Abstract:
A golf training aid includes a base for coupling to a golf club, and a long arm extending from the base, such that the long arm will be substantially perpendicular to the face of the golf club. A golf club including an alignment indicator is described. A method of golf training is also described. A stance is taken over a ball with a club having an alignment indicator which is substantially parallel to a face of the club. A long arm of the alignment indicator is aligned with a desired putting line. The club is swung to contact the ball while maintaining alignment between the long arm and the desired putting line in order to propel the ball along the desired putting line.

Description:
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     This application claims an invention which was disclosed in Provisional Application No. 60/687,462, filed Jun. 03, 2005, entitled “GOLF PUTTING TRAINING AID”. The benefit under  35  USC §119(e) of the U.S. provisional application is hereby claimed, and the aforementioned application is hereby incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The invention pertains to the field of sports equipment and training methods. More particularly, the invention pertains to aids for training golfers in correct putting procedure.  
         [0004]     2. Description of Related Art  
         [0005]     In the game of golf, when the ball lies close to the hole, it is necessary to propel the ball the last few feet across the green using a specialized club called a “putter”. The action is consequently called “a putt” or “putting”.  
         [0006]     This part of the game is considered particularly challenging by many golfers, because of the difficulty in maintaining proper alignment of the face of the putter and the desired path of the ball. If the face is even slightly misaligned, the ball will miss the hole.  
         [0007]     There have been many patents on aids to putting. For example, Miner, U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,625, shows a t-shaped member with a sighting hole, which is placed on the ground behind the ball. The golfer is supposed to sight in the sighting hole with his club face parallel to the T, and move the club along a line scored on the long arm of the T. A parallelogram assembly surrounds the member, showing the golfer where to place his feet.  
         [0008]     U.S. Pat. No. 4,949,971 discloses a golf training aid of rotatably T-shaped pointer mounted a block. The block is made of two sections which then fastened together onto the shaft of the club.  
         [0009]     Other aids help the golfer envision an imaginary line he is supposed to be putting along. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,273,893 discloses a pointer mounted to the club shaft by a mounting body. The pointer is normal to the club face or parallel to and alongside the club shank. With the pointer normal to the club face, the golfer aligns the pointer parallel to an imaginary putting line to line up a putt.  
         [0010]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,204, projects a line of light from a laser mounted up on the putter shaft to visually demonstrate the direction the club is aimed.  
         [0011]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,817 discloses a training device which is attached to the shaft of the golf club. In a first embodiment, an elongated rod with indicia is used to align the ball and estimate displacement distance of the ball to the putt. The elongated rod is perpendicularly attached to the shaft. In a second embodiment, an attachment rod is attached perpendicular to the elongated rod or parallel to the putting face, forming a right angle. When making a putt, the ball is aligned with the right angle formed between the elongated rod and the attachment rod.  
         [0012]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,551,924 discloses a training apparatus of a base plate with a body, a pointer, a guide strip, and a warning background and a club member. The club member includes an extension arm and, a mounting clip and a colored blade coupled together and attached to the golf club. The golfer aligns the colored blade over the base plate on the ground and when the correct color results, the golf club is aligned correctly for the putt.  
         [0013]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,665,007 discloses a putter training device that is attached to the lower portion of the putting grip of the club. The putter training device has a triangular shape in top view and is positioned on the grip so that when viewing the long outer edges of the device, the golfer sees down a line of sight that the putter head touches and the edge of the device is normal to an imaginary target line.  
         [0014]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,564 discloses a torsion spring clamp that attaches a shaft to a golf putter. Using their eyes, a golfer visually sites a line between the end of the shaft and the ball and aligns the shaft along an invisible intended path on the putting surface.  
         [0015]     All of the above patents have the golfer imagine a line in which to align a putting aid device with, however golfers learning how to putt cannot accurately envision this line leading to inaccurate putts. The Applicant has found that an actual physical line is needed to ensure the correct alignment with hole. By using the putting aid of the present invention and the physical alignment line, the golfer can putt the ball along the alignment line or path to the hole accurately.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0016]     The invention is a golf putting training aid which attaches to a golf club (“putter”) to help the golfer learn to putt in a straight line. The aid comprises an alignment indicator in the form of a T-square or L-square or the like, which attaches to the putter shaft with a clamp or bracket, or to the putter reverse face with a magnet. The base of the “T” or “L” is aligned parallel with the face of the club. The long arm of the “T” or “L” extends perpendicular to the base, and indicates a straight line along which a ball hit by the putter will travel.  
         [0017]     To train the golfer in putting correctly, a straight line is created from the center of the hole through and past the ball at the putting position by snapping a builders&#39; chalk line or tacking a thread or string. The golfer takes his stance over the ball, and aligns the long arm of the aid over the straight line. By keeping the long arm of the aid over, and aligned with, the straight line as he swings, the golfer will hit the ball squarely and propel it into the hole. Thus, he is trained in correct putting procedure.  
         [0018]     Eventually, the golfer learns to envision the line without the need for a real chalk line, and finally the training aid can be removed from the putter when the golfer has learned to putt correctly. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
       [0019]      FIG. 1  shows a front view of the invention in use, in an embodiment in which the aid clamps to the putter shaft  
         [0020]      FIG. 2  shows a front view of the invention in use, in an embodiment in which the aid is magnetically attached to the reverse side of the putter head.  
         [0021]      FIG. 3  shows a diagram of the invention.  
         [0022]      FIG. 4  shows a diagram of an embodiment of the invention in which the distance of the alignment aid from the putter shaft is adjustable.  
         [0023]      FIG. 5  shows a flowchart of the method of the invention.  
         [0024]      FIG. 6  shows a perspective view of an aid of a second embodiment.  
         [0025]      FIG. 7  shows a top down view of the aid of the second embodiment.  
         [0026]      FIG. 8  shows another perspective view of the aid of the second embodiment.  
         [0027]      FIG. 9  shows a diagram of the aid of the second embodiment.  
         [0028]      FIG. 10   a  shows a top down view of the first rod and the first fastener.  FIG. 10   b  shows a side view of the second fastener and the second rod.  FIG. 10   c  shows an alternate side view of the second fastner. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0029]     The invention is a golf putting training aid which attaches to a golf club (“putter”) to help the golfer learn to putt in a straight line.  
         [0030]     As shown in  FIG. 1 , the aid comprises an alignment indicator in the form of a T-square or L-square or the like, which attaches to the putter shaft ( 1 ) with a clamp or bracket ( 5 ), or, as shown in  FIG. 2 , to the putter head ( 2 ) reverse face with a magnet ( 7 ). In  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the aid is attached to the shaft ( 1 ) using a u-clamp ( 9 ). It will be understood that any convenient method of attaching the aid to the putter may be used within the teaching of the invention. Preferably, the aid is removable once the training is done, but the attachment could be permanent if desired.  
         [0031]     The base ( 4 ) of the “T” or “L” is aligned parallel with the face of the club head ( 2 ). The long arm ( 3 ) of the “T” or “L” extends perpendicular to the base ( 4 ), and indicates a straight line along which a ball ( 8 ) hit by the putter will travel. Preferably, the long arm will be about  8 ” to  1  foot in length, and the aid is made of relatively light material so as not to interfere unduly with the feel of the club.  
         [0032]     As shown in  FIG. 3 , to train the golfer in putting correctly, a straight line ( 10 ) is created from the center of the hole ( 11 ) through and past the ball ( 8 ) at the putting position by snapping a builders&#39; chalk line or stretching a thread or string (as shown at ( 6 ) in  FIGS. 1 and 2 ). If desired, a ring ( 10   a )( 10   b ) can be supplied in the end of the string, and a peg, nail, or golfer&#39;s ball marker may be used to fasten the line down to the ground. For training in 4-6 foot putts, the line should preferably be about 8 feet long.  
         [0033]     The golfer takes his stance over the ball ( 8 ), and aligns the long arm ( 3 ) of the aid over the straight line ( 10 ). By keeping the long arm ( 3 ) of the aid aligned with the straight line ( 10 ) as he swings, the golfer will hit the ball ( 8 ) squarely and propel it into the hole ( 11 ). Thus, he is trained in correct putting procedure.  
         [0034]     Eventually, the golfer learns to envision the line without the need for a real chalk line, and finally the training aid can be removed from the putter when the golfer has learned to putt correctly.  
         [0035]      FIG. 4  shows a variation on the alignment aid, in which the short arm ( 4 ) of the “T” is arranged to slide along a support arm ( 12 ), which is aligned with the face of the putter head ( 2 ), and clamped to the shaft ( 1 ). The golfer can take his stance over the ball, and slide the short arm ( 4 ) of the aid is along the support arm ( 12 ), until the long arm ( 3 ) is visually aligned over the chalk line ( 10 ). Then the short arm ( 4 ) is tightened in place using a thumbscrew or nut or other clamping means ( 13 ). Using this embodiment of the invention, it is not necessary for the golfer to envision the arm ( 3 ) parallel to the line ( 10 ), but rather it can be visually placed directly over the line, with the adjustment correcting for the parallax factor.  
         [0036]      FIG. 5  shows a flowchart of the training method—for the purposes of this flowchart, it is assumed that the training aid has been attached to the putter already: 
     50 —a chalk line is snapped on the ground from beyond the putting position to the cup, or a string is stretched along the path, creating a straight visual line.      51 —the putter is placed behind the ball, and the long arm of the training aid is aligned to the line created in step  50       52 —the golfer swings, keeping the long arm of the training aid continually aligned with the line.      
         [0040]     If these steps are followed, the ball will be struck correctly, and it will be propelled straight into the hole.  
         [0041]      FIGS. 6 through 10   c  shows an aid of an alternate embodiment. The aid comprises an alignment indicator ( 15 )( 16 )( 17 ) that is attached to the shaft ( 1 ) of a golf club with a first fastener ( 14 ). The first fastener ( 14 ) is preferably a screw, but may be any other means that clamps the aid ( 15 )( 16 )( 17 ) to the shaft ( 1 ). The alignment indicator forms a T-square, L-square, or the like, with a first rod ( 15 ) acting as a base and forming the top of the “T” or the bottom of the “L” and a second rod ( 17 ) attached perpendicularly to the first rod ( 15 ) by a second fastener ( 16 ), forming the remaining portion or long portion of the “T” or the “L”. The second fastener ( 16 ) is preferably a piece has a first hole ( 16   a ) for slidably receiving the first rod ( 15 ) and a second hole ( 16   b ) for slidably receiving the second rod ( 17 ), best shown in  FIGS. 10   a  through  10   c . Since both the first rod ( 15 ) and second rod ( 17 ) are slidably received by the second fastener ( 16 ), the position of either the first rod ( 15 ) or the second rod ( 17 ) may be adjusted. It will be understood that any convenient method of attaching the aid to the shaft of the club may be used within the teaching of the invention. Preferably, the aid is removable once the training is done, but the attachment could be permanent.  
         [0042]     The second rod ( 17 ) of the “T” or “L” perpendicular to the first rod ( 1   5 ), indicates a straight line along which a ball ( 8 ) hit by the head of the club will travel. The rods ( 15 )( 17 ) are preferably made of plastic, but may also be made out of metal or other similar material that is light and so as not to interfere unduly with the feel of the club or damage the club shaft. The second rod ( 17 ) is preferably a different color than the first rod ( 15 ) and the second fastener ( 16 ), making it easier to see by the golfer when in use. The second rod ( 17 ) may come in a series of different lengths, allowing the golfer to gradually decrease the length of the second rod ( 17 ) as their skill increases.  
         [0043]     The club head ( 2 ) may also have a marking ( 18 ) indicating the center of the club head ( 2 ) and where the club head ( 2 ) should strike the ball ( 8 ) when putting or swinging the club.  
         [0044]     As shown in  FIG. 9 , to train the golfer in putting or shooting correctly, a straight line ( 10 ) is created from the center of the hole ( 11 ) through and past the ball ( 8 ) at the putting position by snapping a builders&#39; chalk line or stretching a thread or string. If desired, a ring ( 10   a )( 10   b ) can be supplied in the end of the string, and a peg, nail, or golfer&#39;s ball marker may be used to fasten the line down to the ground. For training in 4 foot putts or shorter, the line should preferably be about 8 feet long.  
         [0045]     The golfer takes his stance over the ball ( 8 ), aligns the ball on the straight line ( 10 ), aligns the marking on the club head with the center of the ball, and aligns the second rod ( 17 ) forming the long portion of the “T” or “L” of the aid to be over or aligned with the straight line ( 10 ). Be keeping the second rod ( 17 ) in alignment with the straight line ( 10 ) as he swings, the golfer will hit the ball ( 8 ) squarely and propel it into the hole ( 11 ). Thus, his is trained in correct putting procedure.  
         [0046]     The golfer may decrease the length of the second rod as their skill increases and eventually the golfer learns to envision the line without the need for a real chalk line, and finally the training aid can be removed from the putter when the golfer has learned to putt correctly.  
         [0047]     Accordingly, it is to be understood that the embodiments of the invention herein described are merely illustrative of the application of the principles of the invention. Reference herein to details of the illustrated embodiments is not intended to limit the scope of the claims, which themselves recite those features regarded as essential to the invention.