US 11,944,878 B2
Golf club
Todd P. Beach, Encinitas, CA (US); John Francis Lorentzen, El Cajon, CA (US); Bing-Ling Chao, San Diego, CA (US); and Mark Vincent Greaney, Vista, CA (US)
Assigned to Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc., Carlsbad, CA (US)
Filed by Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc., Carlsbad, CA (US)
Filed on May 26, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/825,820.
Application 17/825,820 is a continuation of application No. 17/064,528, filed on Oct. 6, 2020, granted, now 11,369,846.
Application 17/064,528 is a continuation of application No. 16/410,249, filed on May 13, 2019, granted, now 10,828,540, issued on Nov. 10, 2020.
Application 16/410,249 is a continuation of application No. 16/102,293, filed on Aug. 13, 2018, granted, now 10,569,145, issued on Feb. 25, 2020.
Application 16/102,293 is a continuation of application No. 15/838,682, filed on Dec. 12, 2017, granted, now 10,226,671, issued on Mar. 12, 2019.
Application 15/838,682 is a continuation of application No. 14/144,105, filed on Dec. 30, 2013, granted, now 9,861,864, issued on Jan. 9, 2018.
Claims priority of provisional application 61/909,964, filed on Nov. 27, 2013.
Prior Publication US 2022/0370866 A1, Nov. 24, 2022
Int. Cl. A63B 53/04 (2015.01)
CPC A63B 53/0466 (2013.01) [A63B 53/0408 (2020.08); A63B 53/0412 (2020.08); A63B 53/0433 (2020.08); A63B 2053/0491 (2013.01)] 54 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A golf club head comprising:
a club body including a leading edge, a trailing edge, a crown, a sole, a skirt disposed between and connecting the crown and the sole, a length from the leading edge to the trailing edge is 110.8-140 mm, and a maximum club head height is between 55 mm and 75 mm;
an adjustable head-shaft connection assembly coupled to the club body and operable to adjust at least one of a loft angle or a lie angle of a golf club formed when the golf club head is attached to a golf club shaft via the head-shaft connection assembly;
a face portion at a front end of the club body, the face portion including a geometric center defining an origin of a coordinate system when the golf club head is ideally positioned, the coordinate system including:
an x-axis being tangent to the face portion at the origin and parallel to a ground plane,
a y-axis intersecting the origin being parallel to the ground plane and orthogonal to the x-axis, and
a z-axis intersecting the origin being orthogonal to both the x-axis and the y-axis;
the golf club head defining a center of gravity (CG), the CG being a distance CGY from the origin as measured along the y-axis and a distance CGZ from the origin as measured along the z-axis, the CG located a distance ΔZ from a ground plane, the ground plane being defined as a plane in contact with the sole of the golf club head in an ideal address position;
wherein the golf club head has a moment of inertia (Ixx) about a CG x-axis of 280-550 kg·mm2, the CG x-axis being parallel to the x-axis and passing through the CG of the golf club head, a moment of inertia (Iyy) about a CG y-axis of 250-400 kg·mm2 and less than Ixx, the CG y-axis being parallel to the y-axis and passing through the CG of the golf club head, and a moment of inertia (Izz) about a CG z-axis that is greater than Ixx and greater than Iyy, the CG z-axis being parallel to the z-axis and passing through the CG of the golf club head;
wherein there is a face-to-crown transition where the face portion connects to the crown near the front end of the club body and a skirt-to-crown transition where the skirt connects to the crown;
an imaginary rearward mass box (IRMB) located at a rearward portion of the club head having a constant IRMB rectangular cross-section with a IRMB first side, a IRMB second side, a IRMB third side, and a IRMB fourth side, wherein:
the IRMB first side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IRMB second side and connects to the IRMB second side at a IRMB first vertex, the IRMB third side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IRMB second side and connects to the IRMB second side at a IRMB second vertex, the IRMB third side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IRMB fourth side and connects to the IRMB fourth side at a IRMB third vertex, and the IRMB first side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IRMB fourth side and connects to the IRMB fourth side at a IRMB fourth vertex;
the IRMB fourth side of the constant IRMB rectangular cross-section is parallel to the z-axis and extends from the ground plane to a point tangent to the trailing edge, the IRMB first side of the constant IRMB rectangular cross-section is coincident with the ground plane and extends from the IRMB fourth side forward in a negative y-direction, and the IRMB second side of the constant IRMB rectangular cross-section extends upward in a positive z-direction;
the constant IRMB rectangular cross-section having a IRMB height of 30 mm as measured parallel to the z-axis and between the IRMB first side and the IRMB third side, and a IRMB width of 35 mm as measured parallel to the y-axis and between the IRMB second side and the IRMB fourth side;
the imaginary rearward mass box extends parallel to the x-axis from a heel-ward most portion of the golf club head to a toe-ward most portion of the golf club head encompassing all club head mass within the imaginary rearward mass box, and the imaginary rearward mass box encompasses at least 30.1 grams;
the imaginary rearward mass box includes an imaginary rearward mass box geometric center point which is defined as a point in a y-z plane passing through the origin located one-half a distance from the IRMB first side to the IRMB third side of the imaginary rearward mass box and one-half a distance from the IRMB second side to the IRMB fourth side of the imaginary rearward mass box;
a rearward mass box vector distance (V2) is defined as a distance as measured in the y-z plane passing through the origin from the imaginary rearward mass box geometric center point to a y-z plane CG projection that is a projection, parallel to the x-axis, of the CG onto the y-z plane passing through the origin; and
a MOI effectiveness of the rearward mass box is defined as the mass within the imaginary rearward mass box multiplied by the square of the rearward mass box vector distance (V2);
an imaginary forward mass box (IFMB) located at a forward portion of the club head having a constant IFMB rectangular cross-section having a IFMB first side, a IFMB second side, a IFMB third side, and a IFMB fourth side, wherein:
the IFMB first side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IFMB second side and connects to the IFMB second side at a first IFMB vertex, the IFMB third side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IFMB second side and connects to the IFMB second side at a second IFMB vertex, the IFMB third side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IFMB fourth side and connects to the IFMB fourth side at a third IFMB vertex, and the IFMB first side is adjacent and perpendicular to the IFMB fourth side and connects to the IFMB fourth side at a fourth IFMB vertex;
an offset forward origin is positioned at the intersection of an offset forward origin x-axis, an offset forward origin y-axis, and an offset forward origin z-axis, with the offset forward origin z-axis extending parallel to the z-axis and tangent to the leading edge of the golf club head, the offset forward origin y-axis extending parallel to the y-axis and coincident with the ground plane, and the offset forward origin x-axis extending parallel to the x-axis and perpendicular to both the offset forward origin y-axis and the offset forward origin z-axis;
the first IFMB vertex is aligned with the offset forward origin such that the IFMB first side of the constant IFMB rectangular cross-section is coincident with the ground plane and extends from the offset forward origin rearward in a positive y-direction and the IFMB second side of the constant IFMB rectangular cross-section extends from the offset forward origin upward in the positive z-direction along the offset forward origin z-axis;
the constant IFMB rectangular cross-section having a IFMB height of 20 mm as measured along the offset forward origin z-axis and between the IFMB first side and the IFMB third side, and a IFMB width of 35 mm as measured along the offset forward origin y-axis and between the IFMB second side and the IFMB fourth side;
the imaginary forward mass box extends parallel to the x-axis from the heel-ward most portion of the golf club head to the toe-ward most portion of the golf club head encompassing all club head mass within the imaginary forward mass box, and the imaginary forward mass box encompasses no more than 55.2 grams;
the imaginary forward mass box includes an imaginary forward mass box geometric center point which is defined as a point in the y-z plane passing through the origin located one-half the distance from the IFMB first side to the IFMB third side of the imaginary forward mass box and one-half the distance from the IFMB second side to the IFMB fourth side of the imaginary forward mass box;
a forward mass box vector distance (V1) is defined as a distance as measured in the y-z plane passing through the origin from the imaginary forward mass box geometric center point to the y-z plane CG projection, and the forward mass box vector distance (V1) is at least 24.5 mm; and
a MOI effectiveness of the forward mass box is defined as the mass within the imaginary forward mass box multiplied by the square of the forward mass box vector distance (V1);
at least one external mass element attached to the club body and at least partially within the imaginary rearward mass box;
wherein a CG effectiveness product (CGeff) for the golf club head is defined as CGeff=CGy×Δz, and the CGeff is at least 806 mm2;
wherein the CGy is 31.6-52.8 mm;
wherein the Δz is 24.2-29.7 mm;
wherein a MOI effectiveness summation is defined as the sum of the MOI effectiveness of the forward mass box and the MOI effectiveness of the rearward mass box, and a ratio of the MOI effectiveness summation to the Ixx moment of inertia is least 0.453; and
wherein the golf club head has a volume of 430-500 cc, and a total mass of the club head is no more than 210.7 grams.