Iron-type golf club heads are disclosed having a heel portion, a sole portion, a toe portion, a top-line portion, a front portion, a rear portion, and a striking face. The iron-type golf club heads include a localized stiffened region that is located on the striking face of the club head such that the localized stiffened region alters the launch conditions of golf balls struck by the club head in a way that wholly or partially compensates for, overcomes, or prevents the occurrence of a rightward deviation. In particular, the localized stiffened region is located on the striking face such that a golf ball struck under typical conditions will not impart a right-tending sidespin to the golf ball.

A golf club head comprises a sole, a recessed sole port in the sole; and a rotatably adjustable sole piece adapted to be at least partially received within the sole port and comprising a central body having a plurality of contact surfaces adapted to contact the sole port and being offset from each other along a central axis extending through the central body of the sole piece. The sole piece can be positioned at least partially within the sole port at five or more rotational and axial positions with respect to the central axis, wherein at each rotational position, at least one of said contact surfaces of the central body contacts the sole port to set the axial position of the sole piece. The sole port and/or the sole piece can be generally pentagonal in shape.

A golf club includes a shaft, a grip, and a club head. The shaft is coupled to the grip and to the club head. The club head includes a substantially rigid shell, a club face, and a contact area. The substantially rigid shell includes a conventional shape that has a toe area, a heel area, a sole area, a top area, and a back area. The club face is mechanically coupled to the substantially rigid shell to provide a face of the club head. The contact area is within the substantially rigid shell and positioned proximal to the club face. The contact area includes a plurality of force-focusing layers that functions to concentrate impact forces of the club head towards an area on the club face that makes contact with a golf ball during contact with the golf ball.

Disclosed herein is a hollow golf club head comprising a first component adhered to a second component. A golf club head comprising: a first component adhered to a second component to define a closed interior volume therebetween, a strikeface, a rear portion opposite the strikeface, a crown, a sole, a heel end, and a toe end. The first component comprises: a crown return extending rearwardly from the strikeface, a sole return extending rearwardly from the strikeface, a sole extension extending rearwardly from the sole return and forming a portion of the sole, a back rail connected to the sole extension, a skirt connected to the back rail, and a rib positioned on an interior surface of the golf club head. The crown return forms a portion of the crown. The sole return forms a portion of the sole. The back rail comprises a top wall, a rear wall, and a lip. The top wall, the rear wall, and the lip together define a channel extending along the back rail in a heel to toe direction. The rib comprises a lower front end point, a lower rear end point, an upper rear end point, a bottom edge extending from the lower front end point to the lower rear end point, and a top edge opposite the bottom edge. The rib height varies between the lower front end point and the lower rear end point. The second component comprises: a crown portion, a heel side wing, and a toe side wing. The channel is configured to receive a weight portion of at least 14 grams. The rib extends from the channel to the crown.

Embodiments of golf club heads with energy storage characteristics are presented herein. In some embodiments, a golf club head comprises a hollow body comprising a strikeface, a heel region, a toe region opposite the heel region, a sole, a top rail and an inflection point. The inflection point provides increase bending of the strikeface thereby providing performance enhancement over clubs without an inflection point.

A method of manufacturing a golf club head with a plurality of stiffening members proximate the face, and particularly solid rods or a plate with one or more cutouts, is disclosed herein. The method includes the steps of preparing a wax of a golf club head body having at least one through-hole, a hollow interior, and at least one receiving pocket, preparing waxes of one or more stiffening members, inserting the wax of the stiffening members into the through-hole and seating its opposite end in the receiving pocket, bonding each of the stiffening members to the body with an adhesive material to form a combined wax mold, and casting a golf club head from the combined wax mold.

Disclosed herein are various embodiments of a golf club head having improved mass distribution characteristics. The golf club head includes a body and a face positioned at a forward portion of the body. The golf club head also includes one or more mass elements positioned at predetermined locations about the head. The mass elements assist in achieving a desired relationship between the moment of inertia about a center of gravity x-axis and the moment of inertia about a center of gravity z-axis.

Disclosed herein is a golf club head that comprises a strike face. The strike face has a central region, defined by a forty millimeter by twenty millimeter rectangular area centered on a center of the strike face and elongated in a heel-to-toe direction. Within the central region, the strike face has a characteristic time (CT) of no more than 257 microseconds. Within the central region, no less than 25% of the strike face has a coefficient of restitution (COR) of at least 0.8. Within the central region, no less than 60% of the strike face has a CT of at least 235 microseconds. Within the central region, no less than 35% of the strike face has a CT of at least 240 microseconds.

Golf clubs heads having a forward portion located at a front side of the golf club head and an aft portion located rearward of the forward portion and joined to the forward portion. The front portion incudes a forward joint section and the aft portion includes an aft joint section. The aft portion also includes an aft rib attached to an interior surface of the aft portion, the aft rib extends, from an interior surface of the aft joint section, in a direction away from the striking face. The golf club head may also include a crown the crown having an areal density of less than 1000 g/m.sup.2 and made from a structure comprising an inner layer, a middle layer in contact with the inner layer, and an outer layer in contact with the middle layer.

Some embodiments include club heads having reinforced club head faces. In one example, the club head comprises a variable face thickness with thickened and thinned regions. The face includes a thinned perimeter region positioned near a perimeter of the face, and a thickened central region positioned over a geometric center of the face. The club head further comprises a 360 undercut that extends along the entire perimeter of the face. The combination of the thinned perimeter region, thickened central region, and 360 undercut reinforces the club head while permitting the face to bend. Other embodiments of related club heads and methods are also disclosed.