1. Field of the Invention -

This invention relates to an extensible handled tool for the convenient recovery of a golf ball from a water hazard on a golf course.

2. Description of the Previous Art -

Known in the prior art are various handled devices for the retrieval of a golf ball from a water hazard on a gold course.

The inventor hereof has a prior issued patent no. 4,974,994 over which the present structure herein represents some significant changes.

Indicative of the other prior art is U.S. Patent No. 3,318,628 which discloses a small collapsible cage which can be withdrawn into its handle and which is inserted into a golf hole to withdraw the ball.

In U.S. Patent No. 4,466,650, there is disclosed a handle having a mounting at its other end to position a tee member into the ground.

In U.S. Patent No. 4,466,650, there is disclosed a handle having a mounting at its other end to position a tee member into the ground.

In U.S. Patent No. 4,254,981, there is disclosed a ball retriever which consists of a plurality of uniform tines which may be variably spread apart and which have elongated curved ends to rake a ball out of a water hazard.

It is desirable to have an extensible tool to readily retrieve a golf ball from a water hazard and which will securely hold one or more balls thus retrieved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to provide a cage-like device which enables the operator to readily retrieve a golf ball from some distance out into a

water hazard on a golf course.

It is a further object herein to provide a device which securely entraps a ball once it is picked up with said device. More particularly, it is an object of this invention to provide a device for the retrieval of a golf ball from a water hazard, the device having an expandable open sided cage and an extensible or telescopic handle, the cage • comprising a plurality of prongs having inwardly angled ends with the prongs forming more than one pocket within a chamber therein and which securely entraps one or two retrieved balls until their removal by the operator.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS -

Fig. 1 is a top plan view with a portion broken away;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to that of Fig. 1 in side elevation; Fig. 3 is a broken view in vertical section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1 as indicated;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to that of Fig. 1 in top plan in expanded operating position showing a pair of golf balls entrapped therein; Fig. 5 is a side elevational view in operating position similar to that of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a broken view in horizontal section taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 5 aε indicated.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT -

The invention herein is a device intended to be used to recover golf balls from water holes or water

hazards on a golf course. The device is indicated generally by the reference numeral 10.

Referring to Fig. 1, said device 10 consists of a cage or cage-like member 11 mounted, as will be described, at one end of an extensible or telescopic handle 12 which may be extended as required such as up to a length of twenty or twenty-five feet.

The handle is of a conventional tubular structure such as formed of an aluminium or other suitable lightweight metal extensible tubes and requires no description as to makeup or function. However, at the hand holding end of said handle, there is mounted a hand grip 15 formed of a suitable plastic or rubber material much like the hand grip on the handlebars of a bicycle.

At the forward end of said handle, there is a terminal segment 16 and with preceding like segment portions such as 14 is fully drawn into the handle 12 in a retracted position. Attached to said segment 16 is an elongated frame-like housing or casing 17 substantially a tapered rectangle in form having spaced upper and lower walls 18 and 19 which taper in the direction of said handle and are joined at their front and rear ends by a front wall 22 and a rear wall 20, the rear wall having an aperture 21 therein into which the adjacent end 16b of said segment 16 is disposed and suitably secured as by a pin 16c. Said end wall 20 will have a sufficient thickness to secure said segment 16.

The forward or front end wall 22 of said housing is seen to be substantially wider than said rear wall 20 and is apertured in a horizontal line thereacross by holes or passages 22a of which those at each side of the centre one are angled outwardly in a diverging fan-like arrangement as shown.

Disposed within said housing 17 for longitudinal

sliding movement therein is a hand manipulated operating block 28 substantially rectangular in plan extending outwardly at each side of said housing a slightly wider front end portion 28a than a rear end portion 28b. Indentations or finger grips 28e are formed at each side thereof for easy hand manipulation or hand movement of said block.

Formed into the forward upper surface portion of said block are a number of diverging fan-like grooves 28c with each terminating at its inner end in a vertical bore 28d. In the present embodiment, for purpose of example, five grooves are shown.

Mounted onto or secured to said block 28 is an open ended cage-like ball retrieving member 11. Said member 11 comprises a number of transversely disposed radially diverging prongs 31-35 as here shown. Said prongs having spacing therebetween less than that of the diameter of a golf ball. The inner end portions of said prongs as at 33d are bent at right angles whereby the straight rearward portions of said prongs as at 33c are seated within said grooves 28c and their right angled inner end portions as at 33d are disposed into corresponding ones of said vertical bores 28d as indicated. Now with particular reference to said operating block, the movement of the operator's hand will move it forwardly or rearwardly as may be desired with finger engagement upon the finger grip indentations 28e. Between said upper and lower walls 18 and 19 is an open sided slot 30 through which said operating block extends outwardly of said housing. Said housing will be of such a length and said operating block therein also of such a length as to- retract and withdraw said prongs for convenient carrying as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

It is important for said block to slide easily

within said slot 30 and yet have sufficient frictional engagement to adequately hold said prongs in extended or retracted position.

To provide for the good holding engagement desired and for the purpose of illustrating one desirable embodiment, the thickness of said block is indicated as being 9mm. The height of said slot is indicated as being 9^ mm at its maximum height as indicated at 30a and from said central maximum height portion of said slot, the bottom wall is sloped upwardly arcuately to have a maximum height of 8mm as at 30b and 30c.

To ease the passage of said block within said slot, the end corners at 28b and 28g are cut away to leave a sloping end edge on the order of 15° for easy sliding movement of said block through the 8mm heights of said slot. Thus at either end of said slot 30, said operating block is frictionally held by the area of reduced height in said slot. Now with particular reference to said prongs, said prongs are in non-uniform groups. The outward pair of said prongs, namely prongs 31 and 35 have a greater downward or lengthwise projection than the others as shown in Fig. 2 and each prong describes an intermediate curvature as indicated and represented at 35a and then flattens out into a straight segment as at 35b and is then angled upwardly as at 35c with a straight segment extending substantially to the beginning of said curvature to form a closed loop 35d and is there secured as by welding at 35e. The loops thus formed are of a size such that a golf ball will not pass through. These loops form the side walls of the cage.

The pair of prongs 32 and 34 inwardly of and respectively adjacent to said prongs 31 and 35 project downwardly somewhat less than said prongs 31 and 35 and have a substantially corresponding curvature as at

32a and 34a with respect to the corresponding curved portions of the prongs 31 and 35 and have their inner ends respectively forming upwardly angled or hook, portions 32b and 34b; however, their lower straight portions as at 34c, extend outwardly slightly more than corresponding portions of 31b and 35b.

The centre prong 33 has a somewhat less curvature and has its straight portion 33a angled inwardly more than the corresponding portions of the prongs 32 and 34 in Fig. 5 and its inner end portion is angled upwardly at 33b somewhat more acutely than said ends 32b and 34b.

It has been found that for very good performance, the hook portions of the prongs 32 and 34 should be on the order of one and one quarter inches in length and angled upwardly at approximately 42° and the centre prong has its angled end portion approximately one half inch in length and angled approximately 26°.

Thus as described, said cage is formed to have in effect one pocket PI formed by the prongs 31-33 and a second pocket P2 formed by the prongs 33-35. Balls such as B1 and B2, entrapped by this cage, will gravitate to and rest in one or the other of said pockets or, if so utilised, the cage will readily receive and entrap two balls, as shown in Fig. 4. The cage as thus formed may be said to have an open side 11b for the passage of a ball thereinto.

The hook portions of the prongs 32-34 very nicely hold a ball or balls in a trapped position. Upon retrieval, the operator merely turns the cage to have its open side face downwardly and pluck the balls out.

Next will be described the operation of the housing 17 and its internal operating block 28. As described, the cage member 11 has its respective prongs secured to said block and said prongs extend through the passages 22a in the front wall of said housing.

Said operating block 28 by means of the operator engaging the finger grips 28e, as has been indicated, is readily slidable within the slot 30. As the operating block is moved forwardly, said prongs diverge and spread out due to the divergence of the passages 22a and in order to readily accommodate two golf balls within said cage, the spread is on the order of four inches with the prongs at their widest point of divergence being • not more than one inch apart.

For carrying or storage purposes, the operating block is moved rearwardly and the cage is contracted.

In use, the cage will be expanded and the handle extended whatever distance is required, up to its limit, to reach the ball in a water hazard. The cage will be poised just beyond the ball and lowered to be drawn over the ball. The buoyancy of the ball in the water, or in other words, the force of the water in supporting the ball is sufficient to have the ball enter said cage and the ball is immediately entrapped therein.

The operator then draws the handle and the cage unto himself to readily remove the ball by hand. The ball or balls, as the case may be, are securely held within the cage during retrieval. It is understood that the cage as here described is fully adequate to retrieve two balls either simultaneously or successively.

The retrieving device herein described has proved to be very effective and very easy to use in retrieving balls. Other devices require particular care not to lose a ball in the retrieval operation but with the device herein. Once the ball is in the cage, it is securely entrapped and held. It will of course be understood that various changes may be made in form, details, arrangement and proportions of the product without departing from the

scope of the invention which, generally stated, consists in a product capable of carrying out the objects above set forth, in the parts and combination of parts disclosed and defined in the appended claims.