Golf club having an adjustable weight assembly

Abstract

A golf club head includes a body including: a striking face and a sole; a recessed channel formed in the sole and having a first sidewall, wherein one or more dimples are formed in the first sidewall; a weight assembly including: a weight at least partially disposed within the recessed channel, a cover adapted to releasably secure the weight within the recessed channel, and a fastener coupling the cover to the body, wherein the cover is positionable in at least: an unlocked configuration whereby the cover is raised at least partially out of the recessed channel; and a locked configuration whereby the cover is at least partially disposed within the recessed channel and a gap between the sole and a portion of an exterior surface of the cover proximal to the first sidewall is within a range of 1.0 mm to 1.5 mm.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A golf club head, comprising:
 a body comprising:
 a striking face having a lower leading edge, and 
 a sole extending from the lower leading edge; 
   a recessed channel formed in the sole and having a first sidewall extending along a toe-heel direction, wherein one or more dimples are formed in the first sidewall;   a weight assembly comprising:
 a weight at least partially disposed within the recessed channel and configured to move therein, 
 a cover adapted to releasably secure the weight within the recessed channel, and 
 a fastener coupling the cover to the body, 
   wherein the cover is positionable in at least:
 an unlocked configuration whereby the cover is raised at least partially out of the recessed channel and the weight is selectively movable within the recessed channel; and 
 a locked configuration whereby the cover is at least partially disposed within the recessed channel, the weight is secured within the recessed channel, and a gap between the sole and a portion of an exterior surface of the cover proximal to the first sidewall is within a range of 1.0 mm to 1.5 mm. 
   
     
     
         2 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the golf club head is a wood golf club head or a hybrid golf club head, and the golf club head comprises a crown coupled between the striking face and the sole. 
     
     
         3 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein between about 0% and about 30% of an outer surface of the weight is visible in the locked configuration. 
     
     
         4 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the fastener is configured to retain the weight within the recessed channel only indirectly by the cover. 
     
     
         5 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the gap is a distance by which the portion of the exterior surface of the cover is recessed from the sole within the recessed channel. 
     
     
         6 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the gap is between 1.1 mm and 1.3 mm. 
     
     
         7 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein a cover thickness between the exterior surface and an interior surface of the cover opposite to the exterior surface decreases along a thinning direction that is perpendicular to a striking face plane tangential to an outermost surface of the striking face. 
     
     
         8 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the cover is shaped and sized such that, when in the locked configuration, a depth of the exterior surface within the recessed channel increases along a set direction perpendicular to a striking face plane tangential to an outermost surface of the striking face. 
     
     
         9 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the portion of the exterior surface proximal to the first sidewall is an edge of the exterior surface proximal to the first sidewall. 
     
     
         10 . The golf club head of  claim 1 , wherein the recessed channel has a second sidewall opposite to the first sidewall and extending along the toe-heel direction, and
 wherein the first and second sidewalls are respectively proximal and distal to the lower leading edge.   
     
     
         11 . A golf club head, comprising:
 a body comprising:
 a striking face having a lower leading edge, and 
 a sole extending from the lower leading edge, 
   a recessed channel formed in the sole and having a first sidewall extending along a toe-heel direction; and   a weight assembly comprising:
 a weight at least partially disposed within the recessed channel, and 
 a cover adapted to releasably secure the weight within the recessed channel, 
   wherein a cover thickness between an exterior surface of the cover and an interior surface of the cover opposite to the exterior surface decreases along a thinning direction such that, when the cover is at least partially disposed in the recessed channel, a gap between the sole and a portion of the exterior surface proximal to the first sidewall is greater than or equal to 0.9 mm.   
     
     
         12 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein the weight assembly comprises a fastener coupling the cover to the body and being adapted to retain the weight within the recessed channel only indirectly by the cover. 
     
     
         13 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein the cover thickness of the cover is tapered so that the cover thickness gradually decreases along the thinning direction. 
     
     
         14 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein the body comprises a crown extending rearward from the striking face, a heel, a hosel disposed at the heel, and a toe, and
 wherein a thickness of the cover at a heel-side edge of the cover proximal to the heel decreases along the thinning direction.   
     
     
         15 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein a plurality of dimples are provided in the first sidewall, and the weight is configured to move in the recessed channel and to selectively engage with the plurality of dimples. 
     
     
         16 . The golf club head of  claim 11 , wherein the recessed channel has a second sidewall opposite to the first sidewall and extending along the toe-heel direction,
 wherein the first and second sidewalls are respectively proximal and distal to the lower leading edge, and   wherein the thinning direction extends from the second sidewall towards the first sidewall.   
     
     
         17 . A golf club head, comprising:
 a body comprising:
 a striking face having a lower leading edge, and 
 a sole extending from the lower leading edge; 
   a recessed channel formed in the sole and having a first sidewall and a second sidewall opposite to the first sidewall, wherein the first sidewall is closer to the striking face than the second sidewall; and   a weight assembly comprising:
 a weight at least partially disposed within the recessed channel, and 
 a cover at least partially covering the recessed channel, 
   wherein the golf club head and weight assembly are configured such that, when the cover is disposed at least partially in the recessed channel, a first gap between the sole and a first portion of an exterior surface of the cover is greater than a second gap between the sole and a second portion of the exterior surface of the cover that is farther from the first sidewall than the first portion of the exterior surface of the cover.   
     
     
         18 . The golf club head of  claim 17 , wherein a cover thickness between the exterior surface and an interior surface of the cover opposite to the exterior surface decreases along a thinning direction extending from the second sidewall toward the first sidewall such that, when the cover is disposed at least partially in the recessed channel, the first gap is greater than or equal to 0.9 mm. 
     
     
         19 . The golf club head of  claim 17 , wherein the recessed channel has a bottom track between the first and second sidewalls and offset from the sole, and a depth of the bottom track increases along a direction extending from the second sidewall toward the first sidewall such that, when the cover is disposed at least partially in the recessed channel, the first gap is greater than or equal to 0.9 mm. 
     
     
         20 . The golf club head of  claim 17 , wherein the first sidewall has one or more dimples, and the weight is configured to selectively engage with the one or more dimples.