GOLF FLAGPOLE SOCKET

Abstract

Sleeve (10) for a golf flagstick (40) comprising: a lower body (11) configured for insertion 5 into a hole (30) of a golf game; and wherein when a ball (20) is inserted into the golf hole (30) with the flag inserted into said hole (30), a first point of contact (c.1) is defined between the ball (20) and the golf flagstick (40); a second point of contact (c.2) between the ball (20) and a conical base (31) of the hole (30); and a third point of contact (c.3) between the ball (20) and the external surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10); characterized in that on the external surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) the third point of contact (c.3) is configured at any angular position between 271 and 310 with respect to the Cartesian axis (X,Y) of the ball (20).

Claims

1. A sleeve (10) for a golf flagstick (40) comprising: a lower body (11) configured for insertion into a golf hole (30); an upper body (12) comprising an outer surface; and that when a ball (20) is inserted into the golf hole (30) with the flag inserted into said hole (30), a first point of contact (c.1) is defined between the ball (20) and the golf flag pole (40); a second point of contact (c.2) between the ball (20) and a conical base (31) of the hole (30); and a third point of contact (c.3) between the ball (20) and the outer surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10); characterized in that on the outer surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) the third point of contact (c.3) is configured at any angular position between 271 and 310 with respect to the Cartesian axis (X, Y) of the ball (20) inserted in the hole (40).

2. The sleeve (10) according to claim 1 wherein the third contact point (c.3) is at any angular position comprised between 273 and 300 with respect to the Cartesian axis (X, Y) of the ball (20) inserted in the hole (40).

3. The sleeve (10) according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the third contact point (c.3) is at an angular position of 276 with respect to the Cartesian axis (X, Y) of the ball (20) inserted in the hole (40).

4. The sleeve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the outer surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) is concave with a diameter in correspondence with the diameter of the ball (20).

5. The sleeve (10) according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) is an external element adaptable to the upper body of a conical sleeve (1.2).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] The following is a very brief description of a series of drawings which help to better understand the invention, and which relate expressly to an embodiment of said invention, which is illustrated as a non-limiting example thereof.

[0015] FIG. 1. It shows a view of a basket according to the present state of the art.

[0016] FIG. 2. It shows a comparison between a sleeve according to the state of the art.

[0017] FIG. 3. It shows a schematic view of a sleeve according to the present invention inserted in a hole and with a golf ball resting thereon.

[0018] FIG. 4. It shows a schematic view of a sequence of extraction of a golf ball inserted in a hole and extractable thanks to the sleeve of the invention.

[0019] FIG. 5. It shows the point of contact of maximum efficiency between the sleeve of the invention and a golf ball introduced into a hole.

[0020] FIG. 6. It shows the range of maximum efficiency contact between the sleeve of the invention and a golf ball introduced into a hole.

[0021] FIG. 7. It shows two views of an adapter or attachment for a prior art sleeve for transforming it into a sleeve according to the present invention, in section (left) and complete (right).

DETAILED EXPLANATION OF A MODE OF REALIZATION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] FIG. 1, as mentioned above, shows a basket (1.1) of the kind described in the prior art which, due to its shape, necessarily forces the ball (20) to rest higher than in its normal position at the bottom of the hole (30), which, in addition, increases the risk of the ball (20) bouncing on the flat part of the basket (1.1) and could fall out of the hole (30), which is one of the reasons why they are not installed in the playing holes.

[0023] FIG. 2 shows how the conical sleeve (1.2) according to the prior art with an essentially conical shape and concentrically coupled to the club of a golf flag (40) which, in turn, is inserted into a hole (30) remaining between the ball and the hole (30) a nearly triangular free space (32).

[0024] However, in FIG. 3, there is observed a sleeve (10) for golf flagstick (40) according to the present invention, wherein, without changing the normal resting position of the ball (20) on a conical base (31) of the hole (30), the sleeve (10) can push the ball (20) from underneath the latter, taking advantage of the free space (32) existing between the ball (20) and the hole (30) when the ball is at rest, said free space (32) being of an area considerably smaller than that created by the conical sleeves (1.2).

[0025] For this purpose, the ball (20) is supportedat least-on three contact points (c.1, c.2, c.3), which reduces the area of the free space (32) on which to act without modifying the position of the ball (20). The first contact point (c.1) is between the ball (20) and the club (40) of the golf flag, being aligned with the horizontal equator (22) of the ball (20) in a particular non-limiting embodiment. The second point of contact (c.2) is established between the conical base (31) of the hole (30) and the ball (20). The third contact point (c.3), which is also configured as a thrust point of the ball (20) in its extraction from the hole (30), is established between the sleeve (10) and the ball (20). In any case, the contact points indicated are in an idealized and illustrative situation of the operation of the invention, since, in reality, there may be dirt and/or soil in the hole (30) that alters the relative position of the contact points, without this entailing an alteration of the operation of the invention.

[0026] Using the Cartesian axes X, Y of the ball section (20) the first point of contact (c.1) will be approximately at 0 (first quadrant), the second point of contact (c.2) will be at a position between 235 and 270 (third quadrant), while the third point of contact and thrust (c.3) will be at a position between 271 and 310 (fourth quadrant).

[0027] For maximum effectiveness in the extraction of the ball (20), the third point of contact and thrust (c.3) cannot be in the vertical of the transverse axis of the ball (20), i.e., it cannot be in the 270 position. In this position it would cause the completely vertical 30 ascent of the ball (20) and, foreseeably, also a vertical descent back to the hole (30). It is for this reason that the third point of contact and thrust (c.3) must be displaced from the vertical, at an angle between 1 and 40 (from 271 to 310 on the XY axis of the ball (20)), as can best be seen in FIG. 6, although in a preferred embodiment, an angle of 6(276 on the XY axis of the ball (20)) has been established as the optimum point of extraction of the ball (20) from the hole (30).

[0028] Pushing the ball (20) at this off-center point with respect to the vertical of the ball (20) allows the ball (20) to travel practically vertically during the first moments of the ascent and, with a slight forward-spin effect, begins to be felt when the ball 20 has passed the line of the floor of the green, practically outside the hole 30, beginning to rotate in the direction in favor of its own horizontal displacement, which moves the ball away from the hole with its satisfactory extraction. This forward-spin effect is described in the sequence of FIG. 4. Again, contrary to the basket of FIG. 1, whose object is to pick up the ball 20, in the case of the sleeve 10 of the invention, the technical effect obtained is the expulsion of the ball 20.

[0029] Thanks to the described invention, the following technical problems faced to date by existing sleeves are solved. First, the socket of the present invention is 5 mm (approximately) larger than the present sockets, making the use of additional baskets or devices unnecessary. Precisely this minimal modification facilitates that, in cases where the flag is removed from the hole, with the sleeve of the invention the flag can be replaced without difficulty. Moreover, since its diameter is very small in relation to the hole, the latter will not be damaged in any way.

[0030] The present invention, as indicated above, drives the ball forward-spin cleanly out of the hole without the use of the hands. With the ball on the ground outside the hole, the player can hit it with the putter in his hand and move it away from the playing area near the flag, which makes the game faster, and more importantly, the player does not have to reach into the hole with the risk of damaging it, something that is happening generally in all golf courses since the new rule was imposed that allows kicking without removing the flag.

[0031] The sleeve of the invention (10) geometrically comprises lower body (11), cylindrical and insertable in the hole (30) in the same way as the conical sleeves (1.2) of the prior art. The particularity of the sleeve (10) of the invention is that its upper body (12) also essentially conical, has a base radius greater than that of the traditional sleeves (approximately 5 mm greater, as shown in FIG. 3) in such a way as to define an external surface which is where the third point of contact and thrust (c.3) is defined.

[0032] This external surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) can adopt different geometries, depending on the angle at which is located-preciselythe third contact point (c.3). In a particular embodiment, this outer surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) is preferably concave and a profile in correspondence with the diameter of the ball (20), as depicted in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5. But in other cases, it can adopt a practically straight geometry (FIGS. 6 and 7). Moreover, that outer surface (13) need not be intrinsic to the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) but may be an implement to the traditional tapered sleeves (1.2), as best seen in FIG. 7.

[0033] In any case, the essential characteristic on the external surface of the upper body (12) of the sleeve (10) is not its concave or straight geometry, but the position of the third point of contact (c.3) with respect to the vertical axis (Y) of the ball (20), in such a way that the range of efficiency in the extraction of the ball 20 is established between the angles 271 and 310, preferably, between 273 and 300, and more preferably at 276 with respect to the Cartesian axis XY of the ball 20 introduced into the hole 30, as can best be seen in FIGS. 5 and 6.

[0034] Thanks to the position of the third contact point (c.3) an ejection with a minimum effort of the player is achieved, where the 20 ball goes up without touching the walls of the hole 30 or its edge and that, when leaving, due to the displacement of the third contact point with respect to the vertical axis Y of the 20 ball, it does it with a forward-spin effect to move the 20 ball away from the hole 30.

[0035] Note, moreover, that the angular ranges described are dynamic, i.e., the closer the position of the third contact point (c.3) is to the angle of 276 (in another notation)84 the more efficient the forward-spin effect will be in extracting the ball 20 from the hole 30. Thus, any angular position between the ranges indicated should be considered as explicitly described in the present invention.