attachment which can be mounted on the head of a golf club and which will indicate the nature of a defect in the user's swing, such as a slice or a hook. The main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved golf swing testing attachment which is very simple in construction, which can be easily attached to the head of a golf club for testing the user's swing, and which provides an accurate indication of the nature of a defect in the user's swing so that he may readily correct such a defect. A further object of the invention is to provide an improved golf swing testing attachment for a golf club, the attachment involving very inexpensive components, being durable in construction, being easy to attach to the head of a golf club and remove therefrom, and providing a reliable indication as to a defect in the user's swing, such as a slice or a hook, whereby the user may readily correct such a defect and wherein the success of such correction can be readily observed by the use of the testing attachment.
US Patent References:
Golf apparatus
Ferry - August 1937 - 2090348
Golf training device
Leo - August 1961 - 2995376
Golf apparatus
Ferry - August 1937 - 2090348
Golf training device
Leo - August 1961 - 2995376
Application Number:
05/165519
Publication Date:
08/29/1972
Filing Date:
07/23/1971
View Patent Images:
Export Citation:
Primary Class:
International Classes:
A63B69/36; A63B69/36
Field of Search:
273/186,193,194,183
Primary Examiner:
Marlo, George J.
Claims:
What is claimed is
1. In combination with a head of a golf club, a bracket arm, means detachably connecting said arm in laterally extending relation to said golf club head, and a pair of spaced scribing elements depending from said arm and being adapted to provide respective traces on an underlying surface when the golf club is swung.
2. The structural combination of claim 1, and wherein said scribing elements are provided with scribing materials of different color.
3. The structural combination of claim 2, and wherein said arm is provided with a pair of spaced depending resilient legs, and means securing the respective scribing elements to said resilient legs.
4. The structural combination of claim 3, and wherein the means connecting said arm to the golf club head comprises a tapped socket secured to the head and a threaded element on said arm threadedly engaged with said socket.
5. The structural combination of claim 4, and wherein said socket is embedded in the golf club head.
6. The structural combination of claim 4, and wherein the golf club head is provided with a strap member surrounding and clampingly secured to the head, and said socket is secured on said strap member.
7. The structural combination of claim 3, and means to adjust the resilient legs longitudinally on said bracket arm.
8. The structural combination of claim 3, and means to adjust the resilient legs vertically on the bracket arm.
9. The structural combination on claim 3, and means to adjust the resilient legs longitudinally and vertically on the bracket arm.
10. The structural combination of claim 9, and wherein the resilient legs are provided with vertical slots receiving the bracket arm and the bracket arm is provided with clamping nuts threaded thereon and located on opposite sides of the resilient legs.
1. In combination with a head of a golf club, a bracket arm, means detachably connecting said arm in laterally extending relation to said golf club head, and a pair of spaced scribing elements depending from said arm and being adapted to provide respective traces on an underlying surface when the golf club is swung.
2. The structural combination of claim 1, and wherein said scribing elements are provided with scribing materials of different color.
3. The structural combination of claim 2, and wherein said arm is provided with a pair of spaced depending resilient legs, and means securing the respective scribing elements to said resilient legs.
4. The structural combination of claim 3, and wherein the means connecting said arm to the golf club head comprises a tapped socket secured to the head and a threaded element on said arm threadedly engaged with said socket.
5. The structural combination of claim 4, and wherein said socket is embedded in the golf club head.
6. The structural combination of claim 4, and wherein the golf club head is provided with a strap member surrounding and clampingly secured to the head, and said socket is secured on said strap member.
7. The structural combination of claim 3, and means to adjust the resilient legs longitudinally on said bracket arm.
8. The structural combination of claim 3, and means to adjust the resilient legs vertically on the bracket arm.
9. The structural combination on claim 3, and means to adjust the resilient legs longitudinally and vertically on the bracket arm.
10. The structural combination of claim 9, and wherein the resilient legs are provided with vertical slots receiving the bracket arm and the bracket arm is provided with clamping nuts threaded thereon and located on opposite sides of the resilient legs.
Description:
Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and claims, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a front view of the head portion of a golf club provided with a golf swing attachment constructed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the golf club head and attachment carried thereby, as shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a vertical transverse cross-sectional view taken substantially on the line 3--3 of FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary transverse vertical cross-sectional view of the outer portion of the golf club head of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, illustrating the use of a filler plug which may be inserted in the bracket arm socket when the swing-testing attachment is not in use.
FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic horizontal view illustrating the action of the scribing elements when the user has a defect in his swing which would cause a golf ball to slice when struck by the head of the golf club.
FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic horizontal view similar to FIG. 5 showing the action of the scribing elements when the user has a defect which would cause a golf ball to hook upon being struck by the golf club head.
FIG. 7 is a fragmentary transverse vertical cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 3, but showing a strap element employed for securing the attachment to a golf club head.
Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 to 6, 11 generally designates a conventional golf club of the type having a driving head 12 and a shank 13, the driving head being provided with the substantially flat ball-engaging striking face 14. Indicated generally at 15 is a swing-testing attachment according to the present invention which is detachably secured to the golf club head 12 when it is desired to test the user's swing and to determine if there are any defects in the swing, and to likewise determine the nature of such defects. Thus, in the form of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6, the outer edge portion of the golf club head 12, namely, the portion opposite the striking face 14, has embedded therein an internally threaded tubular socket 16, shoe axis is substantially perpendicular to the striking face 14. The attachment 15 comprises an externally threaded tubular bracket arm 17 which is threadedly engageable in the tubular socket 16 and which may be locked thereto by the provision of a lock nut 18 threadedly engaged on the bracket arm 17 adjacent to the right end thereof, as viewed in FIG. 3, so that the lock nut 18 may be tightened against the outer exposed rim of the socket 16.
Adjustably secured on the bracket arm 17 are a pair of spaced depending resilient support legs 19 and 20, said legs being made, for example, of flat spring metal and being formed with upwardly opening vertical slots 21, as shown in FIG. 2, adapted to receive the bracket arm 17. Threadedly engaged on the bracket arm 17 on opposite sides of the respective depending resilient legs 19 and 20 are clamping nuts 22 and 23 which can be tightened into clamping engagement with the upper portions of the legs to thereby lock the legs in adjusted positions on the bracket arm 17.
Secured to the lower portions of the resilient legs 19 and 20 are respective supporting sleeves 24 and 25 in which are mounted scribing elements 26 and 27, for example, conventional marking pens or pencils of different color. For example, the scribing element 26 may be provided with a marking tip 28 which scribes a blue line and the scribing element 27 may be provided with a marking tip 29 which scribes a red line. The marking elements 26 and 27 are suitably secured in the sleeves 24 and 25, for example, by being frictionally tightly secured therein.
The resilient legs 19 and 20 are adjusted vertically so that the marking tips 28 and 29 will engage an underlying indicating surface, such as a sheet of paper 30, when the user swings the golf club with the head 12 at substantially tee height above the underlying surface member 30. The resilient legs 19 and 20 may be adjusted away from or toward each other on the bracket arm 17, in accordance with the magnitude of the defects to be studied in the user's swing, and said arms 19 and 20 may be made closer to each other as the user improves his swing and is successful in reducing the magnitude of such defects, while continuing to attempt further improvement.
In using the attachment, the user places a sheet of paper 30 or similar indicating material over the area on which he desires to make his practice swings, and then mounts the attachment 15 on the golf club head 12 in the manner above described. Assuming the adjustable parts of the attachment to be in proper positions in accordance with the user's normal swing, the marking points 28 and 29 will be at the proper positions to inscribe tracks on the surface 30 when the user makes a practice swing. Thus, after making such a practice swing, colored tracks will be found on the paper sheet 30 which will indicate the nature and magnitude of defects in the user's swing. Thus, for example, in FIG. 5, if the user's swing is of a nature which will cause the golf ball to be sliced, the red trace 32 will be located rearwardly of the blue trace 33 on the paper 30. The distance between the traces 32 and 33 will be in accordance with the magnitude of the defect in the user's swing. Conversely, if the blue trace 33 is located rearwardly of the red trace 32, as shown in FIG. 6, the indication is that the swing will produce a hook, and the magnitude of such defect will be indicated by the distance between the traces 32 and 33.
Upon taking proper measures to correct the defect, this will be indicated by the reduction in the spacing between the red and blue traces obtained in using the attachment in the manner above described.
It will thus be seen that the use of the device 15 is quite valuable in ascertaining the nature of a defect in the user's swing and in enabling the user to correct such defect, since indications will be provided showing progress or lack of progress in the attempt to correct defects.
When the attachment 15 is not in use, the socket 16 may be filled by employing a threaded filler stud 35, shown in FIG. 4, which acts as a filler plug. The stud 35 is provided with a conventional slot at its outer end so that it may be readily removed by using a screw driver when it is desired to employ the swing-testing attachment 15.
FIG. 7 illustrates an alternative means for attaching the attachment to a golf club head where the head is not provided with a socket 16 and the owner of the golf club does not desire to install such a socket. Thus, instead of using a socket embedded in the head, a form-fitting metal strap 40 is employed which is shaped to closely fit the contour of the golf club head 12 and which is provided with conventional clamping structure 41 similar to that employed on a conventional hose clamp. Welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the arcuate left-end portion of the strap, as viewed in FIG. 7, and illustrated at 42, is a nut 43 internally threaded to threadedly receive the bracket arm 17. Thus, the nut 43 corresponds to the socket 16 in the previously described embodiment of the invention. By employing the strap 40, the attachment may therefore be attached to the gold club head for use to provide substantially the same type of testing capability as is provided by the previously described embodiment of the invention wherein a permanent socket 16 is embedded in the gold club head.
While certain specific embodiments of an improved golf swing testing attachment have been disclosed in the foregoing description, it will be understood that various modifications within the spirit of the invention may occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore it is intended that no limitations be placed on the invention except as defined by the scope of the appended claims.
FIG. 1 is a front view of the head portion of a golf club provided with a golf swing attachment constructed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the golf club head and attachment carried thereby, as shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a vertical transverse cross-sectional view taken substantially on the line 3--3 of FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary transverse vertical cross-sectional view of the outer portion of the golf club head of FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, illustrating the use of a filler plug which may be inserted in the bracket arm socket when the swing-testing attachment is not in use.
FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic horizontal view illustrating the action of the scribing elements when the user has a defect in his swing which would cause a golf ball to slice when struck by the head of the golf club.
FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic horizontal view similar to FIG. 5 showing the action of the scribing elements when the user has a defect which would cause a golf ball to hook upon being struck by the golf club head.
FIG. 7 is a fragmentary transverse vertical cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 3, but showing a strap element employed for securing the attachment to a golf club head.
Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 to 6, 11 generally designates a conventional golf club of the type having a driving head 12 and a shank 13, the driving head being provided with the substantially flat ball-engaging striking face 14. Indicated generally at 15 is a swing-testing attachment according to the present invention which is detachably secured to the golf club head 12 when it is desired to test the user's swing and to determine if there are any defects in the swing, and to likewise determine the nature of such defects. Thus, in the form of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6, the outer edge portion of the golf club head 12, namely, the portion opposite the striking face 14, has embedded therein an internally threaded tubular socket 16, shoe axis is substantially perpendicular to the striking face 14. The attachment 15 comprises an externally threaded tubular bracket arm 17 which is threadedly engageable in the tubular socket 16 and which may be locked thereto by the provision of a lock nut 18 threadedly engaged on the bracket arm 17 adjacent to the right end thereof, as viewed in FIG. 3, so that the lock nut 18 may be tightened against the outer exposed rim of the socket 16.
Adjustably secured on the bracket arm 17 are a pair of spaced depending resilient support legs 19 and 20, said legs being made, for example, of flat spring metal and being formed with upwardly opening vertical slots 21, as shown in FIG. 2, adapted to receive the bracket arm 17. Threadedly engaged on the bracket arm 17 on opposite sides of the respective depending resilient legs 19 and 20 are clamping nuts 22 and 23 which can be tightened into clamping engagement with the upper portions of the legs to thereby lock the legs in adjusted positions on the bracket arm 17.
Secured to the lower portions of the resilient legs 19 and 20 are respective supporting sleeves 24 and 25 in which are mounted scribing elements 26 and 27, for example, conventional marking pens or pencils of different color. For example, the scribing element 26 may be provided with a marking tip 28 which scribes a blue line and the scribing element 27 may be provided with a marking tip 29 which scribes a red line. The marking elements 26 and 27 are suitably secured in the sleeves 24 and 25, for example, by being frictionally tightly secured therein.
The resilient legs 19 and 20 are adjusted vertically so that the marking tips 28 and 29 will engage an underlying indicating surface, such as a sheet of paper 30, when the user swings the golf club with the head 12 at substantially tee height above the underlying surface member 30. The resilient legs 19 and 20 may be adjusted away from or toward each other on the bracket arm 17, in accordance with the magnitude of the defects to be studied in the user's swing, and said arms 19 and 20 may be made closer to each other as the user improves his swing and is successful in reducing the magnitude of such defects, while continuing to attempt further improvement.
In using the attachment, the user places a sheet of paper 30 or similar indicating material over the area on which he desires to make his practice swings, and then mounts the attachment 15 on the golf club head 12 in the manner above described. Assuming the adjustable parts of the attachment to be in proper positions in accordance with the user's normal swing, the marking points 28 and 29 will be at the proper positions to inscribe tracks on the surface 30 when the user makes a practice swing. Thus, after making such a practice swing, colored tracks will be found on the paper sheet 30 which will indicate the nature and magnitude of defects in the user's swing. Thus, for example, in FIG. 5, if the user's swing is of a nature which will cause the golf ball to be sliced, the red trace 32 will be located rearwardly of the blue trace 33 on the paper 30. The distance between the traces 32 and 33 will be in accordance with the magnitude of the defect in the user's swing. Conversely, if the blue trace 33 is located rearwardly of the red trace 32, as shown in FIG. 6, the indication is that the swing will produce a hook, and the magnitude of such defect will be indicated by the distance between the traces 32 and 33.
Upon taking proper measures to correct the defect, this will be indicated by the reduction in the spacing between the red and blue traces obtained in using the attachment in the manner above described.
It will thus be seen that the use of the device 15 is quite valuable in ascertaining the nature of a defect in the user's swing and in enabling the user to correct such defect, since indications will be provided showing progress or lack of progress in the attempt to correct defects.
When the attachment 15 is not in use, the socket 16 may be filled by employing a threaded filler stud 35, shown in FIG. 4, which acts as a filler plug. The stud 35 is provided with a conventional slot at its outer end so that it may be readily removed by using a screw driver when it is desired to employ the swing-testing attachment 15.
FIG. 7 illustrates an alternative means for attaching the attachment to a golf club head where the head is not provided with a socket 16 and the owner of the golf club does not desire to install such a socket. Thus, instead of using a socket embedded in the head, a form-fitting metal strap 40 is employed which is shaped to closely fit the contour of the golf club head 12 and which is provided with conventional clamping structure 41 similar to that employed on a conventional hose clamp. Welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the arcuate left-end portion of the strap, as viewed in FIG. 7, and illustrated at 42, is a nut 43 internally threaded to threadedly receive the bracket arm 17. Thus, the nut 43 corresponds to the socket 16 in the previously described embodiment of the invention. By employing the strap 40, the attachment may therefore be attached to the gold club head for use to provide substantially the same type of testing capability as is provided by the previously described embodiment of the invention wherein a permanent socket 16 is embedded in the gold club head.
While certain specific embodiments of an improved golf swing testing attachment have been disclosed in the foregoing description, it will be understood that various modifications within the spirit of the invention may occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore it is intended that no limitations be placed on the invention except as defined by the scope of the appended claims.