Golf club and golf club heads

Abstract

A golf club head which may include an iron-type golf club head body, a face plate, and a filler positioned behind the ball striking face. According to aspects of the disclosure, the face plate may include score lines which define holes in the face plate. Further, according to aspects of the disclosure, the filler may be comprised of a material that readily absorbs the deflection of the face plate during impact with a golf ball during a golf swing and dampens the impact between the golf club head and the golf ball.

1 . A golf club head comprising:
 an iron-type club head body;   a face plate comprising a single metallic material;   a filler positioned behind the face plate, wherein the filler consists of a material selected from a group consisting of: resin, rubber, plastic, composite materials, polymer materials, and gel;   wherein:   the club head body comprises a cavity and a recess;   the club head body further comprises a front surface, a cavity surface, and one or more protrusions within the cavity, extending from the cavity surface towards the face plate;   the cavity is formed into the front surface, bounded by the cavity surface, and located behind the face plate;   the recess is formed on the front surface of the club head in communication with and extending forward beyond the cavity;   the one or more protrusions are configured to not engage the face plate when the club head is at rest;   the filler is received in the cavity;   a thickness of the filler is between 2.0 mm and 3.0 mm;   the face plate is received in the recess to cover the cavity and the filler;
 wherein the face plate includes:
 a first surface configured to face away from the iron-type club head body and contact a golf ball during use; 
 a second surface, opposite the first surface, configured to face and engage with the iron-type club head body and the filler; and 
 a plurality of horizontally oriented score lines formed in the first surface. 
 
   
     
     
         2 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the cavity has a cavity depth, measured in a front to rear direction, from the cavity surface of the body to the face plate;   the one or more protrusions have a protrusion depth, measured in a front to rear direction; and   the protrusion depth is two or fewer millimeters less than the cavity depth, leaving a gap between the face plate and the one or more protrusions.   
     
     
         3 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more protrusions comprise at least one protrusion shape selected from the group consisting of: a square shape, a rectangular shape, a circular shape, a triangular shape, and a polygonal shape. 
     
     
         4 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more protrusions comprise a number of protrusions selected from the group consisting of: one protrusion, two protrusions, three protrusions, four protrusions, five protrusions, six protrusions, seven protrusions, eight protrusions, nine protrusions, between ten and fifteen protrusions, between fifteen and twenty protrusions, and between twenty and thirty protrusions. 
     
     
         5 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more protrusions comprises a plurality of protrusions, which are arranged in rows. 
     
     
         6 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more protrusions comprises a plurality of protrusions, which are arranged in columns. 
     
     
         7 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein one or more protrusions comprises a plurality of protrusions, which have varying sizes. 
     
     
         8 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more protrusions are configured to limit the amount that the face plate deflects during impact with a golf ball. 
     
     
         9 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , further comprising a barrier positioned between the faceplate and the filler; wherein the barrier is configured to contain the filler within the cavity; wherein a thickness of the barrier is between 0.1 mm and 0.2 mm. 
     
     
         10 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the thickness of the face plate varies in a range between 0.3 mm to 4.0 mm. 
     
     
         11 . The golf club head of  claim 10 , wherein the thickness of the face plate varies in a range between 1.0 mm to 2.0 mm. 
     
     
         12 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein the thickness of the face plate varies in a range between 0.3 mm to 0.6 mm. 
     
     
         13 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein:
 a thickness of the face plate varies and the second surface defines one or more horizontal thicker regions of the face plate; and   each of the one or more horizontal thicker regions of the face plate are positioned behind a corresponding horizontal score line of the plurality of score lines.   
     
     
         14 . The golf club head of  claim 13 , wherein:
 one or more horizontal thicker regions comprise a plurality of horizontal thicker region;   a plurality of thinner regions are disposed between the plurality of horizontal thicker regions; and   wherein the at least one of the thinner regions has a thickness between 0.4 mm and 0.5 mm.   
     
     
         15 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the second surface of the face plate defines an undulating or sinusoidal wave pattern. 
     
     
         16 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein:
 the filler includes a cooperatively dimensioned surface configured to mate with the second surface of the face plate; and   the filler is positioned between the one or more protrusions and the face plate.   
     
     
         17 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of score lines have a square or rectangular cross-sectional shape. 
     
     
         18 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the cavity is one continuous cavity and the filler is one continuous filler. 
     
     
         19 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the face plate is configured to be engaged with the iron-type club head body. 
     
     
         20 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the filler is positioned behind only a portion of the face plate instead of behind the entirety of the face plate.