Appeal No. 2005-0806 Page 14
Application No. 10/179,812
they have a deficiency as a golf ball cover material in that they tend to be hard. This
invention is concerned with a mixture of a hard ionomer with a soft ionomer in
order to produce a golf ball cover composition wherein the cover is softer than the prior
art ionomer covers. Sullivan states that a golf ball covered in accordance with his
invention is durable and a skilled golfer can impart back spin to the ball in play.
Sullivan teaches that (1) for over a decade the trade attempted to solve the
problem associated with Surlyn® covered golf balls by the blending of hard Surlyn® with
a soft Surlyn®; (2) until his invention, the blending of a hard Surlyn® and a soft Surlyn®
was totally unsatisfactory in the production of a commercially viable golf ball; and (3) in
accordance with his invention, it has been found that when a hard Surlyn® or a mixture
of hard Surlyn® resins are blended with a soft Surlyn® which is a terpolymer of
methacrylic acid and iso- or n-butylacrylate partially neutralized with a metal salt, a
superior golf ball cover formulation is produced. Sullivan provides that the resulting
cover composition of his invention is intermediate in softness between a balata covered
golf ball and a hard Surlyn® covered golf ball, to such a degree that an adequate back
spin can be imparted to the ball by a skilled golfer. Further, the resulting golf ball
exhibits a degree of cut resistance which is adequate for play and which exhibits
outstanding distance properties which is exhibited by its coefficient of restitution and/or
initial velocity.
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