GOLF TRAINING ACCESSORY

Abstract

A golf training accessory is provided which includes an annular disc with an outer diameter approximately that of a golf hole and attachment formations for attaching the disc to a cup (30) of the golf hole. The attachment formations are in the form of elongate, resilient protuberances that are circumferentially spaced on the underside of the disc with their outer surfaces being spaced slightly further apart than the inner diameter of the cup, so that they are resiliently inwardly deformed when inserted into the cup, to grip the inner periphery of the cup. The accessory includes an insert that is receivable on the support face of an inner protuberance of the disc and that defines an aperture. The insert can block the inner aperture of the disc in part, thereby effectively reducing the diameter of the aperture.

Description

This application claims priority to and is a continuation and Paris Convention filing of South African Patent Application Serial No. 2005/08804 filed 31 Oct. 2005, the specification of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to the game of golf. In particular, the invention relates to a training accessory to assist a golfer in improving his short game.

2. Description of the Invention

In the game of golf, in the so called “short game”, a golfer hits a golf ball with a putter on a generally even golfing green, towards a hole, with the intention to sink the ball in the hole, using the least number of shots. The golf ball and the hole have strictly standardized dimensions that ensure that the degree of difficulty in sinking a golf ball remains consistently high.

Sinking a golf ball in a golf hole is difficult because the dimensions of the hole and ball, together with environmental considerations such a green texture, slope, wind, etc. make it very difficult to sink a ball. Sinking the ball thus requires skill and confidence, since the short game of even highly skilled golfers can be adversely affected if a golfer does not have faith in his abilities. A golfer's short game could thus be improved if his skill and confidence can be improved.

The present invention seeks to provide means for assisting a golfer in improving his short game.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention there is provided a golf training accessory which includes an annular disc with an outer diameter approximately that of a golf hole and attachment formations for releasably attaching the disc to a cup of a golf hole, wherein the attachment formations are in the form of resilient protuberances that extend from one side of the disc and that are resiliently deformable, the outer surfaces of the attachment formations being spaced slightly further apart than the inner diameter of a golf hole cup, so that the attachment formations are resiliently inwardly deformed when inserted into the cup, to grip the inner periphery of the cup.

The attachment formations may each be in the form of an elongate protuberance and the attachment formations may be circumferentially spaced. Each of the attachment formations may include a protuberance on its outside in the vicinity of its end furthest form the disc.

The accessory may include an inner protuberance at the inner periphery of the disc, defining a support face and may include an insert that is receivable on the support face and that defines an aperture. The insert may thus be receivable on the support face to block the inner aperture of the annular disc in part, thereby effectively reducing the diameter of the inner aperture.

The inner protuberance may include a truncated cylindrical skirt extending from the inner circumference of the annular disc and may include a shoulder formation, defining the support face.

The insert may have a truncated cylindrical shape with a wall thickness generally equal to the width of the shoulder and a length generally equal to the length of the skirt, so that the edges of the insert are generally flush with the top of the annular disc and with the inside of the shoulder formation, when supported on the support surface.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show how the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of non limiting example, to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded three dimensional view of a golf training accessory in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional assembled view of the accessory of FIG. 1, in use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the drawings, a golf training accessory in accordance with the present invention is generally indicated by reference numeral 10. The accessory includes a main body 12 and an insert 14, both molded from nylon or other suitably durable and resiliently deformable material.

The main body 12 includes an annular disc 16 at its top, which typically has an outer diameter of about 105 mm and an inner diameter of about 80 mm. A truncated cylindrical skirt 18 extends downwardly from the inner circumference of the disc 16 and a shoulder formation 20 extends inwardly from the bottom of the skirt, to define a support face 22 on its top.

The body 12 includes four circumferentially spaced attachment formations 24 in the form of elongate, resilient protuberances that extend from the underside of the annular disc 16 and that are resiliently deformable. Each of the attachment formations 24 includes a tapered, outwardly facing protuberance 26, near its bottom end. The outer surfaces of the protuberances 26 are spaced circumferentially on a common pitch circle with a diameter slightly larger than the inner diameter of a cup for a golf hole, e.g. about 105 mm.

The skirt 18 and shoulder 20 together form an inner protuberance on which the insert 14 is receivable. The insert 14 has a truncated cylindrical shape with a length generally equal to the axial length of the skirt 18 and a thickness generally equal to the radial width of the support face 22. The outer diameter of the insert is generally equal to the inner diameter of the annular disc 16 and the inner diameter of the insert is typically about 70 mm. When the insert 14 is received on the support face 22, its top is generally flush with the top of the disc 16 and its inner circumference is generally flush with the inner circumference of the shoulder formation 20. The effect of placing the insert on the shoulder formation 20 is thus to block the inner aperture of the annular disc 16 in part and to reduce the effective inner diameter of the disc from about 80 mm to about 70 mm.

In use, a golfer who wants to improve his short game uses the accessory 10 to block the opening of a golf hole 28 in part, to reduce the diameter into which the golf ball must be sunk from the typical 105 mm diameter of a golf hole, to the 80 mm or 70 mm effective diameter of the annular disc 16.

The accessory 10 is installed on the golf hole 28 by inserting the attachment formations 24 into the cup 30, lining the hole. The pitch diameter of the outer surfaces of the protuberances 26 is more than the inner diameter of the cup 30, so the attachment formations are resiliently deformed by flexing them inwardly. The resilience of the attachment formations 24 causes the protuberances 26 to be pushed outwardly and to engage the inner circumference of the cup 30 with friction, which holds the attachment formations and thus the body 12 in place relative to the cup and to the hole 28.

The body 12 can be slid upwardly and downwardly by allowing the protuberances 26 to slide along the inside of the cup 30 until the upper face of the annular disc 16 is generally flush with the surface of the surrounding green 32 and the resilience of the attachment formations 24 can compensate for variations in the geometry of different cups 30. Accordingly, the accessory 10 can be used on a wide variety of golf holes with varying dimensions and still be correctly positioned relative to the green 32.

Once the accessory 10 has been installed, the golfer can practice his short game by putting towards the hole 28. The level of skill that is required to sink the ball in the hole 28 through the aperture of the annular disc 16 is obviously higher than simply sinking the ball in a hole without the accessory 10, so the golfer is trained to improve his aim and to put towards the centre of the hole 28. Preferably, the skill of the golfer is improved to the extent that he develops an intuitive feel for putting towards the centre of the hole 28.

The effectiveness of the accessory 10 is further enhanced by the fact that both the main body 12 and the insert 14 are black in color. The accessory is thus not that visible to the golfer, for whom it blends in with the dark inside of the hole 28.

The insert 14 can be installed in the body 12 to amplify the effect of the body 12 in reducing the effective diameter of the hole 28 or can be removed if less of a reduction is required. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, more than one insert 14 can be provided, with different inner diameters.

Once a golfer has been training using the accessory 10 as described herein above, if he plays golf without the accessory, e.g. in a tournament, the absence of the accessory makes the hole appear larger to him, than it is, thus improving the golfer's confidence in addition to improving his putting skill.

Claims

1. A golf training accessory comprising:

an annular disc with an outer diameter approximately that of a golf hole;

attachment formations for releasably attaching said annular disc to a cup of a golf hole; and,

wherein said attachment formations comprise resilient protuberances that extend from one side of said annular disc and that are resiliently deformable and wherein outer surfaces of said attachment formations are spaced slightly further apart than an inner diameter of a golf hole cup, so that said attachment formations are resiliently inwardly deformed when inserted into said golf hole cup and wherein said attachment formation are configured to grip an inner periphery of said golf hole cup.

2. The accessory as claimed in claim 1, wherein said attachment formations comprise elongate protuberances.

3. The accessory as claimed in claim 1, wherein said attachment formations are circumferentially spaced.

4. The accessory as claimed in claim 2, wherein each of said attachment formations includes a protuberance on its outside in the vicinity of its end furthest form said annular disc.

5. The accessory as claimed in claim 1 comprising an inner protuberance at said inner periphery of said annular disc which defines a support face.

6. The accessory as claimed in claim 5 further comprising an insert which is receivable on said support face and which defines an aperture.

7. The accessory as claimed in claim 6, wherein said insert is receivable on said support face to block an inner aperture of said annular disc in part.

8. The accessory as claimed in claim 7, wherein said inner protuberance includes a truncated cylindrical skirt extending from an inner circumference of said annular disc.

9. The accessory as claimed in claim 8, wherein said inner protuberance includes a shoulder formation which defines said support face.

10. The accessory as claimed in claim 9, wherein said insert has a truncated cylindrical shape with a wall thickness generally equal to a width of said shoulder formation and a length generally equal to a length of said skirt, so that edges of said insert are generally flush with a top of said annular disc and with an inside of said shoulder formation, when supported on said support face.