US 5,779,562 · Granted 1998-07-14
The Multi-Layer Golf Ball That Changed Ball Design Forever
This patent describes a golf ball built like a jawbreaker—a soft center core wrapped in a harder outer core, then covered with two more layers of different hardnesses. The trick is making each layer compress and spring back in a specific way to make the ball fly farther and spin better.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a solid golf ball with a two-part core (a center layer and an outer layer with different densities) wrapped in a two-part cover (an inner layer and a softer outer layer with Shore D hardness of 55 or less). What's protected here is the specific combination of these four layers and the way their hardnesses differ from each other to create a particular flight and spin performance.
Why it matters
Before this patent, most golf balls were simpler—often just a solid core with a single cover. By layering materials with different densities and hardnesses, manufacturers could fine-tune how the ball compresses on impact and releases energy. This patent represents a shift toward precision engineering in golf ball design, allowing companies to optimize distance, spin, and feel independently rather than as a trade-off. The multi-core concept became a standard approach in premium golf ball manufacturing.
Real-world use
When you hit a golf ball off the tee and watch it soar and hold its line, the multi-layer construction inside that ball is managing the energy and spin precisely—the soft outer cover grabs the club, the harder inner layers store and release energy, and the dual-core spreads that energy efficiently.
Original USPTO abstract
A solid golf ball comprising a solid core and a cover enclosing the core. The core includes a center core layer and an outer core layer enclosing the center core layer, the center core layer having a specific gravity that differs from the specific gravity of the outer core layer by more than 0.1. The cover includes an inner cover layer formed over the core and an outer cover layer enclosing the inner cover layer, the outer cover layer having a Shore D hardness less than that of the inner core layer and no more than 55.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 5,779,562
- Filing date
- 1997-04-29
- Grant date
- 1998-07-14
- Assignee
- Melvin; Terrence / Sullivan; Michael J. / Nesbitt; R. Dennis
- Inventor(s)
- MELVIN; TERRENCE, SULLIVAN; MICHAEL J., NESBITT; R. DENNIS
- CPC class
- A63B37/0066
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