Gravity compensated golf putter
Inactive Publication Date: 2006-01-26
PLUTT DANIEL J
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Benefits of technology
[0019] It is, therefore, an aspect of the present invention to provide a golf putter that greatly improves the golfer's feel for the acceleration being imparted to the club in the direction of motion by allowing the golfer to eliminate the undesirable moments sensed by the hands and wrists due to gravity acting on the club as it is swung through an arc.
[0025] In order to resolve this issue it is necessary to design a putter to have the center of gravity located within the grip area of the club. Once the center of gravity is located in the grip the golfer can place his hands at the center of gravity of the club. If a golfer's hands are placed on the center of gravity of the club all the moments associated with gravity have been eliminated. The golfer only senses the moments created by his desire to accelerate the club a given amount. Since the golfer only senses the acceleration of the club in the direction of motion he is able to develop a much better “feel” for distance and reduce errors created by not compensating properly for the forces of gravity.
[0026] In order to move the center of gravity of the club into the grip, a substantial counter weight must be attached to the end of the shaft above the grip. Since the counter weight is above the grip it can be made large enough to counter the moments created by the shaft and club head due to gravity. Once the club is balanced in this fashion and the hands placed at the center of gravity of the club, now located along the grip, the moments acting on the hands and wrists due to gravity are eliminated. This is true regardless of the angle between the club and gravity or the total weight of the club. Thus an advancement in the art is created by having a putter that when swung through an angle maintains an acceleration force due to gravity in the direction of motion of the putter about a location within the grip area of zero regardless of the angle of the putter along its swing path.
[0028] In order to move the center of gravity of a putter using a standard steel shaft and a 320 gram head into the grip area, a weight of about 1200 grams would be required to be placed above the grip. The exact amount of weight used to accomplish this effect can vary depending on the weight of the club head and shaft as well as just how far up into the grip the center of gravity is moved. In order to allow a golfer to place the center of his two handed grip at the center of gravity of the entire club the center of gravity of the club should be moved at least 2 inches into the grip area. In addition, the overall length of the entire club has a significant effect on parameters used to move the center of gravity into the grip. Putters designed for use with a pendulum putting stroke can range from 31 to 40 inches long. In this manner, shorter players can use a short club and taller players can use a somewhat longer putter to facilitate proper posture for the putting stroke. Because of this length difference, the exact distance the center of gravity will be located from either the proximal grip end or the distal head end will vary. Typically, the center of gravity will fall between 20 to 30 inches up from the head end. This will allow most golfers of average size to take a comfortable stance, with proper posture and still place the center of their two handed grip on the center of gravity of the club. The preferred embodiment would place the center of gravity of the entire club at a location between 4 and 12 inches from the center of gravity of the counterweight. This relationship holds for putters between 31 and 40 inches long.
[0029] It is, therefore, seen that the present invention of moving the center of gravity of a putter into the grip area by placing a counter-weight of sufficient mass above the grip to balance the head and shaft will allow a golfer to eliminate the unwanted gravity effects sensed by the golfer's hands and wrists. This concept creates a new putter that when swung through an angle maintains an acceleration force due to gravity in the direction of motion of the putter about a location within the grip area of zero regardless of the angle of the putter along its swing path.
Problems solved by technology
If the putter head became too heavy it would be difficult to swing and a golfer's ability to control distance would be compromised.
The quick pace required of a light putter does not promote a smooth tempo to the swing that is critical to a good putting stroke.
Method used
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Embodiment Construction
[0043] Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the construction of a conventional putter 1000 is shown with the center of gravity of its various components depicted. The conventional putter has a club head 12 with its respective center of gravity 10, a shaft 16 with its respective center of gravity 14 and a grip 20 and it's respective center of gravity 18. Additionally, the center of a golfer's grip coincides with the center of gravity of the grip 18. Since the majority of the weight of the club is located in the head 12 the combined center of gravity 8 for the entire club is located well down the shaft near the head.
[0044] This is contrasted to the putter of this invention shown in FIG. 2. The new putter 2000 also has a head 22 with its respective center of gravity 24, a shaft 28 with its center of gravity 26 and a grip or grip area 32 with its center of gravity 30. Additionally, this club has a counterweight 36 with its center of gravity 34 located above the grip 32. The counter...
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An improved design for a golf putter is described based on the principal of eliminating the moments due to gravity acting on the club as sensed by the hands. The design uses a large counter weight attached to the shaft located above the grip area of the club. The counter weight is of sufficient mass to move the center of gravity of the entire club into the grip area of the putter. Once the center of gravity of the entire club is located in the grip near where the hands are placed, the undesirable moments generated by gravity during the swing are eliminated. The golfer only senses the forces associated with accelerating the club in the direction of motion. By eliminating the moments due to gravity an improved putter design is achieved since the golfer's feel for the acceleration of the putter is greatly improved.
Description
FIELD OF INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to improvements in golf clubs, more specifically to an improved design for a club used to roll the golf ball on the putting green, otherwise known as a golf “putter”. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] In the game of golf, there are two distinct and very different types of strokes used to advance the ball toward a desired target, the “hole”. The full swing is used with the majority of the clubs needed to play the game. The primary objective of the full swing is to generate both distance and accuracy. The full swing utilizes the majority of the muscles in the body to generate maximum distance, causing the ball to fly into the air for up to several hundred yards. The shoulders, arms, wrists, back, hips and legs are all very active in the full swing. The second, very different, type of stroke used in the game of golf is the putting stroke. The objective of the putting stroke is to roll the ball along the putting surface toward the...
Claims
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Login to View More IPC IPC(8): A63B53/14A63B53/02A63B53/04
CPCA63B53/145A63B53/007A63B60/24
InventorPLUTT, DANIEL J.
OwnerPLUTT DANIEL J