Golf club with grooved striking face

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2022016501-A1
Application number	US-202117492020-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 1, 2021
Priority date	Jun 30, 2016
Publication date	Jan 20, 2022
Grant date	—

Abstract

A golf club is disclosed that has a golf club head with a face having peaks or ridges and deep grooves or valleys. The deep grooves or valleys promote improved “feel” and/or reduced “smash factor” which may be particularly desirable when the golf club head comprises a putter face. The deep grooves or valleys may eliminate the need for costly soft metal alloy faces and/or polymeric or other resilient inserts between the face and the body of the golf club head.

First claim

We claim:

1 . A putter-type golf club head comprising:
a face having:
a hitting zone having a face center located therein and
a plurality of intersecting grooves, each groove that passes through the hitting zone having a central depth of 0.010 inch to 0.018 inch;
a toe; a heel opposite the toe; and a smash factor, upon striking a golf ball having a compression of 84 to 86, of less than 1.6.

2 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 1 , further comprising a one-piece metal casting.

3 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 2 , wherein the golf club head is made of a stainless steel.

4 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of intersecting grooves comprises a plurality of first grooves that has a constant pitch and a plurality of second grooves that is substantially a mirror image of the plurality of first grooves.

5 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 4 , wherein the constant pitch is about 2 mm.

6 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 4 , wherein each of the plurality of intersecting grooves is arcuate.

7 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the face includes a toe region proximate the toe and the plurality of intersecting grooves that pass through the toe region have a toe depth that is less than the central depth.

8 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 7 , wherein the toe depth is 0.003 inch to 0.006 inch.

9 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 7 , wherein the face includes a heel region proximate the heel and the plurality of intersecting grooves that pass through the heel region have a heel depth that is less than the central depth.

10 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 9 , wherein the heel depth and the toe depth are substantially the same.

11 . A putter-type golf club head comprising:
a face defining a face plane and having:
a central hitting zone including a face center located therein and
a plurality of intersecting grooves that define a plurality of peaks and a plurality of valleys, each of the peaks having, on the face plane, a shape selected from the group consisting of: a diamond, a square, a rectangle, an oval, a triangle, a pentagon, a hexagon, or an octagon;
a toe; a heel opposite the toe, wherein the plurality of intersecting grooves that pass through the central hitting zone has a depth of 0.010 inch to 0.018 inch.

12 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , further comprising a smash factor, upon striking a golf ball having a compression of 84 to 86, of less than 1.6.

13 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , wherein the peak has a diamond shape.

14 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , wherein the golf club head is a unitary investment cast piece.

15 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of intersecting grooves is formed by surface milling.

16 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of intersecting grooves comprises a plurality of first grooves that has a constant pitch and a plurality of second grooves that is substantially a mirror image of the plurality of first grooves.

17 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 16 , wherein the constant pitch is about 2 mm.

18 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , wherein the golf club head is made of a stainless steel.

19 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 11 , wherein the face includes a toe region proximate the toe and the plurality of intersecting grooves that pass through the toe region have a toe depth that is less than the central depth.

20 . The putter-type golf club head of claim 19 , wherein the toe depth is 0.003 inch to 0.006 inch.

Assignees

• Sumitomo Rubber Ind

Inventors

• Becktor Mika
• Lambeth Jacob

Classifications

• A63B53/04 Primary

  Heads · CPC title

• A63B53/007

  Putters · CPC title

• A63B53/0445

  Details of grooves or the like on the impact surface · CPC title

• A63B53/0408

  characterised by specific dimensions, e.g. thickness · CPC title

• A63B53/0487 Primary

  for putters (A63B53/065 takes precedence) · CPC title