US 6,409,612 · Granted 2002-06-25
The Removable Tungsten Weight That Lets Golfers Tune Their Clubs
Callaway Golf invented a clever plastic cartridge loaded with tungsten spheres that you can snap into a golf club head. Pull out some spheres, add more, or swap them entirely—and suddenly your club swings differently, with a higher or lower sweet spot. It's like tuning a guitar, but for your golf game.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a removable weighting device made of polymer material that holds multiple high-density spheres (typically tungsten) in specially designed ports. What's protected here is the removable design itself—the idea that golfers can adjust the number and position of these dense weights inside the club head to change how the club behaves, without needing to buy a whole new club. The specific combination of a polymer body, multiple ports, and swappable spheres is what the patent locks down.
Why it matters
This patent gave Callaway a way to sell 'adjustable' golf clubs at a time when most competitors offered fixed designs. By letting golfers tinker with weight distribution, Callaway could market clubs that supposedly fit more swing styles, and potentially keep customers buying new weight kits rather than new clubs. The removable design also creates a revenue stream from accessories—the spheres themselves—which is lucrative for a golf equipment manufacturer.
Real-world use
When you buy a modern adjustable golf driver or fairway wood, you might be using weighted cartridges like this—unscrewing a port, swapping tungsten spheres in or out, and instantly changing whether the club's "kick point" favors distance or accuracy.
Original USPTO abstract
A weighting device for a golf club head is disclosed herein. The weighting device has a polymer body with a plurality of ports for holding a plurality of high density members. The high density members are preferably tungsten spheres. The weight of the weighting device may be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the number of high density members. The weighting device is preferably removable from a golf club head to allow for adjustment in the golf club head's center of gravity, moment of inertia and swingweight.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 6,409,612
- Filing date
- 2000-05-23
- Grant date
- 2002-06-25
- Assignee
- Callaway Golf Company
- Inventor(s)
- EVANS D. CLAYTON, BISTLINE DONALD A., DENNIS VICTOR S.
- CPC class
- A63B53/04
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