US 5,908,358 · Granted 1999-06-01
The Patent That Made Golf Balls Tougher and Spin-Friendlier
A golf ball's outer cover needs to be durable enough to survive hundreds of whacks and still grip the club face. This patent describes a special chemical recipe that mixes urethane with epoxy and hardeners to create a cover that's tougher, more flexible, and gives golfers better control over spin and distance.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers the specific combination of materials used to manufacture a golf ball cover: an isocyanate-functional prepolymer mixed with epoxy compounds and cured using either a polyamine or glycol hardener. What's protected here is this exact chemical formulation and the process of combining these ingredients to create the cover layer. Anyone making a golf ball cover using this same recipe without permission would infringe on the patent.
Why it matters
Golf ball covers directly affect how the ball performs—its durability, spin rate, and feel off the club. By patenting this specific chemical composition, Acushnet (the maker of Titleist golf balls) protected a core manufacturing innovation that influences whether a ball flies straight, grips on approach shots, or lasts through a full season of play. This kind of material science patent is fundamental to competing in premium golf equipment.
Real-world use
Every time a golfer pulls a Titleist or other premium ball from their bag and strikes it, they're relying on a cover made from a chemistry formula much like this one—engineered to handle impact, spin, and all-weather play.
Original USPTO abstract
A golf ball cover is produced from a composition comprising an isocyanate-functional prepolymer and a curing agent of a polyamine or glycol, and an organic compound having at least one epoxy group such as the diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 5,908,358
- Filing date
- 1997-11-03
- Grant date
- 1999-06-01
- Assignee
- Acushnet Company
- Inventor(s)
- WU; SHENSHEN
- CPC class
- C08G18/003
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