Patent Publication Number: US-6217458-B1

Title: Golf game with a three dimensional target

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a golf game, and more particularly to a golf game having a three dimensional target surrounded by a hook and loop material for engaging a ball also surrounded by a hook and loop material. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,538,253 issued to Foster describes a simulation golf game that uses a hook and loop material. The game includes a sheet of material that has the same texture as a conventional golf green, as well as a ball and a golf club. A patch of hook and loop material (commonly referred to as Velcro®) is attached to an area of the sheet and an additional patch of hook and loop material is attached to the ball. The object of the game is for the player to hit the ball so that it will roll on to the patch of hook and loop material on the sheet. When the ball does make contact with the patch of hook and loop material, the ball will become attached to that patch, and play of that hole is completed. This design, however, fails to provide a target that is three dimensional to aid the player in locating the target and hitting the target. Furthermore, this game is not designed to be used with in conjunction with an existing hole at a golf course. 
     What is needed, then, and not found in the prior art, is an improved golf game providing a three dimensional target and a ball, the golf game further having a means by which to affix the ball to the three dimensional target when the ball comes into contact with the three dimensional target. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The current invention is a game similar to the conventional game of golf. The game includes a three dimensional target, a hitting mat, a ball, and one or more clubs. The three dimensional target is preferably cylindrical, but can also be other conventional three dimensional shapes (such as a cone) as desired by the player. A sheet of hook and loop material, commonly referred to as Velcro®, is attached to the three dimensional target. 
     To play the game, the player hits the ball with the club in the direction of the three dimensional target. The object of the game is for the player to hit the ball so that it makes contact with the three dimensional target. The score is kept in the same manner as a conventional golf game, with the player counting each time that the ball is struck until the ball makes contact with the three dimensional target. The player who has the fewest strokes is the winner of the competition. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art after reviewing the following detail description and accompanying drawings wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is an expanded view of a three dimensional target of the golf game of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 a  is a top view of the three dimensional target of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 b  is a top view of the three dimensional target of the present invention, with the three dimensional target including a cushion. 
     FIG. 3 is an expanded view of a second embodiment of the three dimensional target, whereby the three dimensional target includes a rod having a spiked end. 
     FIG. 4 is an expanded view of a third embodiment of the three dimensional target, whereby the three dimensional target includes a rod having a cup-shaped end. 
     FIG. 5 a  is a side view of the ball of the golf game of the present invention. 
     FIG. 5 b  is a section I—I view of the ball shown in FIG. 5 a.    
     FIG. 6 is a plan view of one golf club of the golf game of the present invention. 
     FIG. 7 a  is a plan view of a second golf club of the golf game of the present invention. 
     FIG. 7 b  is a top view of the second golf club of the golf game of the present invention. 
     FIG. 8 a  is a top view of the mat used in the golf game of the present invention. 
     FIG. 8 b  is a side view of the mat used in the golf game of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to FIG. 1, a game apparatus  10  includes a three dimensional target  12 , one or more clubs  28 , a mat  50  and a ball  30 . To play the game with the above named elements, a player (not shown) places the ball  30  on the mat  50  and strikes the ball  30  with the club  28  in the direction of the three dimensional target  12 . The player continues to hit the ball  30  with the club  28  until the ball  30  comes in contact with the three dimensional target  12 . The player keeps score in a manner similar to the conventional game of golf, wherein each strike at the ball  30  counts as one stroke. Once the player causes the ball  30  to come in contact with the three dimensional target  12 , the player has his score for that hole. In a competition with a number of players, the player with the lowest number of strokes for the designated number of holes (typically nine or eighteen) is the winner. 
     In the preferred embodiment, the three dimensional target  12  is a cylinder (as shown in FIGS. 1,  2 ,  3  and  4 ). Looking at FIG. 2 a , the three dimensional target  12  typically has a base  14  and a target attachment material  18  surrounding the base  14  to form a receiving surface. The base  14  is preferably made of foam, but could also be made of other materials such as plastic. The target attachment material  18  is preferably one element of a hook and loop material, which is commonly sold under the trademark Velcro®. More specifically, the target attachment material  18  typically includes the hooks that interact with the loops of the hook and loop material. 
     Additionally, looking at FIG. 2 b , the three dimensional target  12  could include a cushion  16  fitted between the base  14  and the target attachment material  18 . The cushion  16  is a pad typically made of a soft material, such as foam, so that the ball  30  will not bounce off of the three dimensional target  12  when the ball  30  makes contact with the three dimensional target  12 . The cushion  16  is typically used when the base  14  is made of plastic or some other material having a hard surface. 
     Looking at FIG. 5 a , the ball  30  of the game apparatus  10  is typically slightly smaller than a conventional tennis ball (approximately 2.5 inches in diameter), although the size can be varied according to the choice of the player. Looking at FIG. 5 b , the ball  30  is a rubber sphere  31  having a ball attachment material  32  affixed to the outside surface of the sphere  31 . The sphere  31  encompasses a hollow area  33  which allows the ball to be compressed when forces are applied to the outside surface of the ball  30 . Additionally, the approximate weight of the ball  30  is two ounces. 
     The ball attachment material  32  creates an engaging surface, and is the other element of the hook and loop material not used as the target attachment material  18 . The ball attachment material  32  is chosen such that it will interact with the target attachment material  18 . For example, if the target attachment material  18  includes the hooks, then the ball attachment material  32  will include the loops that interact with the hooks to secure the ball  30  to the three dimensional target  12 . Therefore, when the ball  30  comes in contact with the three dimensional target  12 , the ball  30  will stay affixed to the surface contacted. 
     The preferred embodiment of the game apparatus  10  further includes at least one club  40  to hit the ball  30 , such as a conventional golf club (see FIG.  6 ). Each club  40  has a shaft  42  (typically made of fiberglass) connected to a head  44  and a rubber grip  46  surrounding a portion of the shaft  42 . The player thereby holds the club  40  by the rubber grip  46  attached to the shaft  42  to hit the ball  30  with the head  44 . The head  44  is typically made of a hard and smooth material such that it can contact the ball  30  and ball attachment material  32  without forming a bond with the ball attachment material  32  surrounding the ball  30 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the game apparatus  10  includes two clubs: one club  40  having an angled head  44 , such as a driver from a conventional set of golf clubs (see FIG. 6) and the other club  41  having a vertical head  48 , such as a conventional putter golf club (see FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b ). The club  40  with the angled head  44  is therefore used to engage the ball  30  to lift and propel the ball  30  into the air so that it will travel a long distance towards the three dimensional target  12 . The club  41  with the vertical head  44  is used to engage the ball  30  to roll the ball  30  a short distance towards the three dimensional target  12 . 
     Looking at FIGS. 8 a  and  8   b , the mat  50  of the preferred embodiment is includes a non-skid surface  52  and a turf layer  54 . The non-skid surface  52  is typically made of rubber, and the turf layer  54  is made of an artificial turf material. The turf layer  54  is attached to the top of the non-skid surface  52  so that the player can stand on the mat  50  to hit the ball  30 . Additionally, a tee hole  56  is located in the turf layer  54  through which a tee  58  is positioned. The tee  58  (which is typically made of rubber) is designed so that the ball  30  can be placed on it. The ball  30  can then be hit from the tee  58  or directly from the turf layer  54  of the mat  50 . Furthermore, a handle  60  is an integrated part of mat  50 . The handle  60  aids the player in transporting the mat  50  as needed. 
     Looking further at FIGS. 1,  2   a , and  2   b , the three dimensional target  12  includes a hollow core  20  that extends through the three dimensional target  12 . There are various ways in which to securely position the three dimensional target  12  on the ground surface  26 . One means for securing the three dimensional target  12  to the ground surface  26  is through using a rod  21  (shown in FIGS. 1,  3 , and  4 ). This embodiment of the game apparatus  10  is designed so that the three dimensional target  12  can be placed around the rod  21  through the core  20 . The rod  21  therefore provides two functions for the golf game apparatus  10 . First, the rod  21  stabilizes the three dimensional target  12  at the location desired by the player. Second, the rod  21  also serves as a visual guide for the player to help the player determine the position of the three dimensional target  12  and how far it is away from the player. 
     Looking further at FIG. 3, one embodiment of the rod  21  is shown to have a spiked end  22  and a blunt end  23 . In this embodiment, the spiked end  22  of the rod  21  is designed so that it can be inserted into a ground surface  26  so as to secure the three dimensional target  12  to the ground  26 . This design allows the player to be able to choose where the three dimensional target  12  will be located according to hardness of the surface  26  and according to the desires of the players. 
     Looking at FIG. 4, a second embodiment of the rod  21  is shown to have a cup-shaped end  24  and a blunt end  23 . In this embodiment, the cup-shaped end  24  of the rod  21  is designed to completely fit into a hole (not shown) used in a conventional golf course. The diameter of the cup-shaped end  24  is such that it fits snugly into the hole so that the rod  21  will make a secure connection with the hole. In this embodiment, the player is able to arrange the three dimensional target  12  in the position according to where an established hole is located on an existing golf course. Consequently, the player aims for the three dimensional target  12  positioned in the location of the existing hole, and is able to play a hole on an existing golf course with the knowledge of the preexisting dimensions of the golf course. 
     A third method to secure the three dimensional target  12  to the ground surface  26  is by adjusting the size and weight of the three dimensional target  12 . The size of the three dimensional target  12  determines the stability of the three dimensional target  12  on the surface  26  upon which it is placed. Looking at the cylindrical three dimensional target  12  of FIG. 1, the diameter of the base  14  is sufficient such that the three dimensional target  12  is stable on a flat surface, and does not require a rod  21  for stability. However, if the diameter of the base  14  is smaller, the three dimensional target  12  would require the rod  21  in the core  20  to prevent the base  14  from being toppled when the ball  30  makes contact with the three dimensional target  12 . Furthermore, the base  14  itself can be hollow such that the base  14  can be filled with a weighting material (not shown), such as water or sand, to provide weight to obtain additional stability for the three dimensional target  12  without using a rod  21 . 
     The size of the three dimensional target  12  can be varied not only to increase stability of the three dimensional target  12 , but to also change the difficulty of the game. For example, the smaller the three dimensional target  12 , the more difficult it is for the player to contact the three dimensional target  12  with the ball  30 . Conversely, the greater the diameter of the three dimensional target  12 , the easier it is for the player to make contact with the three dimensional target  12 . 
     Moreover, the three dimensional target  12  of the current invention is not required to be cylindrical in shape in order to play the game. Examples of alternative shapes of the three dimensional object  12  include a sphere, a cube, or a cone. The alternative shapes must be designed such that the three dimensional target  12  continues to have a base  14 , a cushion  16 , and a target attachment material  18 , as directed above. Further, the three dimensional target  12  will continue to maintain a hollow core  20  through which a rod  21  is insertable for securing the three dimensional target  12 . 
     The present invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment thereof, and it will be understood that many modifications and variations will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention and that the invention is not to be taken as limited to all of the details herein. Therefore, it is manifestly intended that this invention be limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.