Golf club head

#The present invention relates generally to an iron-type golf club having a cavity filled with a reinforcing back member. The back member being attached mechanically to the golf club head by pressing the edges of the back member into a groove around the perimeter of the cavity.

#The desire for perimeter weighting in a golf club iron is well known in the art. This desire stems from the fact that as the mass of the iron is distributed towards the perimeter, the trajectory of the hit ball becomes more consistent for off-center hits away from the sweet spot of the golf club face or hitting surface. Consequently, many modern golf club irons have a “cavity back” design. These clubs are made by removing the weight from the center of the club head and redistributing it along the bottom, the top, the heel and toe portions of the club head. Club heads of the latter type have enjoyed considerable success since they effectively enlarge the “sweet spot” of the club head.

#The “sweet spot” of the club head is generally regarded to be that area on the striking face of the club head immediately surrounding the center of gravity of the club head. By enlarging the sweet spot, perimeter weighted club heads allow golfers of all abilities to realize improved results over conventional club heads when the golfer fails to strike the golf ball in line with the center of gravity of the club head. These improved results translate into “mis-hit” shots that travel farther and straighter than they would if struck with a club having another conventional club head design. The weight saved by creating a rear cavity in the iron, is re-distributed to the perimeter of the golf club head. The greater the volume of the cavity, the larger the mass of metal that can be redistributed into the perimeter of the golf club head. However, if the thickness of the face hitting surface is reduced to an extent where it becomes too thin, the strength of the face becomes too low to resist the force of the ball hitting the face. Thus, it would be desirable to find a way to further increase the volume of the cavity without causing the face to fail upon impact with the ball.

#In the accompanying drawings:

#FIG. 1 is a back view of a golf club iron-type head according to an embodiment of the invention;

#FIG. 2 is an expanded sectional view along line A-A of FIG. 1 depicting the back cavity member and club head prior to the back cavity member being deformed upon insertion into the club head; and

#Hereinafter is described a first embodiment of the invention with references to FIGS. 1 to 3. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, reference numeral 10 designates a cavity back club head, having a body 12 while reference number 14 designates a reinforcing rear cavity insert that is mechanically inserted into a perimeter groove 16 that is defined in the peripheral area 34 of the club head body 12. FIGS. 2 and 3, which are section views taken along the line A-A of FIG. 1, show the club head 10 consisting of a front face 18, a back surface 20 of the front face, a sole portion 22, a toe portion 24, a heel portion 26, and a hosel portion 28. FIG. 2 is an expanded view, and shows the rear cavity insert 14 prior to being deformed upon insertion into the perimeter groove 16. The rear cavity insert 14 has a deformable flange 30 about its perimeter which deforms upon being biasly inserted into a ledge 32 defined in the perimeter groove 16 of the club head. The thickness of the flange 30 is slightly thicker than the ledge 32, therein allowing for a friction-fitted mechanical connection between the insert 14 and the body 12 of the club 10.

#FIG. 2 shows the rear cavity insert 14 in a juxtaposed position against the back face 16 of the body 12 therein reinforcing the thin hitting surface of the club head and providing increased stiffness.

#The present invention can be used on any iron-type golf club that has a back cavity. The improvements provided by the present invention are numerous but may be seen in three primary aspects. First, the rear cavity insert 14 provides wall support to a thin face. Secondly, because the invention requires the perimeter groove 16 to be partially filled by the flange 30 of the insert 14, weight is removed allowing it to be placed in more desirable locations, such as in the sole portion 18. And thirdly, since the perimeter groove 16 of the cavity reduces the stiffness of the frame of the club head, the flange 30 of the rear cavity insert 14 fills the open end, whereupon a tubular structure is formed giving the frame back some measure of stiffness.