Golf club head

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10413784-B2
Application number	US-201815970609-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 3, 2018
Priority date	Dec 23, 2009
Publication date	Sep 17, 2019
Grant date	Sep 17, 2019

Abstract

A golf club head comprises a sole, a recessed sole port in the sole; and a rotatably adjustable sole piece adapted to be at least partially received within the sole port and comprising a central body having a plurality of contact surfaces adapted to contact the sole port and being offset from each other along a central axis extending through the central body of the sole piece. The sole piece can be positioned at least partially within the sole port at five or more rotational and axial positions with respect to the central axis, wherein at each rotational position, at least one of said contact surfaces of the central body contacts the sole port to set the axial position of the sole piece. The sole port and/or the sole piece can be generally pentagonal in shape.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A golf club assembly comprising;
a golf club head comprising a club head body having a crown portion, a toe portion, a heel portion, a rear portion, a hosel defining an upper opening, the hosel defining a hosel axis extending through the upper opening, the club head also having a sole portion defining a lower opening in communication with the upper opening;
a club shaft having a lower end portion defining a club shaft axis;
an adjustable loft system including a shaft sleeve, wherein the shaft sleeve is mounted on the lower end portion of the shaft and adapted to be received in the upper opening of the club head, the shaft sleeve having a lower end portion defining a threaded opening, wherein the shaft sleeve, when inserted into the upper opening, supports the shaft relative to the club head such that the club shaft axis is angularly offset from the hosel axis;
a screw having a screw head and an externally threaded screw shaft extending from the screw head and defining a longitudinal axis, wherein the shaft sleeve can be releasably secured to the club head by inserting the screw through the lower opening and tightening the screw into the threaded opening of the shaft sleeve;
a recess formed in the sole, and the recess having a single aperture that extends through the recess and the single aperture is configured to retain a fastener, wherein the single aperture is positioned rearward of a golf club head center of gravity and the single aperture defines a central axis that extends through the sole portion and the crown portion of the golf club head; and
an outer sleeve disposed on the shaft sleeve, the outer sleeve having a first anti-rotation feature configured to engage a corresponding anti-rotation feature on the shaft sleeve and a second anti-rotation feature configured to engage a corresponding anti-rotation feature that is fixed relative to the hosel;
wherein the club head body has a striking surface and a head origin defined as a position on the striking surface at approximately a geometric center of the striking surface, the head origin including a head origin x-axis, a head origin y-axis, and a head origin z-axis;
wherein the head origin x-axis is tangential to the striking surface and generally parallel to a ground plane when the head is in an address position and a positive x-axis extends towards a heel portion;
wherein the head origin y-axis extends perpendicular to the head origin x-axis and generally parallel to the ground plane when the head is in the address position and a positive y-axis extends from the striking surface and through the rear portion of the club head body;
wherein the head origin z-axis extends perpendicular to the ground plane, and perpendicular to both the head origin x-axis and y-axis when the head is in the address position and a positive z-axis extends from the head origin and generally upward;
wherein the golf club head center of gravity has a head origin x-axis coordinate greater than about −2 mm and less than about 8 mm and a head origin y-axis coordinate greater than about 25 mm and less than about 40 mm;
wherein the golf club head center of gravity has a head origin z-axis coordinate less than about 0 mm;
wherein the golf club head has a moment of inertia about a center of gravity x-axis (CG x-axis), the CG x-axis is parallel to the head origin x-axis and passes through the center of gravity of the golf club head;
wherein the golf club head has a moment of inertia about a center of gravity z-axis (CG z-axis), the CG z-axis is parallel to the head origin z-axis and passes through the center of gravity of the golf club head;
wherein a golf club head moment of inertia about the CG x-axis is between about 200 kg·mm 2 and about 500 kg·mm 2 and a moment of inertia about the CG z-axis is between about 350 kg·mm 2 and about 600 kg·mm 2 ; and
wherein when the anti-rotation features of the outer sleeve are not engaged with the other anti-rotation features, the outer sleeve is rotatable relative to the shaft sleeve to position the outer sleeve at one of a plurality of discrete angularly spaced rotational positions relative to the shaft sleeve, each discrete position of the outer sleeve being effective to adjust the tilt of the club shaft relative to the hosel axis.

2. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the outer sleeve has a through bore that defines a longitudinal axis that is angularly offset from the hosel axis.

3. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the shaft sleeve, when inserted into the upper opening, can support the club shaft at one of a plurality of possible angular positions that are angularly offset from the hosel axis, and the screw is configured such that the longitudinal axis of the screw shaft can align with the club shaft axis in each of the angular positions of the club shaft.

4. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the adjustable loft system includes at least four discrete positions.

5. The assembly of claim 1 , wherein at least 50 percent of the crown portion has an areal weight less than 0.4 g/cm 2 .

6. The assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a face plate, wherein the face plate includes a face insert comprised of composite material.

7. The assembly of claim 6 , wherein the face insert includes a metallic layer attached to the composite material.

8. The assembly of claim 1 , further comprising at least one weight port formed in the club head and at least one weight configured to be retained at least partially within the at least one weight port.

9. The assembly of claim 8 , further comprising an adjustment tool, wherein the adjustment tool has an engagement end, with the engagement end being configured to operatively mate with the adjustable loft system and the at least one weight.

10. The assembly of claim 1 , further comprising two or more ribs that converge at the single aperture.

11. The assembly of claim 1 , further comprising an interior rib connected to a hosel base portion and the interior rib extending in a rearward and toeward direction from the hosel base portion.

12. The assembly of claim 11 , wherein the interior rib has a first end portion and a second end portion, wherein the first end portion is connected to the hosel base portion and the second end portion is connected to a second recess in the body.

13. The assembly of claim 12 , wherein the second recess in the body is configured to house a weight.

14. A golf club assembly comprising;
a golf club head comprising a club head body having a crown portion, a toe portion, a heel portion, a rear portion, a hosel defining an upper opening, the hosel defining a hosel axis extending through the upper opening, the club head also having a sole portion defining a lower opening in communication with the upper opening;
a club shaft having a lower end portion defining a club shaft axis;
an adjustable loft system including a shaft sleeve, wherein the shaft sleeve is mounted on the lower end portion of the shaft and adapted to be received in the upper opening of the club head, the shaft sleeve having a lower end portion defining a threaded opening, wherein the shaft sleeve, when inserted into the upper opening, supports the shaft relative to the club head such that the club shaft axis is angularly offset from the hosel axis;
a screw having a screw head and an externally threaded screw shaft extending from the screw head and defining a longitudinal axis, wherein the shaft sleeve can be releasably secured to the club head by inserting the screw through the lower opening and tightening the screw into the threaded opening of the shaft sleeve such that the longitudinal axis of the screw shaft is align

Assignees

• Taylor Made Golf Co
• Taylor Made Gold Company Inc

Inventors

• Beach Todd P
• Willett Kraig Alan
• Sargent Nathan T
• Franz Michael

Classifications

• A63B2053/0491

  with added weights, e.g. changeable, replaceable · CPC title

• A63B2071/0633

  without electronic means · CPC title

• A63B2209/02

  with reinforcing fibres, e.g. carbon, polyamide fibres · CPC title

• A63B53/06

  adjustable · CPC title

• A63B53/02 Primary

  Joint structures between the head and the shaft · CPC title