Abstract:
A method and device for marking and keeping track of the correct location of a golf ball. The marking device includes a two-sided body, with the first side displaying an indication to play the ball from the present location of the marker and the second side displaying an indication to remark the location of the ball before it is played, and a means of securing the body to the ground. The method utilizes the two-sided body to remind a golfer of the correct position of his or her ball.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of Invention 
     This invention generally relates to the field of golfing accessories and in particular to a device and method for marking the position of a golf ball. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     During a game of golf, there are several situations in which a player will temporarily remove his or her ball from the course. To help ensure accuracy, the player replaces the ball with some type of marker. A typical ball marker may consist simply of a coin-like body. More elaborately, the body of the marker may be made in any one of a wide variety of geometric shapes, such as polygonal or annular discs, with a pin attached to the bottom surface of the marker for securing it to the ground. The top surface of the body may display a design or writing that serves a decorative or owner identification purpose. 
     Often, removing and replacing a ball is straightforward, such as when a ball needs to be cleaned. In this situation, a player picks up his or her ball, places a marker to denote the ball&#39;s location, and then replaces the ball when cleaning is finished. 
     While the design and structure of a typical marker is suitable for the simple replacement of a ball, it is not ideal for more complicated situations. 
     Such a situation exists when several golfers are on the same putting green. According to Rule 10-1 of the USGA rules, the golfer furthest from the hole is to putt first. However, sometimes another player&#39;s ball is in his “line of putt,” that is, the path between the putting player&#39;s ball and the cup. Placement of a marker where the fellow competitor&#39;s ball lies is not allowed, because it would still constitute an impermissible obstruction in the line of putt. 
     Consequently, the intervening ball cannot simply be removed and replaced with a marker; the marker itself must be placed out of the putting player&#39;s line of putt. This is accomplished by re-positioning the marker such that it is a certain number of “club-heads” 0  (i.e., the length of a potter) away from the original location of the ball. Then, when it is time to replace the ball, the golfer must move back or “re-mark” the ball to its original location before putting (Rule 20-1). Failure to do so causes the offending player to incur a two-stroke penalty (Rule 5-1). 
     Given that there are several reasons why a golfer removes the ball and places a marker, a player sometime forgets that the golf ball must be re-positioned in certain situations prior to his next stroke. U.S. Pat. No. 6,017,282 by Stefonsky provides a two-piece golf ball position marking system that includes a marker and a separate repositioning aid. However, if one of the pieces becomes lost, this system no longer distinguishes between a ball that has simply been picked-up versus one that has been moved and needs to be re-marked. In other words, one would be left with either an ordinary marker or a re-positioning arrow. Moreover, this system does not provide a way to remind a golfer of the distance that a ball has been moved, and, therefore, the distance that it must be re-marked. 
     Thus, it is desirable to provide a simple, all-in-one means of marking a ball&#39;s location and of selectively indicating that the position of the ball needs to be re-marked a predetermined distance before the player proceeds. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Most broadly, the invention meets the aforementioned need by providing a new method utilizing a device that simultaneously marks a ball&#39;s location and displays to a golfer an indication of whether to replace the marker with the ball and proceed or to first re-mark the ball to another location. 
     Preferably, the device includes a first side having an indication to play a ball from where it lies, a second side having an indication to re-mark a ball to its former position before continuing play, and means of attaching either side firmly to the ground. 
     Also preferably, the device may include an indication of how many club heads of distance a player must re-mark his ball before proceeding and an arrow or arrowhead for pointing out the direction in which re-marking should occur. 
     An advantage of this invention is that it provides in a single device a way to either mark a ball&#39;s actual location or to mark a temporary location with an indication to re-mark the ball. 
     A second advantage of this invention is that it combines a ball marker and position reminder with an indicator of re-mark distance and direction, thus minimizing the possibility of a penalty resulting from inaccurate ball placement. 
     Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a new golf ball marker and position reminder device and method. 
     Various other purposes and advantages of the invention will become clear from its description in the specification that follows and from the novel features particularly pointed out in the appended claims. Therefore, to the accomplishment of the objectives described above, this invention consists of the features hereinafter illustrated in the drawings, fully described in the detailed description of the preferred embodiments and particularly pointed out in the claims. However, such drawings and description disclose only some of the various ways in which the invention may be practiced. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1A is an elevational side view of a preferred embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 1B is a top view of the device of FIG.  1 A. 
     FIG. 1C is a bottom view showing the opposite side of the device of FIG.  1 B. 
     FIG. 2 is a top view of second preferred embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line A—A in FIG.  2 . 
     FIG. 4A is a top view of a third preferred embodiment of the invention. 
     FIG. 4B is a bottom view showing the opposite side of the device of FIG.  4 A. 
     FIG. 5A is an enlarged side view of the rod element of FIGS. 4A and 4B. 
     FIG. 5B is a side view of the rod shown in FIG. 5A after it has been rotated 90° along the axis defined by the line B—B. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention in general provides an all-in-one device that allows a golfer to both mark the position of his or her ball and to remember, when appropriate, to re-mark the ball to its original position, such as after moving a marker to clear the line of putt for a fellow competitor. 
     As depicted in FIG. 1A, a preferred marker and position reminder device  2  generally comprises a substantially flat, two-sided body  4  and a rod  6 . More particularly, the body  4  includes a first side  8  and an opposing second side  10 . Although not clearly pictured in this view, both of the sides  8  and  10  are perforated by a hole  12  (shown in phantom line) through which the rod  6  passes. The hole  12  is sized to frictionally engage the rod  6  so that it can move, but not fall out. Thus, the rod  6  is vertically slidable through the hole  12  so that it may protrude from either side  8  or  10 , depending on which of the two sides will be face-up when the device  2  is secured to the ground. 
     With reference to FIG. 1B, the first-side  8  includes an indication  14  that the golf ball needs to be repositioned, in this case the word “REMARK.” Furthermore, the first side  8  has an arrowhead  16  to point out the direction in which re-marking should take place. 
     In FIG. 1C, the second side  10  has an indication  18  to play the ball from its currently marked position, in this case the word “PUTT.” The second side  10  also includes an arrowhead  16  to remind the golfer of the direction of his line of putt. 
     A second preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG.  2 . The body  20  has a first side  22  with an indication  24  to re-position a golf ball and an arrow  26  to point out the direction in which the ball is to be re-marked. Furthermore, the body  20  includes a rod  28  positioned within a slot  30 . The rod  28  is secured within the slot  30  by a slidable holder  32 . The holder  32  and the rod  28  are sized to frictionally engage each other such that the rod  28  may slide vertically, as in the first embodiment of the invention. Similarly, the holder  32  is designed so that it can slide horizontally without falling out. This can be achieved, for example, by a tongue and groove mechanism (not shown in this view; see FIG.  3 ). Moreover, the first side  22  includes distance marks  34  to remind a golfer how many club heads or other predetermined unit of distance a ball must be moved to re-mark it to its original position. As with the first preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the body  20  has a second side with an indication to proceed with play (not shown). 
     FIG. 3 shows an enlarged cross-sectional view of the rod  28  and the holder  32  assembly. The holder  32  allows the rod  28  to be moved horizontally within the slot  30  by virtue of two tongues  34  in the holder  32  slidably engaged by corresponding grooves  36  in the slot  30 . 
     Turning to FIG. 4A, a third preferred embodiment is shown that includes a body  38  having a first side  40  with an indication  42  to proceed with play, a directional arrowhead  44 , and a rod  46  positioned inside one of several stops  48  of a slot  50 . On the opposite side the body  38  is a second side  52  as shown in FIG.  4 B. The second side  52  has an indication  54  to re-mark a golf ball, a directional arrowhead  56 , and a rod  46  positioned inside a stop  48  of the slot  50 . 
     The second side  52  also includes distance marks  58  to remind a golfer how many club heads or other predetermined unit of distance a ball must be moved to re-mark it to its original position. As seen in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the rod  46  is designed to slide in a direction that is parallel to the sides  40  and  52  by frictionally engaging the slot  50  with the notches  60 . As shown, the notches  60  are disposed on opposite sides of the rod  46  but do not extend around the entire circumference. Thus, the rod  46  can also frictionally engage a stop  48  of the slot  50  to become slidable in a direction perpendicular to the sides  40  and  52 . End caps  62  are preferably provided to prevent the rod  46  from falling out of a stop  48 . 
     To practice the method of the invention in general, a golfer either (1) replaces the ball where it lies and secures the marker with the side displaying an indication to replace the ball and continue play face-up or (2) measures a predetermined number of club heads from the ball and places the marker face-up on the side displaying an indication to re-mark the ball in a particular direction. In the second and third preferred embodiments, the play also adjusts the rod to the marking that indicates the unit(s) of distance that the ball will be re-marked. 
     The invention is particularly inexpensive and simple to manufacture from commonly-available commercial materials. Although the invention could be constructed out of a variety of materials, such as wood or metal, it is preferably molded of a lightweight yet resilient material, such as polypropylene. Additionally, the invention may be constructed in many different sizes. Preferably, the body is manufactured to be 1.25 inches in diameter and ⅛ of an inch in thickness. Also preferably, the rod is manufactured to be ¾ of an inch in length and one-eighth of an inch in width. 
     As would be understood by those skilled in the art, any number of functional equivalents may exist in lieu of the preferred embodiments described above. For example, in addition to, or in lieu of, a word, one side of the embodiments described above may be colored red as an indication that the player must “stop” and re-mark the ball prior to the next shot. Similarly, the opposite side may be colored green to indicate that it is alright for the player to “go” ahead with play. Moreover, the structure that is used to secure the body to the ground may include any means known for that purpose, such as one or more pins or burrs. 
     Thus, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, changes in the design, configuration, or materials that have been described may be made within the principles and scope of the invention illustrated herein and defined in the appended claims. Therefore, while the present invention has been shown and described in what is believed to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures can be made therefrom within the scope of the invention, which is therefore not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent products.