Will Nike Golf Produce Bigger Balls

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but apparently if you frequently top your golf shots the problem may be that your balls are too small. Fortunately Nike Golf has been working on a cure for such inadequacies.

Recently a Nike Golf patent application published as US Pub. No. 20140357424 titled “Golf Ball with Low Density.” The benefit of a lower density ball is the ability to increase the size. The application explains:

BACKGROUND

[0002] This section provides information helpful in understanding the disclosed technology but that is not necessarily prior art.

[0003] A golf ball’s core and cover are constructed with polymer compositions including, for example, polybutadiene rubber, polyurethanes, polyamides, ionomers, and blends of such polymers. Ionomers, particularly ethylene-based ionomers, are a useful group of polymers for golf ball layers because of their toughness, durability, and wide range of hardness values.

[0004] Golf balls typically include a center or intermediate layer made of a thermoset rubber material. A rubber polymer like polybutadiene is compounded with a metal salt of an ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acid, for instance zinc diacrylate, a free radical initiator, and a filler. Rubber cores and layers provide excellent ball properties but have a relatively high density. A golf ball that conforms to the rules established by the United States Golf Association (USGA) has a diameter of at least 42.672 mm and does not weigh more than 45.926 grams. Including denser materials like a rubber layer limits the volume (and thus the diameter) of a golf ball that conforms to USGA rules.

[0005] A larger diameter ball can be beneficial for a player who tends to connect with the ball of typical diameter above its equator. However, such a skilled player may not want to sacrifice distance due to the higher aerodynamic drag coefficient and lower resilience that comes with a larger diameter golf ball. Therefore, a need remains for a large diameter ball with good performance characteristics.

The application is attempting to protect golf balls with diameters of 43.18 – 46 millimeters, and a density of 0.85-1.05 g/cc.

Would an extra 0.5  – 3.3 millimeters increase your confidence?

After a few re-writes, during which I reminding myself of my age, I think I finally made it through this post without ruining my chances for elected office!

David Dawsey – Keeping an Eye on Golf Ball Inventions

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