05/386539

04/08/1975

08/08/1973

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473/253

A63B69/36; A63B69/36

273/183,163,164,162,193,194

3698093

SIGHT ATTACHMENT FOR A GOLF PUTTER

October 1972

Marshall

Marlo, George J.

Bean & Bean

I claim

1. In a golf club of the type including a shaft and a putter head connected to a lower end of said shaft, said putter head having a marking on an upper surface thereof disposed in an essentially right angular relationship to an upstanding ball striking surface thereof for visually indicating to a golfer looking downwardly on said upper surface while using said club alignment of said ball striking surface with a golf ball to be struck in the direction of swing of said club, said marking being of a given width measured in a direction lengthwise of said upper surface between toe and heel end portions of said putter head and being generally horizontally disposed when viewed by said golfer looking downwardly on said upper surface, the improvement for facilitating positioning of an eye of said golfer in vertical alignment with said marking in a direction extending at right angles to said marking and lengthwise of said upper surface between said toe and heel end portions, which comprises in combination:

2. The improvement according to claim 1, wherein said putter head includes an integrally formed connector arranged to upstand from adjacent said heel end portion for connecting said putter head to said lower end of said shaft, said other marking is disposed on said upper surface intermediate said marking and said connector to lie in an essentially coplaner relationship with said marking, and said sighting edge is defined by said connector.

3. The improvement according to claim 2, wherein said sighting guide additionally defines a pair of parallel additional generally sharpened sighting edges, said additional sighting edges extending in a direction towards said heel end portion from adjacent opposite ends of said sighting edge and being disposed above and essentially parallel to said upper surface, a pair of additional markings are placed on said upper surface of said putter head and arranged in an essentially coplaner relationship with said other marking to extend in a direction towards said heel end portion from adjacent opposite ends of said other marking, and said additional markings are arranged one below and in vertical alignment with each of said additional sighting edges.

4. The improvement according to claim 1, wherein said sighting guide is cut away to define a vertically extending sighting notch disposed essentially perpendicular to said sighting edge and opening outwardly therethrough, said sighting notch being bisected by a vertical plane arranged essentially perpendicular to said marking and intersecting same at a point intermediate front and rear ends thereof relative to said direction of swing, and an additional portion of said other marking extending at right angles to said viewed portion is viewable through said notch at least when said golfer using said club has an eye in substantial vertical alignment with said point in a direction measured between said ends of said marking.

5. The improvement according to claim 1, wherein said other marking is arranged vertically below said upper surface, and said sighting guide and said other marking are defined by said toe end portion.

6. The improvement according to claim 5, wherein said sighting guide additionally defines a pair of parallel additional generally sharpened sighting edges, said additional sighting edges extending in a direction towards said heel end portion from adjacent opposite ends of said sighting edge and being formed in part by said upper surface, a pair of additional markings are placed below and parallel to said upper surface of said putter head and arranged in an essentially coplaner relationship with said other marking to extend in a direction towards said heel end portion from adjacent opposite ends of said other marking, and said additional markings are arranged one below and in vertical alignment with each of said additional sighting edges.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Golf clubs, such as putters, have conventionally been provided with a marking, such as a groove, which is disposed to lie within a vertical plane coincident with the center of gravity or "sweet spot" of the putter with a view towards assisting in the alignment of the "sweet spot" with the golf ball to be hit. However, it has been found that this single marking is not sufficient to insure accurate vertical alignment or positioning of a golfer's eyes over the "sweet spot" in a direction lengthwise of the putter head, ie., between the heel and toe of the putter head, such as is required to insure that the ball is properly propelled towards a cup or other spot determined by the roll of a green. To overcome this drawback of conventional putter constructions, various proposals have been made to insure accurate positioning of the golfer's eyes over the "sweet spot", as evidenced by U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,820,638 and 3,042,409. While the proposals set forth in these patents are capable of performing in the manner intended, they are believed to possess drawbacks tending to arrest their wide economical acceptance. In this respect, U.S. Pat. No. 2,820,638 requires that a golfer align his direction of sight with an elongated portion of the putter shaft. This appears to be difficult for the average golfer. The proposal of U.S. Pat. No. 3,042,409 would appear to be an improvement from the standpoint of ease and accuracy of use, since the golfer is only required to visually align a sighting edge with a marking designating the position of the "sweet spot". However, in this latter putter construction, the required "dog-legged" configuration of the putter shaft would appear objectionable from the stand-point of cost and interference with other clubs to be carried in a golf bag.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed towards improvements in golf clubs, such as putters. More particularly, the present invention features the utilization of novelly arranged markings and sighting guides, which serve to permit accurate positioning of the eyes of a golfer relative to the center of gravity or "sweet spot" of the putter in a first direction extending lengthwise of the head of the putter and/or in a second direction aligned with the direction in which the putter is to be swung.

DRAWINGS

The nature and mode of the present invention will now be more fully described in the following detailed description taken with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a putter embodying a first form of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the putter shown in FIG. 1, as seen by the eyes of a golfer when positioned vertically above the center of gravity of such putter in a direction lengthwise thereof;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a putter embodying a second form of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary top plan view of the putter shown in FIG. 3, as seen by the eyes of a golfer when positioned vertically above the center of gravity of such putter in a direction lengthwise thereof.

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 1, but showing an alternative form of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a rear elevational view of the putter shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the putter shown in FIG. 5, as seen by the eyes of a golfer when positioned vertically above the center of gravity of such putter;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 2, but showing an alternative construction;

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 4, but showing a further modification of the type illustrated in FIG. 7; and

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIG. 4, but showing a further modification of the type illustrated in FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference is now made particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, wherein a golf club, such as a putter, embodying a first form of the present invention is generally designated as 10. As is conventional, putter 10 includes putter head 12 having toe and heel portions 14 and 16, respectively; a shaft or shank 18 to be gripped by a golfer for the purpose of swinging putter 10; and a head-shaft connecting portion 20, which upstands from adjacent heel portion 16. Preferably, connecting portion 20 is formed as an integral part of putter head 12 and provided with an aperture, not shown, to receive the lower end of shaft 18. Alternatively, connecting portion 20 may be formed as an integral part of shaft 18 or be formed separately from both putter head 12 and shaft 18.

Again referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, it will be seen that putter head 12 is of conventional construction from the stand-point that it includes an upstanding ball striking or front surface or face 22; a rear surface or face 24; a bottom surface 25 and a top or upper surface or face 26, which is generally parallel to bottom surface 25 and arranged to extend between surfaces 22 and 24 and is formed with a first marking 28 for visually indicating the position of the center of gravity C.G. or "sweet spot" of the putter. First marking 28 extends at essentially right angles to ball striking surface 22 and is aligned with the direction of swing of putter 10.

In accordance with the present invention, first marking 28 is formed with some given width measured in a direction between the head and toe ends of the putter and is lengthwise bisected by a first vertical plane 30 arranged substantially coincident with the putter center of gravity C.G. While first marking 28 may be variously defined, it is preferably defined by coloring the surface of a groove or recess, which opens upwardly through top surface 26 and extends between front surface 22 and rear surface 24. Preferably, the color chosen for first marking 28 will sharply contrast with adjacent areas of top surface 26. The depth of the groove is not critical, since the only purpose of the groove is to position the paint or other colored material flush with or slightly below top surface 26 in order to prevent its being readily worn away during use of club 10.

The form of the present invention illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 departs from a conventional putter construction in the provision of a second marking 32, which is arranged parallel to and formed with a width substantially greater than that of first marking 28; and a sighting guide 34, which is arranged vertically above second marking 32 and serves to define a sighting edge 36. In the illustrated construction, a sighting guide 34 is formed as an integral extension of connecting portion 20, and is bounded by an upper face 40, side faces 42 and a sharply undercut face 44; the latter extending downwardly to bound a "heel side" of second marking 32. The intersection of surfaces 40 and 44, which is preferably slightly rounded for safety purposes defines first sighting edge 36 which may be referred to as being generally sharpened. Sighting edge 36 is disposed essentially parallel to both vertical plane 30 and top surface 26; and, due to its proximity to second marking 32, lies within a vertical plane, not shown, which intersects the second marking in a direction lengthwise thereof. By viewing the drawings, it will be apparent that the first and second markings are generally horizontally disposed when viewed by a golfer looking downwardly on the upper surface of the putter head.

While second marking 32 may also be variously defined, it is preferably defined by applying paint or other coloring matter to the surface of a shallow groove or recess formed in top surface 26, such that markings 28 and 32 are essentially coplanar. The color of second marking 32 would preferably be identical to that of first marking 28.

In use of putter 10, a golfer can properly position his eyes in vertical alignment with first marking 28 and thus C.G. in a direction extending between the putter head toe and heel portions by viewing second marking 32 across first sighting edge 36, as indicated by the sight line designated as 46, and observing when the width of the viewed portion of the second marking corresponds to the width of the first marking. The point of intersection of sight line 46 with plane 30 at which the width of the viewed portion of second marking 32 will appear to equal that of first marking 28 will be at a fixed height relative to the ground and/or the putter for any given putter construction. Accordingly, as a practical matter various putter configurations would be offered for sale to accommodate for varying heights and/or putting styles of golfers.

The putter formed in accordance with the second form of the invention, which is generally designated as 10a in FIGS. 3 and 4, differs structurally from putter 10 in that second marking 32a and sighting guide 34a are defined by the putter head toe end portion 14. More specifically, second marking 32a and undercut face 44a of sighting guide 34a are defined by a generally V-shaped notch formed in the edge surface of toe end portion 14; the upper surface 40a of sighting guide 34a being defined by or being disposed co-planar with putter head top surface 26.

However, putter 10a is functionally identical to putter 10 from the standpoint that a golfer can properly position his eyes in vertical alignment with first marking 28 and thus C.G. in a direction extending between the putter head toe and heel portions by viewing second marking 32a across sighting edge 36a, as indicated by the sight line designated as 46a, and observing when the width of the viewed portion of the second marking corresponds to the width of the first marking.

An alternative form of putter 10, which is generally designated in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 as 10', may additionally be employed by a golfer to accurately position his eyes above the C.G. in a direction lengthwise of first marking 28. In this construction, sighting guide 34 defines a pair of additional sighting edges 50 and 51, which are arranged essentially perpendicular to first plane 30 and preferably disposed adjacent opposite sides of the C.G. to extend in a right angular relationship from adjacent opposite ends of first sighting edge 36; and putter 10' further defines a pair of additional markings 52 and 53, which are arranged below and associated one with each of the additional sighting edges 50 and 51, respectively. In this construction, additional markings 52 and 53 are preferably arranged substantially co-planar with second marking 32 and extend in substantially a right angular relationship from adjacent opposite ends thereof. Preferably, the color of additional markings 52 and 53 would be identical to that of the first and second markings.

With a putter of the type illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7, a golfer may properly position his eyes in vertical alignment with first marking 28 and thus C.G. in a direction lengthwise of the first marking, ie., in the direction of swing, by viewing additional markings 52 and 53 across additional sighting edges 50 and 51, as indicated by additional sight lines 54 and 55, and observing when the width of the viewed portions of the additional markings correspond.

If a golfer does not normally hold his putter directly before him while putting, but rather "putts off his toe", associated ones of the additional sighting edges and additional markings may still be employed to give the golfer a ready reference for judging the proper "off the toe putting position" of his putter relative to the position it would assume, if disposed in vertical alignment with his eyes in a direction lengthwise of first marking 28. In this respect, once a golfer has established how much of an additional marking, eg., marking 53, should be in view in an "off the toe putting position", he will thereafter have a reliable reference for positioning his putter. As by way of further assistance to a golfer using an "off the toe" putting style, second markings 52 and 53 may be formed of bands of different colors, which may be arranged for instance such that only a single given color band of each additional marking may be observed when the golfer is viewing such additional markings along the normal additional sight lines shown in FIG. 6. Then, when the putter is positioned in an "off the toe putting position", for instance to the left of the position, as viewed in FIG. 6, a golfer would still be viewing additional marking 53 across additional sighting edge 51, but would now see a greater portion of the surface of such additional marking including a portion of an additional band or bands of different colors.

FIG. 8 illustrates an alternative putter construction 10", which is a variation of the basic putter design shown in FIG. 2, wherein sighting guide 34 is formed with a vertically extending notch 60 opening horizontally outwardly through sighting edge 36, whereby to permit viewing of an additional predetermined portion of second marking 32, which extends at right angles to that portion of the second marking properly viewable across sighting edge 36. In effect, notch 60 defines a pair of additional sighting edges 61 and 62, which are arranged to extend in a right angular relationship to first sighting edge 36 and the predetermined portion of the second marking to be viewed lies therebetween. Preferably, the width of the notch 60, ie., the distance between additional sighting edges 61 and 62, would be such that the viewed portion of the second marking essentially corresponds to the width of first marking 28. Also, notch 60 would preferably be positioned, such that when the width of second marking 32 viewed across additional sighting edges 61 and 62 essentially corresponds to the width of first marking 28, the eyes of the golfer would be positioned in substantial vertical alignment with the C.G. in a direction lengthwise of the first marking. Thus, notch 60 would preferably be lengthwise bisected by a vertical plane, not shown, arranged substantially coincident with the C.G. and perpendicular to plane 30.

Of course, as indicated in connection with use of the putter 101 illustrated in FIGS. 5-7, the combination of notch 60 and second marking 32 would additionally provide a ready reference to permit a golfer to properly position his putter in an "off the toe putting position".

It will be apparent by referring to FIGS. 9 and 10 that the form of the putter illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 may be modified in accordance with either of the alternative constructions described above in connection with FIGS. 7 and 8. For convenience of reference, the modified putter construction of FIGS. 9 and 10 are designated as 10a' and 10a", respectively, and parts similar to those described in connection with FIGS. 7 and 8 are designated by like numbers having the suffix "a".

Further, it is contemplated that additional variations of a basic putter are possible without substantially departing from the present invention. In this respect, it is specifically contemplated that proper positioning of a golfer's eyes in a direction lengthwise of the putter could also be obtained by employing a pair of sighting edges, such as would be defined by rotating through 90° the sighting edge constructions illustrated in either of FIGS. 7 and 8.