June 7, 1966 F. N. WATSON 3,254,890
GOLF TEE AND IDENTIFICATION DEVICE COMBINATION Filed March 6, 1965 IN VEN TOR.
F. Nam/v WATSON United States Patent Office 3,254,890 Patented June 7, 1966 3,254,890 GOLF TEE AND IDENTIFICATION DEVICE COMBINATION Francis Nolan Watson, 3 Wilson Ave., Bath, N.Y. Filed Mar. 6, 1963, Ser. No. 263,287 1 Claim. (Cl. 273-33) The present invention relates toa golf tee for supporting a golf ball above a ground surface.
An object of the present invention is to provide a golf tee having identification means attached thereto so that the tee may be repeatedly used and identified from other tees of a similar nature.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a golf tee which may be repeatedly used over and over, one which obviates the use of breakable wooden or plastic golf tees which litter the golf course in the driving area, one which may be manufactured of various metals, one which is economically feasible, and one which is highly effective in action.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood from the following description when taken in connection with the annexed drawing, in which:
FIGURE 1 is an elevational view of the golf tee of the present invention in a position of use, the lower end prtion of the golf tee being driven into the ground surface,
FIGURE 2 is an elevational view partially in section of the golf tee,
FIGURE 3 is a view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG- URE 2, and
FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the golf teeof the present invention.
Referring to the drawing in detail in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the golf tee of the present invention is designated generally by the reference numeral and it comprises aconical body 12 having a transversely disposed hole 14 extending through the portion of the tee adjacent the larger end thereof.
The present invention provides adisc 16 having identifying indicia thereon, as at 18, on one face thereof. Thedisc 16 is provided with diametrically opposed holes 20 and 22 extending therethrough. Afirst ring 24 has a portion extending through the hole 20 and asecond ring 26 has a portion extending through the hole 22.
The present invention provides an endless chain 28 having a portion extending through thering 24 and a second portion extending through the hole 14 provided in thebody 12.
In use, thering 26 is of a size to extend about a portion of thebody 12 intermediate the ends thereof, as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, and thering 26 is adapted to engage a ground surface, as at 30 in FIGURE 1, when the apex portion of thebody 12 is pushed into the ground surface for supporting upon the larger end of thebody 12 thegolf ball 32.
Thering 26 acts as a gauge for the depth to which the golf tee of the present invention may be inserted into the ground, thereby insuring that thegolf ball 32 will be at the height with respect to the ground surface for every drive by the player.
It is intended that thebody 12 be fabricated of metal, any metal lending itself for this purpose although a bright and shiny metal would be most appropriate so that if the golf tee should be struck and moved from the players position it would be readily found in the grass adjoining the position.
Thedisc 16 is intended to be fabricated of such metal as will not tarnish readily so that the identifying indicia 18 thereon is readily read when desired,-
The upper end of thebody 12 is concave, as at 34 in FIGURE 2, to more readily receive thereon theball 32.
It will be seen therefore that the golf tee of the present invention is new and novel, has means for supporting the tee above the ground surface at a predetermined level, may be constructed of such material as to be readily discernible when cast or driven into the grass, and is readily identifiable by the provision of the identification disc attached thereto.
While only a preferred form of the invention is shown and described, other forms of the invention are contemplated and numerous changes and modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit thereof as set forth in the appended claim.
What is claimed is:
A golf tee and identifying device combination comprising a conical body having a concave base for receiving a golf ball and a pointed apex for insertion into the ground, said body having a transverse bore adjacent the concave end thereof, a flexible continuous chain received in said bore, a ring having a centrally disposed aperture therein for receiving a portion of said conical body at a predetermined length from the ends of the conical body, a disc having an aperture receiving said ring and said chain being slidably attached to said disc, said disc and said ring together forming a depth gauge on insertion of the pointed apex of the conical body thru said ring and into the ground, said disc having means thereon for receiving indicia for indicating ownership of the golf tee and also being constructed of a material readily observable when placed in the grass such as found on a golf course.
References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,616,059 2/ 1927 Mulvehill 273-202 1,736,583 11/1929 Deike 402 2,346,946 4/ 1944 Schacht 40-300 3,094,799 6/ 1963 Hines 402 FOREIGN PATENTS 278,262 10/ 1927 Great Britain.
DELBERT B. LOWE, Primary Examiner.
RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Examinen.
G. L. PRICE, Assistant Examiner.