Golf club head with sole compliance zone
A golf club head with a sole having a low stiffness compliance zone, which allows the face to deflect downward upon impact with a golf ball, is disclosed herein. The compliance zone comprises a plurality of through openings that are filled with one or more filler pieces comprising a low modulus material, all of which are located within three inches of a face section measured along a front-to-back axis of the golf club head.
1. A golf club head comprising:
a body comprising a face portion with a face opening, a return section, a sole section, a heel side, a toe side, an aft end, and a hosel;
a crown insert;
a face cup sized to fit within the face opening; and
at least one plug,
wherein the sole section comprises a compliance zone located within three inches of the face portion measured along a front-to-back x-axis,
wherein the compliance zone comprises a plurality of through-openings, and
wherein each of the plurality of through-openings is filled with the at least one plug.
2. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of through-openings is circular.
3. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of through-openings comprises twenty through-openings.
4. The golf club head of claim 3 , wherein the at least one plug comprises twenty plugs, and wherein each of the twenty through-openings is filled with one of the twenty plugs.
5. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the golf club head is a fairway wood-type golf club head.
6. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the at least one plug is a secondary filler piece comprising a base portion and a plurality of extensions, wherein each of the plurality of extensions extends from the base portion, and wherein each of the plurality of extensions fills one of the plurality of through-openings.
7. The golf club head of claim 6 , wherein the secondary filler piece comprises an inner portion and a cover piece, wherein the inner piece is composed of a high-density material, and wherein the cover piece is composed of a material having a lower density than the high density material.
8. The golf club head of claim 7 , wherein the inner portion is metal injection molded.
9. The golf club head of claim 7 , wherein the cover piece is overmolded over the inner portion.
10. The golf club head of claim 7 , wherein the cover piece comprises each of the plurality of extensions.
11. The golf club head of claim 6 , further comprising a plurality of pegs extending from an interior surface of the sole portion within the compliance zone, wherein each peg of the plurality of pegs is disposed behind a through-opening of the plurality of through-openings, wherein the base portion of the secondary filler piece comprises a plurality of sockets, and wherein each peg of the plurality of pegs is sized to fit within a socket of the plurality of sockets.
12. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of through-openings is disposed proximate to and is aligned parallel with the face opening.
13. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of through-holes vary in shape, size, and length across the compliance zone.
14. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the compliance zone comprises a variable thickness ranging from 0.01 inch to 0.05 inch.
15. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein each of the face cup and the body is composed of a metal material, and wherein the crown insert is composed of a non-metal material.
16. The golf club head of claim 1 , wherein the face cup is composed of a first metal material, wherein the body is composed of a second metal material, and wherein the first metal material is different from the second metal material.
17. A fairway wood golf club head comprising:
a body comprising a face portion with a face opening, a crown section, a sole section, a heel side, a toe side, an aft end, and a hosel;
a face component sized to fit within the face opening; and
a filler piece comprising a base portion, a plurality of extensions, an inner portion composed of a first material, and a cover piece composed of a second material that has a lower density than the first material,
wherein the sole section comprises a compliance zone located within three inches of the face portion measured along a front-to-back x-axis,
wherein the compliance zone has a variable thickness ranging from 0.01 inch to 0.05 inch and comprises a plurality of through-openings,
wherein each of the plurality of through-openings is filled with an extension of the plurality of extensions, and
wherein the face component is selected from the group consisting of a face insert and a face cup.
18. The fairway wood golf club head of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of through-openings is disposed proximate to and is aligned parallel with the face opening.
19. The fairway wood golf club head of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of through-holes vary in shape, size, and length across the compliance zone.
20. The fairway wood golf club head of claim 17 , wherein the cover piece comprises each of the plurality of extensions.