Putter assembly

Abstract

A putter assembly is disclosed. The putter assembly has a loft angle between a face of a head of the putter and a lie angle between a longitudinal horizontal center line and a shaft, and includes loft and lie angle adjustors pivotally installed in a connection neck for connecting the head and the shaft. The loft angle adjustor includes a hinge channel depressed in the upper side of the head and a hinge arm inserted into the hinge channel. The hinge arm and the hinge channel are connected by a bolt penetrating boltholes formed in the hinge arm and the hinge channel to freely change the loft angle. The lie angle adjustor includes an upper neck, and a frictional member formed between ends of the lower and upper neck. The upper and lower necks are coupled with each other via an adjusting bolt fixed at a freely changed lie angle.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a putter assembly, and more particularly, to a golf club, especially, to a putter assembly having a structure suitable for a user's physique and putting habit and positioned between a putter head and a shaft.

2. Description of the Related Art

Use of putting for short distance and swing with the putter frequently occur when playing golf and are very important factor because of occupying 50% weight on golf. Generally, the putter has a loft angle providing a predetermined angle between a face of a head and a golf ball and a lie angle formed by an upper horizontal line and a shaft.

The loft angle is an important factor to provide torque to the gold ball, and the lie angle is variably determined based on a golfer's physique and enables the golfer to achieve ideal putting.

Generally, since the lie angle and the loft angle of a putter are compositely formed between the head and the shaft, there occurs a phenomenon wherein a lie angle, practically perceived by a golfer, is misaligned with a front surface of the putter head, which the golfer gazes, according to a ground contacting angle of a ground contacting surface under the influence of the loft angle.

Therefore, the golfer carries out exercises repeat and repeat and tries to find putters, which are proper to the golfer's physique and the golfer putts as the golfer's will.

However, since it is very difficult to obtain putters most suitable for a particular golfer due to the lie angle and the loft angle, purchase, discard, and re-purchase of the putters consumes a great deal of time, effort, and cost.

In more detail, in a putter P as one of golf clubs, an example of which is depicted in FIG. 1, the putter P includes a view guide plate 51 extending backward from the upper side 50 and having a view guide 52 protruded into various shapes.

The rear end of the head 1 is connected to a general shaft 10, and a connection neck 20 forming a working angle of the head 1 is inserted into and fixed in a neck hole 20′.

Generally, the head 1 and the shaft 10 of the putter P are not perpendicular with each other and form a loft angle a between a face S and, as shown in FIG. 2, a vertical line V1 as viewed from the rear side of the head 1, and as shown in FIG. 3, there is a lie angle b between a longitudinal horizontal center line 50 of the head 1 and the shaft 10. Generally, the loft angle ranges from an angle of 3 degrees to an angle of 6 degrees, and the lie angle ranges from an angle of 70 degrees to an angle of −90 degrees.

The loft angle a and the lie angle b are important factors when using the putter, serve as factors to spin a golf ball and to provide torque to the golf ball, and are designed to enable optimal putting in association with a golfer's posture. However, since the majority of putters have a standard loft angle a and a standard lie angle b, it is very difficult to find a putter suitable for a golfer's swing, physique, and physique.

Thus, it is difficult to obtain a putter having a loft angle a and a lie angle b, suitable for the golfer's physique and for putting of importance more than 50% weight in golf.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a putter assembly enabling a golfer to adjust the putter assembly into a putter assembly suitable for the golfer's physique and for repeat exercise by adjusting a lie angle and a loft angle.

In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of a putter assembly having a loft angle as an angle between a face of a head of the putter and a lie angle as an angle between a longitudinal horizontal center line and a shaft. The putter assembly includes a loft angle adjustor pivotally installed in a connection neck for connecting the head and the shaft, and a lie angle adjustor pivotally installed in a connection neck for connecting the head and the shaft. The loft angle adjustor includes a hinge channel depressed in the upper side of the head and serving as an accommodator, and a hinge arm serving as an end of a lower neck and inserted into the hinge channel.

Preferably, the hinge arm of the lower neck and the hinge channel are connected by a bolt penetrating boltholes formed in the hinge arm and the hinge channel and fixed at a freely changed loft angle.

Moreover, the lie angle adjustor includes an upper neck separated from the lower neck, and a frictional member formed between the end of the lower neck and the upper neck to which the shaft is connected, wherein the upper neck and the lower neck are coupled with each other by an adjusting bolt to be fixed at a freely adjustable lie angle.

Preferably, the loft angle adjustor is structured such that the middle neck is manufactured in a multiple joint body further including a separate bolt-coupling member to change the loft angle, and the loft angle of the head is freely adjusted and fixed by a frictional member such as stopper protrusions and a bolt between the middle neck and the upper neck.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an example of a putter assembly according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view illustrating a loft angle of a conventional putter for explanation of operation the putter assembly according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view illustrating a lie angle;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a device for adjusting a loft angle of a putter assembly according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a putter assembly having a device for adjusting a loft angle and a lie angle according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a partially exploded perspective view of a portion “B” in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a putter assembly according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a modified putter assembly of the putter assembly in FIG. 8.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, the structure and operation of a putter assembly according to the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The putter assembly according to the preferred embodiments can be applied to any putter regardless of configuration, shape, and manufacturers.

As shown in FIG. 4, a putter assembly PA according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a head 1, a shaft 10, and a loft angle adjustor LT1 installed in a connection neck 100 for connecting the head 1 with the shaft 10. FIGS. 4 and 5 show the loft angle adjustor LT1, FIG. 6 shows the loft angle adjustor LT1 and a lie angle adjustor RE, and FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the lie angle adjustor RE.

The loft angle adjustor LT1 has a depressed hinge channel 25 formed in a fixing part to which a conventional connection neck of the head 1 is fixed. The hinge channel 25, as shown in the drawings, is inwardly depressed to have depressed channel shape for tightly accommodating a hinge arm 22 serving as a pivoting hinge member having a round end. The hinge arm 22 serving as the end of a lower neck 21 corresponding to the conventional connection neck 100 is inserted into the hinge channel 25 and is pivoted in the hinge channel 25 in a predetermined direction. The lower neck 21 and a later-described upper neck 30 form the connection neck 100.

The hinge arm 22 of the lower neck 21, as shown in the drawings, is a pivoting member having a disc-shaped end. The hinge arm 22 is also inserted into the hinge channel 25 serving as an accommodating part corresponding to the shape of the hinge arm 22. The hinge arm 22 has a threaded penetrating bolthole 22′ formed in the central portion thereof.

In correspondence to the bolthole 22′, the head 1 has a fixing bolthole 26 penetrating from a rear end 1F of the head 1 toward the hinge channel 25 and having threads 26′.

The fixing bolthole 26 and the bolthole 22′ of the hinge arm 22 mate with each other and are connected by a fixing bolt 27. The end of the fixing bolt 27 extends to a rear surface 25′ of the hinge channel 25.

After assembling the putter assembly PA according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, when a head 27′ of the fixing bolt 27 is rotated with a hand tool to release the fixing bolt 27, the hinge arm 22 of the lower neck 21 can pivot with respect to the face S of the head 1 within the hinge channel 25 of the head 1 in a forward and backward direction at a predetermined angle so that the loft angle a can be freely adjusted. After the adjustment, when the fixing bolt 27 is securely fastened, the loft angle a is fixed in the adjusted state.

If a protrusion or protruded line is formed between the hinge arm 22 and a contact face F of the hinge channel 25 in the radial direction, coupling force between the hinge channel 25 and the head 1 is stronger when fixing the loft angle a.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, in a putter assembly improving upon the putter assembly in FIG. 4, an upper neck 30, serving as a separate neck, is connected to the upper side of the lower neck 21 and serves as the lie angle adjustor RE.

The lie angle adjustor RE, as shown in FIG. 7, includes a stopper 21′ at the end of the lower neck 21 and a stopper 30′ at the end of the upper neck 30, which are securely coupled with each other by an adjusting bolt 40, aligned boltholes 21-1 and 30-1 penetrating the stoppers 21′ and 30′ of the ends of the lower neck 21 and the upper neck 30, and radial line-shaped stopper protrusions 21″ and 30″ as described above formed in the stoppers 21′ and 30′ to increase coupling force between the stoppers 21′ and 30′.

When either or both of the lie angle adjustor RE and the loft angle adjustor LT1 is equipped in the putter assembly, the putter assemblies PA according to the first and second preferred embodiments are completed.

Since excess impact is not applied to the head 1 of the putter when putting, unlike a driver, a sufficient coupling force due to the above structure can be obtained to make a putter in which the lie angle b and the loft angle a most suitable for the golfer's physique are adjusted.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating modifications of a loft angle adjustor and a lie angle adjustor according to a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The lie angle adjustor RE is installed in a direction to form a lie angle between a conventional lower neck 50 fixed to the lower side of the putter assembly PA and a middle neck 60 serving as an intermediate connection member, and a loft angle adjustor LT2 according to the third preferred embodiment is coupled with a middle neck 60 and an upper neck 70 to which a shaft, not depicted in the drawings, is fixed and connected between the middle neck 60 and the upper neck 70 by bolts. Thus, the putt assembly has a multi-joint structure.

Preferably, axial center lines C of the lower neck 50 and the upper neck 70 are aligned with each other, but it is possible that the axial center lines C of the lower neck 50 and the upper neck 70 are misaligned with each other as shown in FIG. 9.

The lower neck 50, the middle neck 60, and the upper neck 70, as shown in the drawings, like the lie angle adjustor as described above, have bolts 51 and 61 and stopper protrusions 51′ and 61′ such that the loft angle a can be freely adjusted to suit the golfer's physique and swing habit. Operation and effects of the putter assembly according to this embodiment are identical to the putter assemblies as described above.

As described above, according to the putter assembly according to the present invention, since a golfer can freely adjust the loft angle and the lie angle to optimally suit the golfer's physique and putting habit, frequent replacement of the putter for the optimization of the lie angle and the loft angle is eradicated.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

Claims

1. A putter assembly having a loft angle as an angle between a face of a head of the putter and a lie angle as an angle between a longitudinal horizontal center line and a shaft, the putter assembly comprising:

a loft angle adjustor pivotally installed in a connection neck for connecting the head and the shaft; and

a lie angle adjustor pivotally installed in a connection neck for connecting the head and the shaft;

the loft angle adjustor including: a hinge channel depressed in the upper side of the head and serving as an accommodator; and a hinge arm serving as an end of a lower neck and inserted into the hinge channel; wherein the hinge arm of the lower neck and the hinge channel are connected by a bolt penetrating boltholes formed in the hinge arm and the hinge channel and fixed at a freely changed loft angle, and

the lie angle adjustor including: an upper neck separated from the lower neck; and a frictional member formed between the end of the lower neck and the upper neck to which the shaft is connected, wherein the upper neck and the lower neck are coupled with each other by an adjusting bolt to be fixed at a freely adjustable lie angle.

2. The putter assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein the loft angle adjustor is structured such that the middle neck is manufactured in a multiple joint body further including a separate bolt-coupling member to change the loft angle, and the loft angle of the head is freely adjusted and fixed by a frictional member such as stopper protrusions and a bolt between the middle neck and the upper neck.