BACKGROUND ART U. S. Patent No. 5,538,253 issued to Foster describes a simulation golf game that uses a hook and loop material. The game includes a sheet of material that has the same texture as a conventional golf green, as well as a ball and a golf club. A patch of hook and loop material (commonly referred to as Velcro0) is attached to an area of the sheet and an additional patch of hook and loop material is attached to the ball. The object of the game is for the player to hit the ball so that it will roll onto the patch of hook and loop material on the sheet. When the ball does make contact with the patch of hook and loop material, the ball will become attached to that patch, and play of that hole is completed. This design, however, fails to provide a target that is three dimensional to aid the player in locating the target and hitting the target.

Furthermore, this game is not designed to be used with in conjunction with an existing hole at a golf course.

What is needed, then, and not found in the prior art, is an improved golf game providing a three dimensional target and a ball, the golf game further having a means by which to affix the ball to the three dimensional target when the ball comes into contact with the three dimensional target.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The current invention is a game similar to the conventional game of golf. The game includes a three dimensional target, a hitting mat, a ball, and one or more clubs. The three dimensional target is preferably cylindrical, but can also be other conventional three dimensional shapes (such as a cone) as desired by the player.

A sheet of hook and loop material, commonly referred to as Velcros, is attached to the three dimensional target.

To play the game, the player hits the ball with the club in the direction of the three dimensional target. The object of the game is for the player to hit the ball so that it makes contact with the three dimensional target. The score is kept in the same manner as a conventional golf game, with the player counting each time that the ball is struck until the ball makes contact with the three dimensional target. The player who has the fewest strokes is the winner of the competition.

The objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art after reviewing the following detail description and accompanying drawings wherein: Figure 1 is an expanded view of a three dimensional target of the golf game of the present invention.

Figure 2a is a top view of the three dimensional target of the present invention.

Figure 2b is a top view of the three dimensional target of the present invention, with the three dimensional target including a cushion.

Figure 3 is an expanded view of a second embodiment of the three dimensional target, whereby the three dimensional target includes a rod having a spiked end.

Figure 4 is an expanded view of a third embodiment of the three dimensional target, whereby the three dimensional target includes a rod having a cup-shaped end.

Figure 5a is a side view of the ball of the golf game of the present invention.

Figure 5b is a section I-I view of the ball shown in Figure 5a.

Figure 6 is a plan view of one golf club of the golf game of the present invention.

Figure 7a is a plan view of a second golf club of the golf game of the present invention.

Figure 7b is a top view of the second golf club of the golf game of the present invention.

Figure 8a is a top view of the mat used in the golf game of the present invention.

Figure 8b is a side view of the mat used in the golf game of the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Referring to Figure 1, a game apparatus 10 includes a three dimensional target 12, one or more clubs 28, a mat 50 and a ball 30.

To play the game with the above named elements, a player (not shown) places the ball 30 on the mat 50 and strikes the ball 30 with the club 28 in the direction of the three dimensional target 12. The player continues to hit the ball 30 with the club 28 until the ball 30 comes in contact with the three dimensional target 12. The player keeps score in a manner similar to the conventional game of golf, wherein each strike at the ball 30 counts as one stroke. Once the player causes the ball 30 to come in contact with the three dimensional target 12, the player has his score for that hole. In a competition with a number of players, the player with the lowest

number of strokes for the designated number of holes (typically nine or eighteen) is the winner.

In the preferred embodiment, the three dimensional target 12 is a cylinder (as shown in Figures 1,2,3 and 4). Looking at Figure 2a, the three dimensional target 12 typically has a base 14 and a target attachment material 18 surrounding the base 14 to form a receiving surface. The base 14 is preferably made of foam, but could also be made of other materials such as plastic. The target attachment material 18 is preferably one element of a hook and loop material, which is commonly sold under the trademark Veleroo.

More specifically, the target attachment material 18 typically includes the hooks that interact with the loops of the hook and loop material.

Additionally, looking at Figure 2b, the three dimensional target 12 could include a cushion 16 fitted between the base 14 and the target attachment material 18. The cushion 16 is a pad typically made of a soft material, such as foam, so that the ball 30 will not bounce off of the three dimensional target 12 when the ball 30 makes contact with the three dimensional target 12. The cushion 16 is typically used when the base 14 is made of plastic or some other material having a hard surface.

Looking at Figure 5a, the ball 30 of the game apparatus 10 is typically slightly smaller than a conventional tennis ball (approximately 2.5 inches in diameter), although the size can be varied according to the choice of the player. Looking at Figure 5b, the ball 30 is a rubber sphere 31 having a ball attachment material 32 affixed to the outside surface of the sphere 31. The sphere 31 encompasses a hollow area 33 which allows the ball to be compressed when forces are applied to the outside surface of the

ball 30. Additionally, the approximate weight of the ball 30 is two ounces.

The ball attachment material 32 creates an engaging surface, and is the other element of the hook and loop material not used as the target attachment material 18. The ball attachment material 32 is chosen such that it will interact with the target attachment material 18. For example, if the target attachment material 18 includes the hooks, then the ball attachment material 32 will include the loops that interact with the hooks to secure the ball 30 to the three dimensional target 12. Therefore, when the ball 30 comes in contact with the three dimensional target 12, the ball 30 will stay affixed to the surface contacted.

The preferred embodiment of the game apparatus 10 further includes at least one club 40 to hit the ball 30, such as a conventional golf club (see Figure 6). Each club 40 has a shaft 42 (typically made of fiberglass) connected to a head 44 and a rubber grip 46 surrounding a portion of the shaft 42. The player thereby holds the club 40 by the rubber grip 46 attached to the shaft 42 to hit the ball 30 with the head 44. The head 44 is typically made of a hard and smooth material such that it can contact the ball 30 and ball attachment material 32 without forming a bond with the ball attachment material 32 surrounding the ball 30.

In the preferred embodiment, the game apparatus 10 includes two clubs: one club 40 having an angled head 44, such as a driver from a conventional set of golf clubs (see Figure 6) and the other club 41 having a vertical head 48, such as a conventional putter golf club (see Figures 7a and 7b). The club 40 with the angled head 44 is therefore used to engage the ball 30 to lift and propel the ball 30 into the air so that it will travel a long distance towards the three dimensional target 12. The club 41 with the

vertical head 44 is used to engage the ball 30 to roll the ball 30 a short distance towards the three dimensional target 12.

Looking at Figures 8a and 8b, the mat 50 of the preferred embodiment is includes a non-skid surface 52 and a turf layer 54.

The non-skid surface 52 is typically made of rubber, and the turf layer 54 is made of an artificial turf material. The turf layer 54 is attached to the top of the non-skid surface 52 so that the player can stand on the mat 50 to hit the ball 30. Additionally, a tee hole 56 is located in the turf layer 54 through which a tee 58 is positioned.

The tee 58 (which is typically made of rubber) is designed so that the ball 30 can be placed on it. The ball 30 can then be hit from the tee 58 or directly from the turf layer 54 of the mat 50.

Furthermore, a handle 60 is an integrated part of mat 50. The handle 60 aids the player in transporting the mat 50 as needed.

Looking further at Figures 1,2a, and 2b, the three dimensional target 12 includes a hollow core 20 that extends through the three dimensional target 12. There are various ways in which to securely position the three dimensional target 12 on the ground surface 26. One means for securing the three dimensional target 12 to the ground surface 26 is through using a rod 21 (shown in Figures 1,3, and 4). This embodiment of the game apparatus 10 is designed so that the three dimensional target 12 can be placed around the rod 21 through the core 20. The rod 21 therefore provides two functions for the golf game apparatus 10. First, the rod 21 stabilizes the three dimensional target 12 at the location desired by the player. Second, the rod 21 also serves as a visual guide for the player to help the player determine the position of the three dimensional target 12 and how far it is away from the player.

Looking further at Figure 3, one embodiment of the rod 21 is shown to have a spiked end 22 and a blunt end 23. In this

embodiment, the spiked end 22 of the rod 21 is designed so that it can be inserted into a ground surface 26 so as to secure the three dimensional target 12 to the ground 26. This design allows the player to be able to choose where the three dimensional target 12 will be located according to hardness of the surface 26 and according to the desires of the players.

Looking at Figure 4, a second embodiment of the rod 21 is shown to have a cup-shaped end 24 and a blunt end 23. In this embodiment, the cup-shaped end 24 of the rod 21 is designed to completely fit into a hole (not shown) used in a conventional golf course. The diameter of the cup-shaped end 24 is such that it fits snugly into the hole so that the rod 21 will make a secure connection with the hole. In this embodiment, the player is able to arrange the three dimensional target 12 in the position according to where an established hole is located on an existing golf course.

Consequently, the player aims for the three dimensional target 12 positioned in the location of the existing hole, and is able to play a hole on an existing golf course with the knowledge of the preexisting dimensions of the golf course.

A third method to secure the three dimensional target 12 to the ground surface 26 is by adjusting the size and weight of the three dimensional target 12. The size of the three dimensional target 12 determines the stability of the three dimensional target 12 on the surface 26 upon which it is placed. Looking at the cylindrical three dimensional target 12 of Figure 1, the diameter of the base 14 is sufficient such that the three dimensional target 12 is stable on a flat surface, and does not require a rod 21 for stability.

However, if the diameter of the base 14 is smaller, the three dimensional target 12 would require the rod 21 in the core 20 to prevent the base 14 from being toppled when the ball 30 makes

contact with the three dimensional target 12. Furthermore, the base 14 itself can be hollow such that the base 14 can be filled with a weighting material (not shown), such as water or sand, to provide weight to obtain additional stability for the three dimensional target 12 without using a rod 21.

The size of the three dimensional target 12 can be varied not only to increase stability of the three dimensional target 12, but to also change the difficulty of the game. For example, the smaller the three dimensional target 12, the more difficult it is for the player to contact the three dimensional target 12 with the ball 30.

Conversely, the greater the diameter of the three dimensional target 12, the easier it is for the player to make contact with the three dimensional target 12.

Moreover, the three dimensional target 12 of the current invention is not required to be cylindrical in shape in order to play the game. Examples of alternative shapes of the three dimensional object 12 include a sphere, a cube, or a cone. The alternative shapes must be designed such that the three dimensional target 12 continues to have a base 14, a cushion 16, and a target attachment material 18, as directed above. Further, the three dimensional target 12 will continue to maintain a hollow core 20 through which a rod 21 is insertable for securing the three dimensional target 12.

The present invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment thereof, and it will be understood that many modifications and variations will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention and that the invention is not to be taken as limited to all of the details herein. Therefore, it is manifestly intended that this invention be limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.