Callaway Wins Injunction Against Titleist Over Pro V1 Balls

A U.S. District court judge in Delaware on Monday granted Callaway's request for a permanent injuction prohibiting Titleist from selling Pro V1 golf balls. The judge also upheld a jury verdict rendered in 2007 that found four Callaway golf ball patents in question are valid, and that The Acushnet Company violated those patents in developing the Titleist Pro V1.

"We are very pleased with today's decision which will stop the sale of these infringing Pro V1 golf balls," Steve McCracken, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Callaway said in a statement.

Does this mean that the Pro V1 - the ball that revolutionized the industry when it was first released, and one of the most touted and best-selling balls ever - will go the way of the dinosaurs? Not so fast.

At Callaway's request, touring pros using the Pro V1s that were ruled infringing can continue playing them through the end of 2008.

But beyond that, Titleist is, of course, appealing the decision. Besides, Acushnet says, it "does not expect the ruling to have a material adverse impact on its results." The Acushnet Company released a statement that included this:

... It's important to recognize that this ruling will not have any impact on our ability to supply our customers with Pro V1 golf balls because ... (in) September 2008, we converted production of the existing Pro V1 models so that they are outside of the patents in question.

Golfweek reports that "it was unclear, how many – if any – Pro V1s made before the conversion were still in the retail pipeline."

But the Acushnet statement also said that Titleist will be introducing new Pro V1s "in the first quarter of 2009 that are also outside the scope of the patents in question."