Putting Practice Device

This invention relates to an apparatus for assisting golfers in improving their putting stroke and more particularly to a novel putter having a flat face on the rear of the grip so that the head of the putter can be aligned by holding the upper part of the grip against a flat straight guide at the region of the golfer's waist.

One of the most unreliable aspects of the game of golf is being able to consistently play the ball in its intended direction when putting. Mistakes in the swing of the putter head cause the ball to be "pulled" or "pushed", which deviates the travel of the ball from the intended putting direction.

Various methods have been utilized to obtain a more reliable putting stroke, as shown in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:

1,561,349, issued November 10, 1925 to C. B. Murphy et al;

1,616,377, issued February 1, 1927 to B. Knight;

2,132,219, issued October 4, 1938 to J. Pirie;

3,170,690, issued February 23, 1965 to C. D. Goranson et al; and

3,188,086, issued June 8, 1965 to R. T. Parmley.

Each of the above listed patents show putters which can be swung about a specific point that is either a pivot at the top end of the grip of a putter or a pivot within the grip of a putter.

None of these patents, however, disclose a putter which is acceptable in the "Rules of Golf" as approved by the The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, Scotland and The Royal Canadian Golf Association and United States Golf Association. The putters disclosed in these patents are, therefore, acceptable for practice or for "friendly" games but cannot be used in tournaments or official games. It should also be noted that the putters described in the above patents do not provide as much putting control as most golfers would prefer.

It is also known that there are golfers who need assistance in order to be able to putt correctly. For instance, there are blind or partially blind golfers who have difficulty in putting in the correct direction after being advised or guided to the position of a ball and the required stroke for the sinking of the ball. There are also golfers who cannot putt smoothly and accurately because of health problems such as nervous disorders. These people find it difficult to hold the putter or swing it smoothly without shaking.

It would be a great advantage to golfers if a putter were available which could be repeatedly guided with relative accuracy in a smooth swing. Furthermore, the usefulness of such a golf putter would be maximized if it were acceptable under the "Rules of Golf".

It is an object of the invention to provide a golf putter acceptable under the Rules of Golf which can assist a golfer in perfecting his or her putting stroke.

All of the embodiments of the golf putter of this invention, except one, conform to the requirements for putters which are acceptable under the "Rules of Golf". Each of the embodiments disclosed hereinafter promote a much improved putting stroke.

The golf putter has of a conventional shaft and putter head which is secured in an acceptable and normal manner to an elongated putter grip. The grip is formed with an elongated flat face on one side, the upper end of the grip preferably being somewhat wider than normal. The flat face on the grip is positioned above the rear end of the putter head and aligned at right angles to the face of the putter head.

The putter is preferably used with a straight, rigid elongated guide plate which is attached to a belt and positioned at the front of the waist so that, during putting, the flat face of the grip rests against the straight edges guide. The stroke of the putter will be along a predetermined arc as long as the flat face of the grip is held against the straight edge on the belt. Orientation and stabilization of the putter grip on the guide may be improved by having either the flat face of the grip or the guide, or both the flat face of the grip and the guide constructed of a magnetic or a magnetized metal.

The invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a putter showing a known type of grip which is already approved and appears in the types of approved grips in the Royal Canadian Golf Association and United States Golf Association "Rules of Golf", both of which are effective as of January 1, 1984, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a putter according to the invention,

FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of putter according to the invention,

FIG. 4 shows a golfer using the putter of the invention,

FIG. 5 shows in clearer detail, the putter of the invention in use,

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a belt including a guide plate for use with the putter of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of part of a belt incorporating a guide plate as part of the buckle.

FIGS. 8a-8j show various shapes of guide plates,

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a further type of guide plate, and

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a putter in cooperation with the guide plate of FIG. 9.

As shown in FIG. 1, one of the approved putters in the "Rules of Golf" has a grip having a flat face and a rounded back. The flat face is formed at a right angle to the face 3 of the putter head and is oriented toward the front end of the putter head. The grip is wider at the top end 5 than at the bottom end 7 and is attached to the putter shaft 9 in a manner well known in the art.

In FIG. 2 there is shown an embodiment of a golf putter in accordance with the invention having a grip 11 which is similar in shape to the grip shown in FIG. 1, except that the flat face 27 faces the rear end of the putter head. The broken line 17 is on the plane of ace 27 and the broken line 19 is at right angles to the face 15. Lines 17 and 19 must be parallel if the putter is to function properly. The length of the grip is such that its upper end 25 will normally be slightly higher than the waist of the user when in a putting position.

The putter shown in FIG. 3 is a variation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2. The grip of this putter is rectangular in cross section, having a narrow face 11 and a wide face 13. The wide face 13 is positioned over the rear of the putter head and at right angles to the putter face.

The flat faces 13 and 27 of the putter grips are preferably finished with an anti-friction surface so that they will slide over a golfer's clothing without sticking.

FIG. 6 illustrates the guide which is preferably used in conjunction with the golf putter shown in FIGS. 2 or 3. The guide includes a leather or plastic belt 29 provided with a buckle 31 and a straight, elongated, rigid guide plate 33 preferably formed from metal or rigid plastic and secured to the belt by welding, gluing or the like. The guide plate 33 is preferably 3 to 8 inches long but may be any suitable length. Magnetized metals may be used in the construction of either the plate or the guide, or both, assisting the golfer in maintaining the flat side of the grip of the putter in contact with the guide. This has proven to facilitate the contact of the full breadth of the flat side of the grip with the guide during the duration of the putting stroke while permitting the flat side of the grip (and therefore the face of the putter) to move in the intended direction.

A golf putter in accordance with the invention is shown in use in FIGS. 4 and 5. In both cases a belt 29 is being worn with the guide plate 33 positioned at the front of the wearer. The putter is held so that the full breadth of face 13, 27 is against the guide plate 33. A golfer aligns the face of the putter with the ball and the hole by moving to the proper position. Once aligned, the golfer can stroke with great accuracy as long as the face 13, 27 is held in contact with the guide plate 33. Note that the normal length of a golf putter is indicated by line 35 in FIG. 5 and, therefore, the hands of the golfer will be between the line 35 and the lower end of the grip. Thus, normal arm and wrist action in putting can be accommodated even while the face 13, 27 of the grip is being urged lightly against the guide plate 33.

In FIG. 7 there is shown a belt in which the buckle is integral with the guide plate 33, the guide plate having a buckle mechanism 37 secured to the rear side of the guide plate.

Various shapes are suitable for guide plates as shown in FIGS. 8a-8j. These plates may be secured to a belt buckle by welding, gluing or the like, or, alternatively, made integral with the buckle. The shapes illustrated in FIGS. 8i and 8j, provide channel shaped guides which can be sized to accommodate the upper end of the putter of FIG. 3 so that a positive guide is formed.

In FIG. 9, a guide plate 33 is shown with a pin 39 protruding from the front surface, and FIG. 10 illustrates a putter having a hole 41 formed in the flat face of the grip to accommodate the pin 39. The putter is thus pivotable about the pin 39 to achieve greater putting accuracy.

It will thus be apparent that a novel apparatus has been disclosed which provides accurate, repeatable putting movement and, with the exception of the putter shown in FIG. 10, does so while staying within the requirements of the "Rules of Golf". The putter can therefore be used in tournaments and in fact can be used as a replacement for the traditional style of putter.

Furthermore, depending upon the anatomy of a golfer, certain golfers may find it possible to use the golf putter disclosed without having to utilize a guide plate 33 (see FIG. 7).

It is also possible to produce a flat sided extension for a golf putter grip with a means for releasably securing it to the upper end of a normal golf putter. Such an extension may not meet the requirements of the "Rules of Golf"; however, it would enable a golfer to perfect a putting stroke with a putter which could later be used, without the extension, to play a round of golf.

The apparatus of this invention can therefore be used for practising the putting stroke best suited to a golfers particular anatomy and to a type of putting surface and/or terrain.

Each of the putters disclosed can be employed for various putting stroke styles such as, for example:

(1) Wrist action or mostly wrist action.

(2) Arm action or mostly arm action.

(3) Combination wrist and arm action.

(4) Rolling action to induce rolling of the ball.

(5) Short back stroke and long follow through.

(6) Pendulum action by using the top of the shaft as a fulcrum against the abdomen.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 10, when used with the guide pin as shown in FIG. 9, is best suited for practicing item 6 listed above.

Changes and modifications in the specifically described embodiments can be carried out without departing from the scope of the invention which is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.