Game apparatus for entrapping a ball

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR PLAYING A GAME OF SKILL WITH A GENERALLY SPHERICAL PLAYING BALL OF GENERALLY AROUND EIGHT INCHES IN DIAMETER ON A PLAYING FIELD COMPRISING, A PAIR OF GENERALLY VERTICALLY AND EXTENDING HORIZONTALLY SPACED POSTS, A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL ROD ADJUSTABLY SECURED TO EACH POST GENERALLY ADJACENT THE UPPER END THEREOF, THE PAIR OF RODS EXTENDING TOWARD EACH OTHER FROM THE RESPECTIVE POSTS AND HAVING HORIZONTALLY SPACED INNER ENDS, A CYLINDRICAL RIM OF A DIAMETER GREATER THAN TWICE THE DIAMETER OF THE BALL CONNECTED TO AND SUSPENDED FROM THE INNER ENDS OF THE OPPOSED RODS AT A HEIGHT ABOVE THE PLAYING FIELD GREATER THAN THE DIAMETER OF THE PLAYING BALL, MEANS ADJUSTABLY TENSIONING SAID RODS AND CONNECTED RIM ON SAID POSTS TO PROVIDE A DESIRED FLEXIBILITY IN SAID RIM AND SAID POSTS BEING SPACED FROM SAID RIM A DISTANCE GREATER THAN THE DIAMETER OF SAID RIM, AND A PLURALITY OF GENERALLY ELONGATED FINGERS SUSPENDED FROM SAID RIM AND SPACED FROM EACH OTHER A DISTANCE LESS THAN THE DIAMETER OF THE PLAYING BALL TO DEFINE AN INNER TRAP AREA BELOW THE RIM GREATER THAN THE DIAMETER OF THE PLAYING BALL, SAID FINGERS BEING SPACED FROM THE PLAYING FIELD A DISTANCE LESS THAN THE DIAMETER OF THE PLAYING BALL AND MOUNTED ON SAID RIM TO PIVOT INWARDLY WHEN CONTACTED BY THE PLAYING BALL ROLLING ALONG THE PLAYING FIELD TO PERMIT THE BALL ROLLING ALONG THE PLAYING RIM BEING PROPERLY TENSIONED SO THAT THE IMPACT OF THE BALL IS ABSORBED WITHOUT EXCESSIVE FLEXIBILITY IN THE APPARATUS, SAID FINGERS RETURNING TO A VERTICAL SUSPENDED POSITION AFTER THE BALL ENTERS THE INNER TRAP AREA, AND MEANS ON SAID FINGERS ADAPTED TO ENGAGE THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID RIM TO PREVENT THE OUTWARD PIVOTING OF SAID FINGERS, SAID RIM HAVING OPEN ENDS TO PERMIT THE PLAYING BALL TO BE LIFTED THEREFROM AFTER BEING ENTRAPPED.