Hosel construction

Abstract

The present invention relates to a hosel for connecting a shaft to a club head. In one aspect of the invention, the hosel comprises a body having an undercut, wherein the undercut has a maximum cross section which tapers to a minimum cross section and increases to the maximum cross section immediately adjacent the club head. The hosel further comprises a flange section below the hosel and hosel bore above the undercut, the hosel bore section having a length of at least one inch. In another aspect of the invention, the hosel tapers in diameter from a maximum to a minimum width, and has a maximized interior mold line (IML) to improve bendability and weight savings.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A golf club head comprising:
 a head body comprising a hollow interior having an interior mold line; and   a hosel for connecting a shaft to the golf club head, the hosel comprising:
 a hosel body having an undercut; and 
 a hose bore, 
   wherein the hosel bore is located above the undercut,   wherein the hosel bore has a length of at least one inch,   wherein the undercut has a maximum cross section which tapers to a minimum cross section and increases to the maximum cross section adjacent the head body, and   wherein the interior mold line extends into the hosel.   
     
     
         2 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the interior mold line is encircled by the undercut. 
     
     
         3 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the undercut extends a full 360 degrees around the hosel body. 
     
     
         4 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the undercut extends only partially around the hosel body. 
     
     
         5 . The golf dub head according to  claim 1 , wherein the vertical length of the undercut is from 0.025 to 1.500 inches. 
     
     
         6 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , further comprising a split collar sized to mask the undercut. 
     
     
         7 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the golf club head comprises a flange section located immediately below the hosel. 
     
     
         8 . The golf club head according to  claim 7 , wherein the flange section has a thickness of 0.020 to 0.050 inch. 
     
     
         9 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the hollow interior is separated from the hose bore by a barrier. 
     
     
         10 . The golf club head according to  claim 9 , wherein the barrier is approximately 0.040 inch thick. 
     
     
         11 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the undercut has a curved cross-sectional shape. 
     
     
         12 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the undercut has a polygonal cross-sectional Shape. 
     
     
         13 . The golf club head according to  claim 1 , wherein the hosel is integrally formed with the head body. 
     
     
         14 . A golf club head comprising:
 a hosel comprising:
 hosel body having a maximum diameter and a minimum diameter; and 
 a hose bore having a length of at least one inch; and 
   ahead body comprising an interior hollow section that flanks the hosel bore on first and second sides,   wherein the interior hollow section is separated from the hosel bore by a barrier on the first and second sides, and   wherein the hosel bore is encircled by a portion of the hosel body having the minimum diameter.   
     
     
         15 . The golf club head according to  claim 14 , wherein the head body comprises a flange Section. 
     
     
         16 . The golf club head according to  claim 15 , wherein the flange section has a thickness of 0.020 to 0.050 inch. 
     
     
         17 . The golf club head according to  claim 14 , wherein the barrier flanking the first side is approximately 0.040 inch thick 
     
     
         18 . The golf club head according to  claim 14 , wherein the barrier flanking the second side is approximately 0.029 inch thick. 
     
     
         19 . The golf club head according to  claim 14 , wherein the maximum diameter is approximately 0.50 inch and the minimum diameter is approximately 0.47 inch. 
     
     
         20 . The golf club head according to  claim 14 , wherein the hosel bore is approximately 1.53 inches in length.