PUTTING AID

Abstract

A putting aid for use in training the putting technique of a golfer includes a base with a notch for locating a ball. Alignment markers include a longitudinal alignment marker for aiming the ball at a target, e.g. a hole, and a squareness marker perpendicular to the longitudinal marker for indicating the angle of the putter face as the putter strikes the ball. A sight bar located above the base aligns with the longitudinal marker and is used for trainer the golfer to maintain their head directly above the ball. The base may include multiple notches for locating multiple balls to facilitate a training drill using multiple balls simultaneously.

Claims

1. A putting aid comprising: (A) a base defining a ball location area for locating at least one golf ball; (B) at least one alignment marking on the base extending in a longitudinal direction, the longitudinal direction being substantially in a direction from the ball location area to an intended target; (C) a sight bar moveable to a position above the at least one alignment marking and extending in the longitudinal direction; and (D) at least one adjustment mechanism for selectively moving the position of the sight bar, wherein adjustment of the at least one adjustment mechanism adjusts a vertical alignment between the sight bar and the at least one alignment marking.

2. The putting aid of claim 1 wherein the at least adjustment mechanism comprises at least one mounting block rotatably mounted on the base and rotatable, in use, about a vertical axis, wherein the sight bar is connected to the at least one mounting block and wherein when the at least one mounting block is rotated, a lateral position of the sight bar is adjusted to affect the vertical alignment between the sight bar and the at least one alignment marking.

3. The putting aid of claim 1 wherein the at least one adjustment mechanism comprises a hinge connected to the base, wherein the sight bar is connected to the hinge, and wherein an angle of the hinge can be adjusted to affect the vertical alignment between the sight bar and the at least one alignment marking.

4. The putting aid of claim 3 wherein the angle of the hinge is adjustable by an adjustment screw.

5. The putting aid of claim 1 wherein the at least one adjustment mechanism comprises at least one dial that is rotatable relative to the base, wherein rotation of the dial affects the vertical alignment between the sight bar and the at least one alignment marking.

6. The putting aid of claim 5 wherein the dial comprises a circumferential ramp such that the height of the dial varies around a circumference of the dial.

7. The putting aid of claim 6 wherein the sight bar is connected to the dial via at least one mounting arm comprising at least one free end and wherein the at least one free end rests on the circumferential ramp such that rotation of the ramp raises the height of the at least one free end.

8. The putting aid of claim 1 comprising at least one squareness marking on the base perpendicular to at least one alignment marking wherein the at least one squareness marking is for indicating an angle of a club face.

9. The putting aid of claim 1 wherein the ball location area comprises at least one notch in the base for positioning at least one ball.

10. The putting aid of claim 9 wherein the ball location area comprises a plurality of notches in the base for positioning a plurality of balls adjacent each other.

11. A putting aid comprising: (A) base means for locating the putting aid on a surface; (B) means for positioning at least one golf ball on the base means; (C) alignment marking means on the base means for aligning a longitudinal direction of the base means with an intended target; (D) means for providing head alignment; and (E) adjustment means for selectively moving the means for providing head alignment.

12. The putting aid of claim 11 wherein adjustment of the adjustment means adjusts a vertical alignment between the means for providing head alignment and the alignment marking means.

13. The putting aid of claim 11 wherein the adjustment means comprises mounting block means.

14. The putting aid of claim 11 wherein the adjustment means comprises hinge means.

15. The putting aid of claim 11 wherein the adjustment means comprises dial means.

16. The putting aid of claim 15 wherein the dial means comprises a circumferential ramp that engages the means for providing head alignment.

17. The putting aid of claim 11 wherein the means of positioning the at least one golf ball comprises notch means.

18. The putting aid of claim 17 wherein the notch means comprises a plurality of notches for locating a plurality of golf balls adjacent each other.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

[0026] In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this application. The drawings show, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0027] The present inventors have realized that proper putting alignment requires alignment of the direction of the player's swing with the direction of the hole (or other target) together with alignment of the putter face perpendicular to the direction of the swing. To correctly form these alignments, the player's head should be over the ball, but this can be difficult to achieve unaided.

[0028] In one embodiment, the putting alignment aid is a simple device that enables a golfer to accurately aim the putter face while getting his or her eyes directly over the ball. The putting aid is designed for use on a practice green and can be used by any level of golfer, beginner, intermediate or advanced.

[0029] With reference to FIGS. 1-3, the putting aid, shown generally at 10, may include a base 12. The base 12 provides a flat, relatively thin surface that stabilizes the putting aid on the putting surface, e.g. a putting green, practice green, turf, artificial turf, carpet, floor, etc. The base 12 may be plastic, metal, wood, rubber, composites. The base may be rigid or have a lesser degree of stiffness. For example, the base may be able to be rolled or folded.

[0030] The base 12 may be formed with a ball location area 14. In the embodiments shown, the ball location area is formed as a notch in the edge of the base 12 that allows the ball to rest on the putting surface up against the notch.

[0031] Various markings or indicia can be provided on the base to facilitate alignment of the ball in the ball location area 14 with a target (FIG. 3). A first alignment marking may be a sight line 16 which is a straight line that runs from the notch along a line that bisects the notch area. The sight line 16 allows the user to aim the ball location area 14 at the target. To facilitate alignment by the user, it is preferred, though not essential, that the sight line 16 is parallel and perpendicular to edges of the base 12, thereby providing a general squareness to the device 10 that makes use of the device 10 more intuitive.

[0032] A second alignment marking may be a club squareness marking 18. The club squareness marking 18 may be provided adjacent the ball location area 14. The club squareness marking 18 is perpendicular to the sight line 16 and crosses the sight line 16. Though only one squareness line 18 is depicted, multiple squareness lines may be provided along the length of the sight line 16 to enable the player to observe the squareness of the putter face throughout the player's stroke.

[0033] The sighting line 16 may be any indicia that allows the player to line up the sighting line, notch and target area (e.g. the target hole on the putting green). The sighting line 16 may be a marking e.g. printed, etched or embossed, a sticker, groove, projecting ridge etc. The face alignment indicator 18 may be similarly formed.

[0034] In use, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the base 12 is placed on the putting surface with the sight line 16 aligning with the target 19, e.g. hole, cup, etc. A ball 15 is placed in the notch of the ball location area 14. A player may rest a club (putter) 17 on the base 12 or hover the club above the base. The thickness of the base 12 allows the putting face of the club to rest against the ball at an appropriate height for striking the ball. The club squareness line 18 trains the player to rotate the club face perpendicular to the sight line 16. The player trains their putting technique by ensuring that the club follows the sight line 16 through the swing while maintaining the club face square. As the player swings, the player pays attention to the club squareness line 18 to attempt to maintain the club face square throughout the swing but particularly as the putter strikes the ball.

[0035] As noted above, an important aspect of the training process is to ensure that the player maintains their head over the ball. To provide this aspect of the training, a sight bar 20 is provided. The sight bar 20 includes a horizontal section 22 that aligns directly over and parallel to the sight line 16. At the ends of the horizontal section 22 are connector sections 23, 24 that extend sideways and downwards to connect with the base 12. As shown most clearly in FIG. 3, the player's head will be directly over the ball when the sight bar 20 vertically aligns with the sight line 16 on the base 12, i.e. the sight bar 20 is directly above the sight line 20. One way this can be achieved is to align the sight bar so that half the golf ball is visible on each side of the bar.

[0036] In one embodiment, the sight bar 20 is mounted to the base by blocks 30. In one embodiment, two blocks are provided, one at each end of the sight bar. Ends of the lateral sections 23, 24 of the sight bar 20 may be vertical and received into holes 32 in the mounting blocks 30. The blocks 30 may be rubber, plastic, wood or any suitable material. The blocks 30 may be rotatably mounted on the base 12 by an off-centre pivot 34 such that rotation 35 of the blocks 30 cause the sight bar to move laterally across the sight line 16 (i.e. in a direction parallel to the squareness line 18. This movement provides adjustment of the sight bar 20 to account for use of the putting aid on sloping surfaces. For example, if the surface sloped downward from left to right in the configuration of FIG. 3, the bar 20 would need to be moved to the left to achieve vertical alignment with the sight line 16.

[0037] The putting aid of FIGS. 1 to 3 is configured for a right handed player. The putting aid may be configured for a left handed player by having equivalent markings on the opposite side of the base 12 so that by turning the base 12 over, the configuration is reversed. The base 12 may be made so that the blocks 30 can be mounted to either side of the base 12 so that a single base 12 may be configured for either left handed or right handed operation.

[0038] An alternative embodiment is depicted in FIGS. 4 to 6. In this arrangement, the connector sections 23, 24 of the sight bar 20 are mounted to a modified base 112 by a hinge 40 having an upper door 41 and lower door 42. A screw 44 may pass through the upper door 41 of the hinge 40 to contact the lower door 42, or the base 12, to provide a configurable adjustment on the alignment of the sight bar 20 with the sight line 16. The sight bar has first and second connecting arms 23, 24 that connect the horizontal sight bar 22 to the hinge 40.

[0039] The base 112 in this embodiment is provided with a ball location area 114 at each end so that both left and right handed configurations can be achieved on the same side of the base 112. Such a configuration is also achievable in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 3.

[0040] The operation of the putting aid of FIGS. 4 to 6 is similar to the operation of the earlier embodiments. In FIG. 6, the sight bar 20 is misaligned to the left of the sight line 16 of the base 112. The adjustment screw 44 could be turned to hinge the sight bar upwards, which would have the lateral effect of moving the sight bar to the right, bringing it into alignment with the sight line.

[0041] As shown by FIGS. 4-7, the putting aid includes multiple notches for allowing multiple balls to by placed side by side. The multiple notches facilitates a multi-ball drill in which two or more balls may be hit simultaneously, as depicted in FIG. 7. In one embodiment, the base includes three notches 72, 73, 74 at each end of the base. The central notch 73 may be used for standard putter face alignment practice as discussed above. The outer two notches 72, 74 are configured so that two golf balls 76, 77 can be placed adjacent each other in these notches for a two ball drill. If performed correctly, i.e. with a properly aligned club face, the club face should strike both balls simultaneously and both balls should travel in the same direction. While three notches are shown, any number of notches may be provided for the multi-ball drill.

[0042] A further embodiment of the putting aid is depicted in FIGS. 8-9. In this embodiment, the base 212 is similar to the base of the embodiment of FIGS. 4 to 6 and includes multiple notches 272, 273, 274 at each end, a sight line 216, multiple face alignment markings 218 and a sight bar 220. The putting aid of FIG. 8 differs by the mounting mechanism of the sight bar. The sight bar 220 has a connecting arrangement that connects the sight bar to the base 212. The connecting arrangement includes first and second connecting arms 215, 217 that connect the horizontal sight bar 220 to lower mounting arms 222, 224. The mounting arms are retained to the base by multiple retaining clips 232, 234, 236, 238 A first outer set of retaining clips 232, 238 along an edge 228 of the base 212 and at the ends of the base 212 face outwards while an inner set of clips 234, 236 along the edge of the base face inwards. The retention clips retain the mounting arms 222, 224 to the base 212 in a manner that allows the arms to rotate relative to the base. Towards the inner ends of the mounting arms 222, 224, the mounting arms bend inwards towards the centre of the base so that the free ends 242, 244 of the mounting arms are adjacent and parallel. A dial 250 is disposed on the base 212 and is mounted on an axis 254 that allows rotation of the dial 250 relative to the base. The dial 250 has an outer circumferential ramp 252 so that the height of the dial changes around the circumference of the dial. The free ends 242, 244 of the mounting arms 222, 224 rest on the circumferential ramp 252.

[0043] The vertical alignment of the sight bar 220 may be adjusted by rotating the dial 250. At a low position (FIG. 9), the free ends 242, 244 of the mounting arms 222, 224 rest on the ramp 252 of the dial 250 at the ramp's lowest height. In this position, the sight bar 220 lies flat on the base. This configuration may be considered to be a storage and transport position. As the dial 250 is rotated, the height of the ramp underneath the free ends of the mounting arms increases which lifts the free ends 242, 244 of the mounting arms. This causes the mounting arms 222, 224 to rotate within the mounting clips 232, 234, 236, 238 which in turn pivots the connecting arms 215, 217 and raises the sight bar 220. As the mounting arms rotate and pivot the connecting arms, the sight bar 220 traverses across the base 212. The dial 250 may be rotated until the sight bar 220 is aligned as desired with the sighting line 216 on the base 212. As shown in FIG. 8, the base 212 may be formed with one or more edges 228 slightly downturned to enhance the grip and engagement of the base of 212 with the underlying surface such as a putting green or carpet. Alternative grip features may be provided on the underside surface of the base.

[0044] The putting aid of the present embodiments has many advantages including portability and ease of operation. The putting aid can be folded or the sight bar removed from the base making the arrangement flat for transport. Adjustment is simple due to only minimal moving parts.

[0045] Importantly, the alignment markings and sight bar are intuitive to use with substantially improved putting being achievable in as little as 10 minutes.

[0046] Although the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the embodiments of this invention. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given.