Who is Bob Vokey? Well, if you don’t know the answer to that question then you need to reconsider your commitment to the game! (Click HERE to brush up on your knowledge of Mr. Vokey).
Let’s learn a little more about this golf legend by checking out Bob Vokey’s inventions. First, check out his issued patents:
1 USPN 7,273,422 Spin Milled Grooves for a Golf Club
2 USPN D400,945 Portion of a Backface of a Golf Club Head
3 USPN 5,676,606 Golf Putter
A golf putter head has a main body portion with a front, striking face, a lower, sole face, a heel, a toe, and a rear face, and an arcuate indent or recess in the sole face extending out to the outer perimeter of the heel, toe and rear face. The main body portion is of a first material, and an arcuate weighting member of a second material heavier than the first material is secured in the indent. The weighting member has a lower face flush with the sole face of the main body portion, and an outer peripheral face flush with the adjacent outer perimeter portions of the rear face, heel and toe of the body portion.
4 USPN D382,615 Golf Club Head
5 USPN D345,775 Golf Club Head
Now, let’s looks at his published patent applications:
6 US Pub. No. 20080242443 Golf Club Head Having a Grooved and Textured Face
The present invention is directed to a golf club head with an improved striking surface. The grooves are machined into the strike surface with tight tolerances. The grooves have sharp edges, radiused ends, and a draft angle between about 2 degrees and 12 degrees. The striking face is machined such that it has a uniform texture with a roughness of more than 40 Ra. The face may be selectively textured to enhance certain shots that the golfer may perform. This may include providing a plurality of distinct sets of texturing to accommodate a plurality of different shots. The grooves may contain a plurality of portions, including a radiused or angled portion, a portion having substantially parallel walls, a portion having a v-shape, and a curved portion. The grooves may also be characterized by various dimensions, including draft angle, inclusive side wall angle, width, depth, cross-sectional area, spacing, and pitch ratio.
7 US Pub. No. 20080242442 Golf Club Head with Varying Face Grooves
The present invention is directed to a golf club head with an improved striking surface. Grooves are machined into the strike surface with tight tolerances. The grooves have sharp edges, radiused ends, and a draft angle between about 2 degrees and 12 degrees. The striking face is machined such that it has a uniform texture with a roughness of more than 40 Ra. The grooves may contain a plurality of portions, including a radiused or angled portion, a portion having substantially parallel walls, a portion having a v-shape, and a curved portion. The grooves may also be characterized by various dimensions, including draft angle, inclusive side wall angle, width, depth, cross-sectional area, spacing, and pitch ratio. Preferred values for these dimensions are provided. A golf club head having a variety of groove types and a set of golf clubs with grooves varying among the individual clubs of the set are also disclosed.
8 US Pub. No. 20080045351 Spin Milled Grooves for a Golf Club
The present invention is directed to a golf club head with an improved striking surface. The grooves are machined into the strike surface with tight tolerances. The grooves have sharp edges, radiused ends, and a draft angle between about 2 degrees and 12 degrees. The striking face is machined such that it has a uniform texture with a roughness of more than 40 Ra.
9 US Pub. No. 20080045350 Spin Milled Grooves for a Golf Club
The present invention is directed to a method of forming a golf club head with an improved striking surface. The grooves are machined into the strike surface with tight tolerances. The grooves have sharp edges, radiused ends, and a draft angle between about 2 degrees and 12 degrees. The striking face is machined such that it has a uniform texture with a roughness of more than 40 Ra.
No doubt, Mr. Vokey has shaped the design of modern wedges!
As a side note, have you ever thought about the value of having the Vokey name on a wedge? How about the value of having the name Scotty Cameron on a putter? Boy, Acushnet knows how to brand their club designers, create a buzz about the brand, and obtain a premium price for their products!
Good designs + good marketing and branding = outstanding premium price.
Dave Dawsey – Watching Golf Wedge Inventions
PS – click here to check out more posts regarding iron patents
PPS – stay tuned for a post dedicated to the Cameron inventions!
