PUTTER SELECTION AID

Abstract

A putter selection aid includes a mat having a ball placement indicia, a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia, and three demarcated areas. The first demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1), the second demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2), and the third demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3), where d1

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to a putter style selection aid.

BACKGROUND

In the game of golf, putting involves swinging a golf putter in an arcuate manner to impact a ball and cause the ball to roll toward a target. To accomplish this goal, it is preferable for the face of the putter to be square/perpendicular to the desired direction of travel at the moment of impact. This is referred to as being “square” or having a “square alignment.”

Golfers that stand close to the ball during the stroke may have a nearly vertical putting swing plane, which may allow them keep the club face square throughout the entire stroke. As the user stands farther from the ball, however their swing plane becomes more inclined (relative to vertical), which causes the putter head to deviate from a square alignment as the clubhead is drawn away from the ball in the backswing. As the golfer swings through the ball, it is important that the club head sufficiently return to square immediately prior to impact.

SUMMARY

A putter selection aid includes a mat having a ball placement indicia, a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia, and three demarcated areas. The first demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1), the second demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2), and the third demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3), where d1<d2<d3. The first demarcated area includes a first reference to a first putter style, the second demarcated area includes a second reference to a second putter style, and the third demarcated area includes a third reference to a third putter style.

These demarcated areas may correspond to putter styles having differing weighting profiles. For example, the center of gravity of the head of a first putter style may be offset from the shaft axis by a first center of gravity offset distance (X1), the center of gravity of the second putter style may be offset by a second center of gravity offset distance (X2), and the center of gravity of the third putter style may be offset by a third center of gravity offset distance (X3), where X1<X2<X3.

The reference to the respective putter style may include, for example, at least one of a name or a logo. In another configuration, the reference may be a color that is provided within the respective demarcated area and that corresponds to a similar color provided on the corresponding putter. The putter selection aid may further include instructions directing a user to stand on the mat and examine which of the three demarcated areas the user's toes lie within.

In an embodiment, a method of aiding the selection of a putter includes providing a mat having a ball placement indicia, a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia, and three demarcated areas. The first demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1), the second demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2), and the third demarcated area is spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3), where d1<d2<d3.

The method further includes providing a first golf putter of a first style that corresponds to the first demarcated area, providing a second golf putter of a second style that corresponds to the second demarcated area, and providing a third golf putter of a third style that corresponds to the third demarcated area. A user may be instructed to stand with a foot on the mat, in a position that is suitable to conduct a putting stroke to impact a ball placed on the indicia. A suitable putter may then be indicated for the user according to the location of the foot of the user relative to one or more of the first demarcated area, the second demarcated area, or the third demarcated area.

In one configuration, the method may additionally include providing a retail display that visually correlates the first demarcated area with the first style, the second demarcated area with the second style, and the third demarcated area with the third style. The visual display may use words or logos to correlate the areas to the club styles, or may involve using identifying colors.

In an embodiment, a method of aiding a user in selecting a putter may include standing in a putting stance on a putter selection aid relative to a ball placement indicia. The putter selection aid includes a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia, a first demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1), a second demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2), and a third demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3), where d1<d2<d3.

The method may further include: identifying a selected area from the first, second, and third demarcated areas, where the selected area surrounds a predefined portion of a foot of the user; correlating a putter style with the selected area; and selecting a putter having the correlated putter style from a display.

The above features and advantages and other features and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best modes for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a user interacting with an embodiment of a putter selection aid.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a mat usable as a putter selection aid

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of a user utilizing the matt of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4A is a schematic side view of a putter of a first style, having a first center of gravity offset distance.

FIG. 4B is a schematic side view of a putter of a second style, having a second center of gravity offset distance.

FIG. 4C is a schematic side view of a putter of a third style, having a third center of gravity offset distance.

FIG. 5A is a schematic side view of a putter of a first style, having a first club head moment of inertia.

FIG. 5B is a schematic side view of a putter of a second style, having a second club head moment of inertia.

FIG. 5C is a schematic side view of a putter of a third style, having a third club head moment of inertia.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to identify like or identical components in the various views, FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a putter selection aid 10 that may aid a golfer (i.e., a user 12) in selecting a putter style 14 that would best aid the user in returning the putter head to a square alignment following a backswing. More specifically, by gauging the inclination of the user's 12 putting swing plane, the aid 10 may indicate a putter style 14, from a plurality of different putter styles 16, that has a suitable weighting profile for the user's specific stroke.

The putter selection aid 10 may include a mat 18 that allows the user 12 to quickly correlate his or her putting stroke with the recommended putter style 14 without a need for expensive electronic monitoring. In general, the aid 10 uses the distance 20 between a ball 22 and a portion of the user's foot 24 during a typical putting stance or swing as a proxy for swing plane incline.

FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of the mat 18. As shown, the mat 18 includes a ball placement indicia 30, and a stroke line 32 that extends through the ball placement indicia 30. Additionally, the mat 18 includes at least two demarcated areas 34, 36 that extend out in a normal direction to the stroke line 32. In one configuration, the mat 18 includes at least three demarcated areas 34, 36, 38 that extend out in a normal direction to the stroke line 32.

The ball placement indicia 30 is intended to identify a reference spot where a user 12 may place a golf ball 22. In one configuration, the mat 18 may be slightly indented at the ball placement indicia 30 to facilitate easy placement of the ball. In another configuration, the ball placement indicia 30 may include an actual golf ball 22 secured to the mat 18. The stroke line 32 may include some means of identifying an intended direction of travel for a ball. The stroke line 32 may be, for example, a solid line, a dashed line, a series of nested chevrons, or any other indicia that may be used to indicate a linear intended direction of ball travel.

In a configuration that uses three demarcated areas 34, 36, 38, each of the respective areas 34, 36, 38 are spaced from the stroke line 32 by a different respective mean distance (i.e., d1, d2, and d3, respectively). More specifically, the first demarcated area 34 is spaced from the stroke line 32 by a first mean distance (d1), the second demarcated area 36 is spaced from the stroke line 32 by a second mean distance (d2), and the third demarcated area 38 is spaced from the stroke line 32 by a third mean distance (d3). For all embodiments, d1<d2<d3. The areas 34, 36, 38 may be in an abutting relationship, such as shown in FIG. 2, or may overlap, such as shown in FIG. 3. In one configuration d1 may be, for example, a mean distance of from about 180 mm to about 230 mm, d2 may be, for example, a mean distance of from about 265 mm to about 315 mm, and d3 may be, for example, a mean distance of from about 350 mm to about 400 mm.

As schematically illustrated in FIG. 3, during use of the aid 10, the user 12 would stand with his/her feet 24 on the mat 18, and in a suitable or usual putting stance to putt a ball 22 on the ball placement indicia 30 along the stroke line 32. Such a stance may be specific to the user's own physical attributes, swing tendencies, and personal comfort. The stance may include a user-specific distance 20 between the user's feet 24 and the ball 22 (or impact zone of the putter 44). As described above, this distance 20 may serve as a rough proxy for the inclination of the user's putting stroke.

Once the user 12 is positioned in a suitable or usual putting stance on the mat 18, the user 12 may then identify one of the first, second, or third demarcated areas 34, 36, 38 that surrounds a predefined portion 46 of the user's foot/feet 24. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the predefined portion 46 may be the end of the user's toes 48 (i.e., the portion of the foot 24 that is nearest to the ball 22). In the example provided in FIG. 3, the second demarcated area 36 would be the identified area, since the user's toes 48 lie within (i.e., are surrounded by) the second area 36. If the user's toes 48 were, instead, located in an overlapping area (e.g., the overlap of the first demarcated area 34 with the second demarcated area 36), then each of the two respective areas would be identified, as the user's toes 48 would lie within (i.e., be surrounded by) each respective area.

The putter selection aid 10 may include a reference that correlates each of the three demarcated areas 34, 36, 38 with a different putter style. More specifically, the first demarcated area 34 may include a first reference 50 to a first putter style, the second demarcated area 36 may include a second reference 52 to a second putter style, and the third demarcated area 38 may include a third reference 54 to a third putter style. While FIG. 3 illustrates textual references, in other embodiments, the reference may, for example, include a different color, logo, name, number, or image that is provided within or adjacent to each of the respective areas 34, 36, 38. Once the user 12 identifies the area that surrounds the predefined portion 46 of the user's foot/feet 24, the user 12 may then quickly identify and select a putter having the correlated putter style from, for example, a retail display.

FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 4C schematically illustrate three putter styles 60, 62, 64, where each style correlates to a different one of the first, second, and third demarcated areas 34, 36, 38. In this particular example, each style has a different design that varies the distance between a shaft axis 66 and a center of gravity 68 of the putter head 70 (referred to herein as the “center of gravity offset distance”). Offsetting the center of gravity from the shaft axis can aid the clubhead in rotating back to square following an arcuate/inclined backswing. As such, the first putter style 60 (corresponding to the first demarcated area 34) may have a first center of gravity offset distance (X1), the second putter style 62 (corresponding to the second demarcated area 36) may have a second center of gravity offset distance (X2), and the third putter style 64 (corresponding to the third demarcated area 38) may have a third center of gravity offset distance (X3), where X1<X2<X3. For example, the first style 60 may be a face-balanced putter style, the third style 64 may be a toe-weighted putter style, and the second style 62 may fall in between face-balanced and toe-weighted (e.g., ¼ toe hang).

In a similar manner, such as shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C, each style 60, 62, 64 may alternatively have a different club head moment of inertia (i.e., M1, M2, M3), where the clubhead moment of inertia Ml of the first style 60 is the largest, and the clubhead moment of inertia M3 for the third style 64 is the smallest (i.e., where M3<M2<M1). Specifically, the various moments of inertia, M1, M2, and M3 are all measured about a vertical axis extending through the center of gravity of the clubhead. A stroke that maintains the putter in a substantially square alignment throughout the entire swing may benefit from a greater moment of inertia to resist any incidental rotation, or any rotation caused by an off center impact. Conversely, an inclined swing plane that involves considerable head rotation may benefit from a lower club head moment of inertia to allow the club to more easily rotate back to square. Using this, for example, the third style 64, as shown in FIG. 5C, may be a blade-style having a low clubhead moment of inertia; the second style 62, as shown in FIG. 5B, may be a mallet-style with a greater clubhead moment of inertia than the blade-style; and the first style 60, as shown in FIG. 5A, may be an oversized mallet, a “futuristic”-style, a double ball-style, or another similar design that has an even greater clubhead moment of inertia than the mallet-style.

In still another embodiment, the first demarcated area 34 may correspond to a first putter style 60 that has a first center of gravity offset distance (X1) and a first clubhead moment of inertia (M1), the second demarcated area 36 may correspond to a second putter style 62 that has a second center of gravity offset distance (X2) and a second clubhead moment of inertia (M2), and the third demarcated area 38 may correspond to a third putter style 64 that has a third center of gravity offset distance (X3) and a third clubhead moment of inertia (M3), where (X1<X2<X3) and (M3<M2<M1). As such, the first putter style 60 may be, for example, a face-balanced, oversized mallet-style, “futuristic”-style, or double ball-style putter, the second putter style 62 may be a ¼ toe hang mallet putter, and the third putter style 64 may be a toe-weighted blade.

Referring again to FIG. 2, in one configuration, each of the demarcated areas 34, 36, 38 may be enclosed rectangular spaces that are visually indicated on the mat 18. In another embodiment, rather than rectangular areas, a linear scale may be used that extends out from the stroke line 32. As noted above, the mean distances for each respective area 34, 36, 38 may be ordered such that d1<d2<d3.

Referring again to FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the aid 10 may further include a retail display 80. The retail display 80 may aid in visually correlating the first demarcated area 34 with the first style 60, the second demarcated area 36 with the second style 62, and the third demarcated area 38 with the third style 64. Such a correlation may occur by providing a correspondence (e.g., correlating a reference number from the mat 18 with a putter model available for purchase) or by providing the reference directly on a tag or wrapper of the putter (e.g., where a color reference provided on the mat 18 is represented on a corresponding tag or wrapper of a particular putter).

Additionally, instructions 82 for using the putter selection aid 10 may be provided directly on the mat 18, on the associated retail display 80, or as separate literature. The instructions 82 may instruct the user 12 to stand with a foot 24 on the mat 18 and in a position that is suitable to conduct a putting stroke to impact a ball 22 placed on the indicia 30. The instructions may then instruct the user 12 to identify which of the three demarcated areas the user's toes lie within. Finally, once the user 12 has selected a putter of the identified style, the user 12 placing a golf ball 22 on the ball placement indicia 30 and strike the ball 22 using the selected putter.

As used herein, “a,” “an,” “the,” “at least one,” and “one or more” are used interchangeably to indicate that at least one of the item is present; a plurality of such items may be present unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. All numerical values of parameters (e.g., of quantities or conditions) in this specification, including the appended claims, are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “about” whether or not “about” actually appears before the numerical value. “About” indicates that the stated numerical value allows some slight imprecision (with some approach to exactness in the value; about or reasonably close to the value; nearly). If the imprecision provided by “about” is not otherwise understood in the art with this ordinary meaning, then “about” as used herein indicates at least variations that may arise from ordinary methods of measuring and using such parameters. In addition, disclosure of ranges includes disclosure of all values and further divided ranges within the entire range. Each value within a range and the endpoints of a range are hereby all disclosed as separate embodiment. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated items, but do not preclude the presence of other items. As used in this specification, the term “or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed items. When the terms first, second, third, etc. are used to differentiate various items from each other, these designations are merely for convenience and do not limit the items.

Claims

1. A putter selection aid comprising: a mat having disposed thereon: a ball placement indicia;a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia;a first demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1);a second demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2);a third demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3);wherein d1<d2<d3; andwherein the first demarcated area includes a first reference to a first putter style, the second demarcated area includes a second reference to a second putter style, and the third demarcated area includes a third reference to a third putter style.

2. The putter selection aid of claim 1, wherein the first putter style has a first center of gravity offset distance (X1), the second putter style has a second center of gravity offset distance (X2), and the third putter style has a third center of gravity offset distance (X3); and wherein X1<X2<X3.

3. The putter selection aid of claim 1, wherein each of the first reference, the second reference, and the third references includes at least one of a name or a logo.

4. The putter selection aid of claim 1, wherein each of the first reference, the second reference, and the third references includes a different respective color.

5. The putter selection aid of claim 1, further comprising a golf ball disposed on the ball placement indicia.

6. The putter selection aid of claim 1, further comprising instructions directing a user to stand on the mat and identify which of the three demarcated areas the user's toes lie within.

7. The putter selection aid of claim 1, wherein each of the first demarcated area, the second demarcated area, and the third demarcated area is a rectangle.

8. The putter selection aid of claim 1, wherein the first demarcated area and the second demarcated area overlap; and wherein the second demarcated area and the third demarcated area overlap.

9. A method of aiding the selection of a putter comprising: providing a mat having disposed thereon: a ball placement indicia;a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia;a first demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1);a second demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2);a third demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3);wherein d1<d2<d3;providing a first golf putter of a first style and corresponding to the first demarcated area;providing a second golf putter of a second style and corresponding to the second demarcated area; andproviding a third golf putter of a third style and corresponding to the third demarcated area.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising instructing a user to stand with a foot on the mat and in a position that is suitable to conduct a putting stroke to impact a ball placed on the indicia.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising indicating a suitable putter for the user according to the location of the foot of the user relative to one or more of the first demarcated area, the second demarcated area, or the third demarcated area.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the first putter style has a first center of gravity offset distance (X1), the second putter style has a second center of gravity offset distance (X2), and the third putter style has a third center of gravity offset distance (X3); and wherein X1<X2<X3.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising referencing the first golf putter within the first demarcated area; referencing the second golf putter within the second demarcated area; andreferencing the third golf putter within the third demarcated area.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising placing a ball on the ball placement indicia.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising providing a retail display that visually correlates the first demarcated area with the first style, the second demarcated area with the second style, and the third demarcated area with the third style.

16. A method of aiding a user in selecting a putter, the method comprising: standing in a putting stance on a putter selection aid relative to a ball placement indicia, the putter selection aid including a stroke line extending through the ball placement indicia, a first demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a first mean distance (d1), a second demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a second mean distance (d2), and a third demarcated area spaced from the stroke line by a third mean distance (d3), wherein d1<d2<d3;identifying a selected area from the first, second, and third demarcated areas, the selected area surrounding a predefined portion of a foot of the user;correlating a putter style with the selected area; andselecting a putter having the correlated putter style from a display.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein each of the first, second, and third demarcated areas corresponds to a different respective putter style.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising placing a golf ball on the ball placement indicia; and striking the ball using the selected putter.