Golf ball holder

Claim 1

A golf ball holder adapted to be mounted to a golf club carrying device, such as a golf bag or a golf cart or the like where it is subjected to possible jostling and impacts, said holder particularly adapted to reliably hold a plurality of golf balls therein, in a manner that such golf balls can be readily inserted into and removed from the holder during actual golf play, said holder comprising: a. an elongate, substantially rigid, tubular housing having upper and lower ends and having a generally unitary, cylindrical, circumferentially closed side wall, defining an elongate chamber having a diameter moderately larger than the golf balls to be retained, said chamber adapted to retain golf balls in a stacked arrangement at upper and lower locations therein, b. said housing having at its lower end a forwardly facing cut-out portion, having an edge section defining a loading and dispensing opening moderately larger than the diameter of the golf balls to be inserted into and dispensed from the holder, said edge section being characterized in that it is substantially continuous and has an upper curved edge portion only moderately larger than the golf balls to be retained therein, so as to provide greater reliability in retaining golf balls adjacent said upper edge portion, lateral edge portions having a lateral spacing greater than that across the upper curved edge portion to provide lateral access to a lowermost golf ball in said holder for removal from the holder, and a lower edge portion located at a predetermined level and connecting to the lateral edge portions, c. means to mount said holder to said golf club carrying device, and d. a resilient retaining finger cantilever mounted at a lower rear location in the holder at a location beneath the level of the lower edge portion of the loading and dispensing opening, said finger extending upwardly and forwardly to a forward location moderately above and adjacent to said lower edge portion, said finger having an upwardly and moderately rearwardly directed contact face having an upward and forward slant from said rear location to said forward location, so that said contact face engages a lower side of the lowermost positioned golf ball in its normal retained position on a slant to urge said golf ball rearwardly and away from said opening and hold said golf ball in said chamber, said finger having a forward end which in its normal position is at a distance from said edge section less than a distance equal to the diameter of the retained golf ball, whereby the edge section of the housing defining the opening coacts with the finger to retain the lowermost golf ball in the holder, said retaining finger being sufficiently resilient so as to be readily downwardly deflected to permit the lowermost golf ball to be removed forwardly through the opening or inserted into the holder through said opening.