Hollow, metallic golf club head with dendritic structure

In a metal wood golf club head having an elongated, forwardly facing front wall to strike a golf ball, and a hollow body rearwardly of the face plate that includes a curved rear wall, the front wall elongated in a first transverse direction toward a connection to a club shaft, the body having a thin, metallic top wall merging with upper transverse extent of the front wall, the combination comprising:

• a) a first group of narrow, metallic, shock wave distributing dendrites extending from said front wall generally rearwardly adjacent the underside of the body top wall and integral therewith,
• b) there being a second group of dendrites integral with said top wall and which are spaced apart in said transverse direction, and which extend generally rearwardly to merge rearwardly and downwardly with said curved rear wall to transfer rearward loading to that wall as the dendrites pick up rearward loading from said top wall in response to front wall impact with a golf ball,
• c) said connection being defined by hosel structure extending downwardly within the body hollow, and forming a shaft receiving opening,
• d) and including at least one additional reinforcement dendrite extending from said hosel structure generally rearwardly and transversely, adjacent the underside of the top wall and integral therewith.

In a metal wood golf club head having an elongated, forwardly facing front wall to strike a golf ball, and a hollow body rearwardly of the face plate that includes a curved rear wall, the front wall elongated in a first transverse direction toward a connection to a club shaft, the body having a thin, metallic top wall merging with upper transverse extent of the front wall, the combination comprising:

• a) a first group of narrow, metallic, shock wave distributing dendrites extending from said front wall generally rearwardly adjacent the underside of the body top wall and integral therewith,
• b) there being a second group of dendrites integral with said top wall and which are spaced apart in said transverse direction, and which extend generally rearwardly to merge rearwardly and downwardly with said curved rear wall to transfer rearward loading to that wall as the dendrites pick up rearward loading from said top wall in response to front wall impact with a golf ball,
• c) said second group of narrow, metallic, shock wave distributing dendrites extending generally rearwardly adjacent the underside of the top wall and integral therewith, the second group of dendrites also including a transversely extending dendrite intersecting said generally rearwardly extending dendrites of the second group,
• d) the dendrites of the second group located further from said front wall than said first group of dendrites,
• e) the rearwardly extending dendrites of the second group spaced apart in said transverse direction.

In a metal wood golf club head having an elongated, forwardly facing front wall to strike a golf ball, and a hollow body rearwardly of the face plate that includes a curved rear wall which is rearwardly convex, the front wall elongated in a first transverse direction toward a connection to a club shaft, the body having a thin, metallic top wall merging with upper transverse extent of the front wall, the combination comprising:

• a) a first group of narrow, metallic, shock wave distributing dendrites extending from said front wall generally rearwardly adjacent the underside of the body top wall and integral therewith,
• b) the dendrites spaced apart in said transverse direction, by amounts greater than their widths, the maximum height dimensions of the dendrites below the underside of the top wall being between 0.050 inches and 0.100 inches,
• c) the body wall means being thinned and the head having larger overall volume as compared with a head of the same weight but lacking said dendrites,
• d) there being a hosel within the head to form said connection, and webbing flaring from the hosel beneath the level of said dendrites,
• e) and including at least one additional reinforcement dendrite extending proximate said hosel structure generally rearwardly, adjacent the underside of the top wall and integral therewith.