Steel golf shaft with a composite pivot area

A new and improved golf club comprising a shaft having a handle end with a grip thereon and a head end with a head thereon and an intermediate flex portion therebetween comprising, in combination:

• a shaft including an upper hollow steel portion about 26 inches in length constituting between about 55 and 65 percent, preferably 59.6 percent, of the length of the shaft and a lower hollow steel portion about 12.5 inches in length constituting between about 25 and 33 percent, preferably 28.8 percent of the length of the shaft with an intermediate flex portion about 9 inches in length with about 2 inches at each end within the upper and lower portions leaving about 5 inches therebetween constituting between 9 and 14 percent, preferably 11.6 percent, of the length of the shaft,
• the lower end of the upper portion of shaft remote from the handle having an undercut region extending into the intermediate flex portion with the upper end of the lower portion of the shaft remote from the head having an undercut region extending into the intermediate flex portion;
• and
• a cylindrical sleeve formed of a plurality of layers of a composite material having an upper and lower radial abutment surface in contact with the lower end of the upper portion of the shaft and the upper end of the lower portion of the shaft and having an upper end of a reduced diameter in contact with the undercut region of the lower end of the upper portion of the shaft and a lower end of a reduced diameter in contact with the undercut region of the upper end of the lower portion of shaft, and with the exterior surface of the cylindrical sleeve between the upper and lower portion of the shaft forming a smooth continuation of the shaft through the intermediate flex portion with the sleeve forming a region of greater flexibility than the portions of the shaft thereabove and therebelow for tailoring the playing characteristics of the golf clubs.