WU inventor aims to help golfers

Three years ago, Harry Briggs, now a senior communications major with a health emphasis, began working on Sight Ball, a golf ball aimed at helping golfers improve their aim.

“The other goal is just to help golfers improve,” Briggs said after saying that he would like to see his product on all types of golf balls as another goal of his. “I feel like this is just a training aid that you can take from the putting green or the practice green onto the golf course.”

The idea for Sight Ball came to Briggs about three years ago while he was working at Sycamore Golf Course in Spring Hill. He noticed that, while dozens of training aids were available, there were no training aids on the actual golf ball. From this initial realization, Briggs went on to spend the next three years developing Sight Ball, a golf ball that is dedicated to helping golfers improve their aim, stance, club positioning, and focus.

After going through couple of prototypes, the final design of Sight Ball has six sights on it. “You use it by choosing one sight to point at your hole. Once you set that one up, this sight will be pointing at your feet, which will help you get a good stance position. You can place your club right here, directly behind this sight…and up here is your focus point,” Briggs explained. “Basically, it does everything except help your swing.”

Briggs was helped by Karl Klein in the Washburn Business Development Center. Klein has helped Briggs by giving him resources to aid in mass production and to help patent his invention.

“He’s been a very big help to me,” Briggs said.

Sight Ball, although geared towards beginners, can help any golfer improve their aim. “It’s a practice ball and those who practice with it…will gain a whole new perspective in aiming their ball,” said Briggs. Briggs can personally testify to this as he says that Sight Ball has helped him improve his aim.

Although Sight Ball is still patent pending, people can order Sight Ball online through www.sightball.com. Once Briggs get the patent, he going to try to get it out to companies such as Titleist, Ping, and Callaway. He’s also been invited to the Kansas City Golf Show in February, where he hopes to show future investors his product.

Briggs began golfing in middle school, but he says that golf runs in his blood. To illustrate this point, his cousin, T.J. Vogel, made his first Masters appearance last year.

“It all comes from my mom’s side and I inherited my dad’s side of golf where you just…try to beat the crap out of it,” Briggs joked. “I’m working on it,” he added.