Golf Putter with Alignment Head
A golf putter includes a putter shaft having a first end and a second end, and a putter head having a striking face. The putter head is arranged to accept the first end of the putter shaft such that the putter head and the putter shaft align in a perpendicular manner and the striking face and the putter shaft align in a parallel manner. The golf putter further includes a first putter grip positioned adjacent to the second end of the putter shaft and distal to the putter head at the first end, and a second putter grip having a front surface. The second putter grip is affixed to the putter shaft between the first putter grip and the first end of the putter shaft such that the front face aligns parallel to the striking face of the putter head.
This patent generally relates to golf clubs, and more particularly to a golf putter that includes a pair of putter grips arranged along a perpendicular shaft to aid in alignment and implementation of a putting stroke.
BACKGROUNDIt is well known that the game of golf as a whole, and putting in particular, requires patience, skill, and coordination to accurately and consistently deliver a golf ball to a desired location. Putting encompasses a large percentage of the golf strokes taken during the course of a normal game, because of this a great deal of effort has been expended in order to analyze and improve putting accuracy in an effort to lower overall golf scores.
Generally putting includes two steps, each of which requires a different set of skills. First, a player must choose a desired line or shot path between the current position of the golf ball and the hole. When estimating the shot path, the player is typically required to estimate a number of factors such as the condition of the green, the speed and break of the grass, and the prevailing green topology in order to calculate the shot path. Second, the player must strike the golf ball along a desired vector (i.e. speed and direction) in order cause the golf ball to follow the shot path to the hole. Putting typically requires smooth and continuous stokes in order to minimize the minute variations in speed and direction that result in a missed putt.
In order to improve and hone putting skills, players typically take lessons and practice in order to develop the muscle memory or conditioning necessary to strike the ball consistently from stoke-to-stroke. Further, players often emulate the play and swing of professional golfers whose golfing style they admire or most desire to have. One professional golfer employed a unique “straight forward” putting stroke which involves facing the cup rather than standing parallel to the shot path in a traditional putting stance. The straight forward stroke helps to eliminate or reduce the tiny variations and tremors produced by a player's grip during a traditional side stance putt. Further, the straight forward stroke allows the player to stand and swing in a more comfortable and natural manner which, in turn, improves the fluidity and continuity of the swing.
While the straight forward stroke offers many advantages, known putters are simply not designed to exploit them. Further, known putters are difficult to align and aim which, in turn, makes the task of determining and following a desired shot path more difficult. It would be desirable to provide a putter that addressed these deficiencies while fully exploited the advantages of the straight forward stroke.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSFeatures, and advantages of the present device will become apparent upon reading the following description in conjunction with the drawing figures, in which:
A putter head 18 attaches perpendicular to the extended shaft 12 at the first end 14 and includes a top surface 20, a base surface 22, and a impact or striking face 24 arranged to contact a golf ball at the apex of the putting stroke, as shown in
The golf putter 10 further includes first and second putter grips 28, 30 positioned adjacent to the second end 16 of the extended shaft 12 and distal to the first end 14. The first putter grip 28 can be any type of cylindrical rubber grip, wrapped leather grip or may be a custom or irregular shaped grip intended to fit a player's hand and/or aid in putting. Typically, the first putter grip 28 will be a single continuous grip injection molded from a malleable rubber or polyurethane based material such as, for example, Greptile™ Gripping Material manufactured by 3M™, that provides a high degree of tackiness and friction for a comfortable and reliable player gripping surface.
The second putter grip 30 attaches to the extended shaft 12 substantially adjacent to a midpoint 31 defined between the first end 14 and the second end 16. The precise location of the second putter grip 30 will vary depending on the length of the player's arms and individual preference and comfort determined during practice putting strokes. It will be understood that the second putter grip 20 could, for the sake of convenience and ease of manufacture, be configured similar to the first putter grip 28. However, it would be preferable to form the second putter grip 20 with a square or rectangular cross-section that provides a comfortable means of grasping and guiding the golf putter 10 through a straight forward putting stroke.
The second putter grip 30 preferably includes a first grip face 32 and a second grip face 34 aligned perpendicular to the striking face 24. In particular, as shown in
It will be further appreciated with respect to the various embodiments of grips herein shown and described that the grips may have any suitable configuration including any grip configuration conforming with the rules of various governing bodies such as the United States Golf Association (USGA). Thus, while the grips may be shown round or square, the grips may be semi-round, semi-square, rectangular, triangular, hexagonal, octangular, or of any other configuration as selected by the manufacturer or end user of the putter. In one embodiment, the length of a back surface of the grip is maintained flat to facilitate the user swinging the club head on the intended line.
Although certain features have been described herein in accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure, the scope of coverage of this patent is not limited thereto. On the contrary, this patent covers all embodiments of the teachings of the disclosure that fairly fall within the scope of permissible equivalents.
Claims
1. A golf putter comprising:
- a putter shaft, the putter shaft including a first end and a second end;
- a putter head having a striking face, the putter head arranged to accept the first end of the putter shaft, wherein the putter head and the putter shaft align in a substantially perpendicular manner and the striking face and the putter shaft align in a substantially parallel manner;
- a first putter grip, the first putter grip positioned adjacent to the second end of the putter shaft and distal to the putter head at the first end; and
- a second putter grip having a front surface, the second putter grip affixed to the putter shaft between the first putter grip and the first end of the putter shaft, wherein the front face aligns substantially parallel to the striking face of the putter head.
2. The golf putter of claim 1, wherein the first putter grip has a substantially circular cross-section.
3. The golf putter of claim 1, wherein the second putter grip has a substantially rectangular cross-section.
4. The golf putter of claim 1, wherein the first putter grip is positioned to be grasped by a player holding an arm transversely across their body.
5. The golf putter of claim 4, wherein the second putter grip is positioned to be grasped by the player holding a second arm along the side of their body.
6. The golf putter of claim 1, wherein the putter head includes a pair of alignment indicators extending beyond the striking face.
7. The golf putter of claim 1, wherein the first putter grip includes a plurality of scales formed to resemble a snakes tail.
8. The golf putter of claim 1, wherein the putter head includes a plurality of scales formed to resemble a snake head.
9. The golf putter of claim 8, wherein the snake head includes a pair of protuberances arranged as alignment indicators.
10. A method of putting a golf ball, comprising selecting a putter having a shaft attached to a putter head such that putter can be balanced vertically along a shot path defined between a golf ball and a target hole;
- grasping the putter along the shaft such that a first arm is held transversely across the body and adjacent to a first putter grip and a second arm is held substantially parallel with the shaft and adjacent to a second putter grip;
- pivoting the putter relative the first arm and first putter grip along an arc circumscribed by the putter head in response to a force applied by the second arm at the second putter grip; and
- impacting the golf ball with the putter head to impart a vector intended to coincide with the shot path and the target hole.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising aligning the putter in a vertical freestanding position along the intended the shot path.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein aligning the putter includes positioning the shot path between first and second alignment indicators.
13. The method of claim 10, wherein the second putter grip has a substantially rectangular cross-section.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein the second putter grip includes a front face aligned substantially parallel to a striking face of the putter head.
15. The golf putter of claim 10, wherein the first putter grip includes a plurality of scales formed to resemble a snakes tail.
16. The golf putter of claim 10, wherein the putter head includes a plurality of scales formed to resemble a snake head.
17. A golf putter comprising:
- a shaft including a first and second end;
- a first putter grip positioned adjacent to the first end;
- a second rectangular putter grip having a front face, the second rectangular putter grip positioned between the first putter grip and the second end; and
- a putter head secured at the second end, wherein the putter head includes a striking face arranged substantially parallel the front face of the second rectangular grip.
18. The golf putter of claim 17, wherein the first putter grip includes a plurality of scales formed to resemble a snakes tail.
19. The golf putter of claim 17, wherein the putter head includes a plurality of scales formed to resemble a snake head.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 5, 2006
Publication Date: Oct 11, 2007
Inventor: Joseph Jazwiec (Niles, IL)
Application Number: 11/278,743
International Classification: A63B 53/14 (20060101);