Callaway Golf Spoiler Alert; Seriously, A Spoiler Alert!

Could this design be a next generation OptiForce driver, or is it simply a dream that will never leave R&D?…. True golf geeks know that spoilers, fins, and wings are nothing new (just check out these posts, exhibit a, exhibit b, and exhibit c). The drawings come from USPN 8,753,224, which was recently awarded to Callaway Golf after a pendency of only 16.5 months (kudos to the patent office). The patent describes the invention as….

Read more

About Time We See Some Swing Trainer Patent Litigation

It was only a matter of time before the increasing popularity of electronic swing training devices resulted in patent litigation. There is no doubt that these are fun little gadgets, but whether they will help you improve your game is still up for debate….. The first swing trainer patent infringement Complaint was filed a few weeks ago by iTrainer Golf Ltd., accusing Swingbyte, Inc. of patent infringement….

Read more

About Time We See Some Swing Trainer Patent Litigation

It was only a matter of time before the increasing popularity of electronic swing training devices resulted in patent litigation. There is no doubt that these are fun little gadgets, but whether they will help you improve your game is still up for debate….. The first swing trainer patent infringement Complaint was filed a few weeks ago by iTrainer Golf Ltd., accusing Swingbyte, Inc. of patent infringement….

Read more

It Appears Crown Turbulators WILL be in the Next PING Product Launch!

Drum roll please. The next PING fairway wood is …. (probably). Yes sir, check out those crown turbulators! THIS prior post explains the PING turbulators. I must admit, I never thought they would do it; but then again I never thought they would produce a driver with a racing stripe. However, I would bet that, like the i25’s racing stripe, the crown turbulators will be real low-key and blend right into the overall design so they are hardly noticeable (if that is possible). Crown turbulators on what is likely the G30 fairway wood suggests that the associated driver is likely to also have crown turbulators. This is getting interesting!

Read more

Why I Love This Game

Because every hacker, myself included, thinks that they can pull off a 1 in 100 shot at least 50% of the time. This makes for great comedy if you aren’t afraid to laugh at your playing partners, or yourself in my case. A few years ago I shared a video with you about my Bill Haas shot from some slick smelly old pond mud. Recently I found myself in the same pond, only this time the ball was just under the surface of the water. Like any good hacker I looked at it, thought about the day’s bet and the fact that my partner and I were only 1 up (he was in his pocket on this hole), and I quickly came to the conclusion that I had this shot, despite the fact that the ball was under water and at least 8 inches below my feet. There was no doubt in my mind, I had this shot.

Read more

Next Gen Titleist Driver?

As I have often said, the major club companies tend to only file design patent applications on products that have secured a spot in their product line-up. Check out this design from a recent Acushnet design patent. Notice there is no sole-entry shaft sleeve adjustability port; and is that a rotating triangle? Pretty radical for Titleist! Do you think we will ever see this on store shelves?…

Read more

Bertha 2.0?

Earlier this month a Callaway Golf patent issued directed to the Bertha driver. Sure, it contained all the usual drawings that we would expect of the product that is on the market, but is also contained some interesting alternative designs. Place your bets, is this a design reject or possibly a future version of the Bertha?….

Read more

Matty G the Inventor! Say What

Last week a patent application caught my eye because it listed the Golf Channel’s Matt Ginella as an inventor. Yes sir, Matty G played a part in the invention titled “Determination of Custom Information Based on Golfer Performance Data.” What’s next, a training aid designed by Damon Hack, a line of cotton tank tops designed by Gary Williams, or maybe a vegan cookbook authored by Charlie Rymer?….

Read more

Is This the Future of Golf Equipment Fitting, or Just Plain Lazy?

A recently published patent application discloses a pretty interesting fitting concept, plus I just love the image of the golfing robot. The patent application published this month as US Pub. No. 20140074425 titled “System for Remotely Swinging a Golf Club,” which describes the invention as…. Interesting idea, but boy a purchaser would have to put a lot of faith in other people. Although, it is fun to imagine a line of 10 robots, each outfitted with a different driver; you take one swing, all 10 robots mimic your swing and hit a ball, and then you instantly get feedback on all 10 shots. Perhaps some day.

Read more

Cobra Golf Sued for Someone Else’s Product

On March 19th NovelPoint Tracking LLC filed at least six patent infringement lawsuits regarding USPN 6442485 titled “Method and Apparatus for an Automatic Vehicle Location, Collision Notification, and Synthetic Voice.” One of the lawsuits named Cobra Golf Inc. as the defendant (see Complaint). This got my attention. Within 90 seconds I could see that the allegedly infringing product was the Cobra 5600 LM (a GPS navigation system), add another 30 seconds to drop that into a Google search, and clearly it is a product that is not made by Cobra Golf. Generally I think non-practicing entities (NPE’s), or patent trolls as some refer to them, get a bad rap; but come on, how do you make that mistake? Sure, they have sued a lot of golf retailers (check out this list of retailers they sued over golf GPS products), but that is no excuse for naming the wrong company in a patent infringement complaint! This just one reason why NPE’s get so much negative press. Sadly, today I am disappointed in my profession.

Read more

These Irons Look Like Something Phil Would Love

No one would dispute that Phil can pimp a product, and the iron design found in a Callaway patent that issued today is just odd enough that he would probably love to tell the world about it. Check out this iron design…. In what seems to be a recent trend with Callaway, the associated application was filed with a nonpublication request meaning that Callaway wanted to keep this under wraps (away from the eyes of competitors or pesky golf blogs). The patent describes the invention as…. At this point can anyone pull off a low & forward CG location story without it appearing as a “me too” play?

Read more

These Irons Look Like Something Phil Would Love

No one would dispute that Phil can pimp a product, and the iron design found in a Callaway patent that issued today is just odd enough that he would probably love to tell the world about it. Check out this iron design…. In what seems to be a recent trend with Callaway, the associated application was filed with a nonpublication request meaning that Callaway wanted to keep this under wraps (away from the eyes of competitors or pesky golf blogs). The patent describes the invention as…. At this point can anyone pull off a low & forward CG location story without it appearing as a “me too” play?

Read more

Nike Covert 3.0?

As I stated in a post back in April regarding some Nike Covert variations, golf equipment companies come up with a lot of club head designs in the process of developing one commercial product, majority of which golfers never get to see. Fortunately their patent applications often reveal some of the hidden gems that for one reason or another did not survive the process, or may be a glimpse of a future generation product. Check out these potential Covert driver designs!…. Will we ever see these designs in a commercial product? My guess – not anytime soon; too radical….

Read more

A Great Product Name for Cleveland Golf / Srixon; Can the Product Live Up to the Name?

Selecting a good product name is hard work. For every ten good names that the marketing guys come up with, one may survive a proper trademark clearance and protectability analysis. In the past Cleveland Golf has not been known for creative and catchy product names, however that may be a thing of the past. Last week they filed a trademark application for…. Not bad, not bad at all! Place your bets; is it a new line of putters or drivers?….

Read more

My Best and Worst Golf Purchases of 2013

Let me start by saying that I am a pretty frugal guy, but golf equipment is my weakness. I am always searching for that product that somehow allows me to show up 5 minutes before my tee time and shoot in the 70’s despite no warm up or practice since my last round. Needless to say I am still searching for that magical club. My annual equipment purchases generally include at least one set of irons (three this year), multiple hybrids, and at least one putter (generally more). Surprisingly I am rather loyal to my driver and fairway wood. Therefore I decided to share with you my single best purchases and my single worst purchase of 2013….

Read more
Advertisment ad adsense adlogger