US 4,431,193 · Granted 1984-02-14
The Two-Layer Golf Ball That Changed How Balls Are Built
Instead of winding thread around a rubber core like old golf balls, this patent describes a solid rubber center wrapped in two molded plastic layers—a hard inner layer and a soft outer layer. The result is a ball that feels different off the club and performs better on the green.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a golf ball with a solid resilient core and a two-layer cover system: an inner layer of hard, high-flexural-modulus resin (0.020 to 0.070 inches thick) bonded directly to the core, plus an outer layer of softer, low-flexural-modulus resin (0.020 to 0.100 inches thick) molded on top. It also protects the manufacturing method for creating this multilayer construction, including the use of foamable polymeric materials to create cellular layers if desired.
Why it matters
This patent represents a shift in golf ball design away from the thread-wound construction that dominated for decades. By using two distinct resin layers with different hardness properties, manufacturers gained precise control over how the ball compresses and rebounds—tuning performance for different swing speeds and conditions. The patent's specificity around layer thickness and material types gave Questor and other manufacturers a blueprint for modern solid-core golf balls that remain standard today.
Real-world use
Every time a golfer hits a modern two-piece or multi-piece golf ball off the tee, the ball's response—its initial compression and then snap-back—is the direct result of this layered construction designed and protected in this patent.
Original USPTO abstract
The disclosure embraces a golf ball and method of making same wherein the golf ball has a solid (not thread-wound) resilient center or core, and a multilayer cover construction which involves a first layer or ply of molded hard, high flexural modulus resinous material on the core, and a second or cover layer of soft, low flexural modulus resinous material molded over the first layer to form a finished golf ball. The first layer is of a thickness in a range of 0.020 inches and 0.070 inches and may be of resinous material such as Type 1605 Surlyn marketed by E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, and the second or cover layer is of a thickness in a range of 0.020 inches and 0.100 inches and may be of resinous material such as Type 1855 Surlyn marketed by E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company. Foamable materials for producing a cellular first layer or cellular cover layer are polymeric materials such as ionomer resins.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 4,431,193
- Filing date
- 1981-08-25
- Grant date
- 1984-02-14
- Assignee
- Questor Corporation
- Inventor(s)
- NESBITT; R. DENNIS
- CPC class
- A63B37/0003
Want to file your own patent?
Curious how golf equipment gets engineered at this level of detail? Search our free patent scanner to see what other inventors have protected in sports equipment design.
Free patentability scan