Mallet-style putter head with alignment aid

Abstract

Embodiments of mallet-style putter-type golf club heads comprising a first color and an alignment system to draw a golfer's eye towards a particular desirable location are described herein. The alignment system includes a central line extending rearward from a top edge centerpoint toward the rear portion and comprising a second color different from the first color. The alignment system further includes a focus element having a first grouping of lines and a second grouping of lines each extending rearward parallel to the central line and comprising a base abutting a top edge. Each of the first grouping of lines and the second grouping of lines further comprise at least the second color, a color saturation that changes as the lines extend rearward from the top edge, and line lengths that decrease as the first grouping of lines and the second grouping of lines are distributed further from the central line. The alignment system's changes in color, color saturation, and line length provide means to draw the human eye into focus at a particular desirable location to minimize mis-strokes that would cause undesirable variance from the desired trajectory or roll path.

1 . A mallet-style putter-type golf club head, comprising:
 a front portion having a strike face, a rear portion opposite the front portion, a crown comprising a first color, a sole opposite the crown, a toe portion, a heel portion opposite the toe portion, a top edge defined between the front portion and the crown and having a top edge centerpoint, and a leading edge defined between the front portion and the sole;
 the mallet-style putter-type golf club head assuming an address position that orients the sole approximately parallel to a ground plane; 
 the top edge centerpoint defining an origin of a coordinate system having an x-axis, a y-axis, and a z-axis; 
 the x-axis extending through the top edge centerpoint in a heel-to-toe direction parallel to the ground plane; 
 the y-axis extending through the top edge centerpoint in a sole-to-crown direction perpendicular to the x-axis; and 
 the z-axis extending through the top edge centerpoint in a front-to-rear direction perpendicular to both the x-axis and the y-axis; 
   a putter head length defining a maximum distance between the strike face and a rear portion rearmost edge, measured parallel to the z-axis;   a putter head width defining a maximum distance between a most toeward point of the toe portion and a most heelward point of the heel portion, measured parallel to the x-axis;   a putter head height defining a maximum distance between a crown apex and the sole measured perpendicular to the y-axis when the mallet-style putter-type golf club head is in the address position; and   an alignment system, comprising:
 a focus element comprising a first grouping of lines extending rearward parallel to the z-axis; 
 the first grouping of lines comprising a base abutting the top edge and first line lengths extending parallel to the z-axis; 
 the first grouping of lines further comprising at least a second color different from the first color and a color saturation that changes as the first grouping of lines extend rearward from the top edge parallel to the z-axis; 
 wherein the color saturation defines an intensity of a color, wherein a completely saturated area appears purely a given color and a low saturation area fades from the given color into a surrounding color; and 
 wherein at least one line of the first grouping of lines comprises a completely saturated second color area adjacent to the top edge that gradually transitions to a low saturation second color area as the at least one line of the first grouping of lines extends away from the top edge in a direction parallel to the z-axis. 
   
     
     
         2 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the first grouping of lines are symmetric in a toe portion to heel portion direction about the z-axis. 
     
     
         3 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the focus element is approximately triangular in shape. 
     
     
         4 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the alignment system further comprises a central line extending rearward from the top edge centerpoint along the z-axis and comprising a central line color. 
     
     
         5 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 4 , wherein the central line color is different from the first color of the crown. 
     
     
         6 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 5 , wherein the central line comprises color breaks such that the central line color is not visible, and the first color is visible in the color breaks. 
     
     
         7 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the focus element further comprises a second grouping of lines surrounding the first grouping of lines and extending rearward parallel to the z-axis; and
 the second grouping of lines comprising a base abutting the top edge, second line lengths extending parallel to the z-axis, and a third color different from the first color of the crown and the second color of the first grouping of lines.   
     
     
         8 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 7 , wherein the first line lengths and the second line lengths decrease as they are distributed further from the z-axis. 
     
     
         9 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 7 , wherein at least one line of the second grouping of lines comprises a completely saturated third color area adjacent to the low saturation second color area that gradually transitions to a low saturation third color area as the at least one line of the second grouping of lines extends away from the low saturation second color area in a direction parallel to the z-axis. 
     
     
         10 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the focus element comprises a second focus element comprising a center dot adjacent the top edge centerpoint having a center dot color different from the first color of the crown. 
     
     
         11 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the alignment system further comprises a toeward auxiliary line offset toeward from the first grouping of lines and a heelward auxiliary line offset heelward from the first grouping of lines; and   each line of the toeward and heelward auxiliary lines extends rearward from the top edge and parallel to the z-axis.   
     
     
         12 . A mallet-style putter-type golf club head, comprising:
 a front portion having a strike face, a rear portion opposite the front portion, a crown comprising a first color, a sole opposite the crown, a toe portion, a heel portion opposite the toe portion, a top edge defined between the front portion and the crown and having a top edge centerpoint, and a leading edge defined between the front portion and the sole;
 the mallet-style putter-type golf club head assuming an address position that orients the sole approximately parallel to a ground plane; 
 the top edge centerpoint defining an origin of a coordinate system having an x-axis, a y-axis, and a z-axis; 
 the x-axis extending through the top edge centerpoint in a heel-to-toe direction parallel to the ground plane; 
 the y-axis extending through the top edge centerpoint in a sole-to-crown direction perpendicular to the x-axis; and 
 the z-axis extending through the top edge centerpoint in a front-to-rear direction perpendicular to both the x-axis and the y-axis; 
   a putter head length defining a maximum distance between the strike face and a rear portion rearmost edge, measured parallel to the z-axis;   a putter head width defining a maximum distance between a most toeward point of the toe portion and a most heelward point of the heel portion, measured parallel to the x-axis;   a putter head height defining a maximum distance between a crown apex and the sole measured perpendicular to the y-axis when the mallet-style putter-type golf club head is in the address position; and   an alignment system, comprising:
 a focus element comprising heelward portion lines and toeward portion lines extending rearward from the top edge parallel to the z-axis; 
 the heelward and toeward portion lines further comprising at least a second color different from the first color and a color saturation that changes as the heelward and toeward portion lines extend rearward from the top edge parallel to the z-axis; 
 wherein the color saturation defines an intensity of a color, wherein a completely saturated area appears purely a given color and a low saturation area fades from the given color into a surrounding color; 
 wherein at least one line of the heelward and toeward portion lines comprises a completely saturated second color area adjacent to the top edge that gradually transitions to a low saturation second color area as the at least one line of the heelward and toeward portion lines extends away from the top edge in a direction parallel to the z-axis; and 
 wherein each line of the heelward and toeward portion lines do not abut one another, but are separated from each other by spaces comprising the first color. 
   
     
     
         13 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the heelward and toeward portion lines comprise heelward line lengths and toeward line lengths that decrease as the heelward and toeward portion lines are distributed further from the z-axis. 
     
     
         14 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the heelward and toeward portion lines are symmetric about the z-axis. 
     
     
         15 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein the alignment system further comprises a central line extending rearward from the top edge centerpoint along the z-axis and comprising a central line color. 
     
     
         16 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 15 , wherein the central line color is different from the first color of the crown. 
     
     
         17 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 16 , wherein the central line comprises color breaks such that the central line color is not visible, and the first color is visible in the color breaks. 
     
     
         18 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein:
 the alignment system further comprises a toeward auxiliary line offset toeward from the toeward portion lines and a heelward auxiliary line offset heelward from the heelward portion lines; and   each line of the toeward and heelward auxiliary lines extends rearward from the top edge and parallel to the z-axis.   
     
     
         19 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 12 , wherein each line of the heelward and toeward portion lines has a line width measured in a toeward to heelward direction parallel to the x-axis. 
     
     
         20 . The mallet-style putter-type golf club head of  claim 19 , wherein each of the spaces comprises a space width that is greater than or equal to the line width.