Golf Grip | Review All Things Golf

How to grip a golf club

The Grip by David Lee
If we’re going to hit it anywhere it is imperative that we know
how to “grab hold” of the club correctly.

HOW TO GET A PERFECT GRIP
When the club is held properly, a secure grip
can be maintained without having tension in the wrists
or forearms. This is very important because the ability to
achieve maximum clubhead speed through the impact area gripA How to grip a golf club
is dependent on the ability
to make an unrestricted
(by tension) release of the
fully cocked wrists through
impact. Should the club
be placed too much in
the palm of either hand,
tension goes through the
wrists in the process of
securing the grip. When
the club is gripped in a
cinching fashion, in the
fingers, tension does not go
through the wrists, making
it possible to achieve an unrestricted release through impact,
while maintaining a firm hold on the club.
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Beginning with the left hand (right handed player), this
is accomplished by placing
the club at the base of the gripB How to grip a golf club
palm (photo A), against
the pads of the last three
fingers. The fingers should
gently stretch, then close
around the club, while the
palm is pulled up from the
fingers and then cinched
down snugly. This cinching
action automatically
tightens the grip without
putting tension through
the wrist. The base of
the left thumb should gripC1 How to grip a golf club
be retracted toward
the body, and the first
knuckle from the end of
the thumb, should push
down gently against the
shaft, while the second
knuckle of the thumb
snaps down like a pair
of vise pliers. This is
called a short thumb
position (photo B).
The left hand and wrist, when properly placed on
the club, should be approximately 30 degrees to the right of
vertical wrist axis position. The V of the left hand should
Photo B
Photo C gripD How to grip a golf club
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point generally toward the
right side of your neck.
The same cinching
action is done with the
two middle fingers of the
right hand (photo D). The
pad at the base of the right
thumb holds the left thumb
securely in place.
The tip of the right
thumb and the tip of the
right index finger should
either touch, or almost touch, depending on the size of the
individuals hands.
The little finger
of the right hand should
interlock with the index
finger of the left hand
(photo E). In my opinion, gripE How to grip a golf club
the interlocking grip
allows the hands to
function more easily
as a single unit. When
the interlocking grip is
used, the right hand is in
a more secure position,
with more of it on the
club than in the Vardon
or overlapping grip.
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Using the baseball grip, where all the fingers of both
hands are on the club, places the hands a little too far apart.
This tends to cause a flipping action as the club comes into
the impact area. The baseball grip is fine for children with
very small hands, but should be changed to an interlocking
grip as they get older.
The cinching effect, created by stretching the palms
from the fingers before closing the hands, ensures a secure,
powerful grip, without having to physically squeeze the club
with the hands. I’ve never agreed with the suggestion that the
club should be held like a small bird. Holding the club too
loosely, causes an involuntary tightening of the grip during the
takeaway and upon delivery, which results in tension coming
into the wrists, and a subsequent reduction in clubhead speed.
A more correct feeling of grip pressure would be likened to
holding a small rattlesnake behind the head. Allow him to
breathe, but be darn sure he doesn’t get away. The finished
and proper grip is shown in photo C.
When the backswing reaches the point of first release
(see next chapter for full explanation), after the arms have
moved about twelve inches into the takeaway, even though
the tension comes completely out of the wrists and arms,
the grip on the club does not loosen, because the hands
were cinched onto the club when the grip was taken. The
ability to maintain a secure grip throughout the swing,
even though the forearms and wrists have totally relaxed
at the point of first release, is critical to the success of the
shot.
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Assuming the clubface is square to the intended flightline,
and that ball position, alignment and swing sequencing
are correct, if the grip is overly strong (hands rotated too much
to the right [right handed player]), the ball will hook, or pull,
to the left. The opposite will occur if the grip is too weak
(hands rotated too far to the left). When a player takes his grip
incorrectly, then makes an “in swing” compensation, either
voluntary or involuntary, the desired ball flight pattern may,
but often does not occur. Making swing compensations for a
faulty grip rarely produces consistent results. The ability of
any player to hit quality, repeating shots, is first dependent
on having a good grip. Usually, the better the player, the
better the grip.
WHAT HAPPENS IF WE DON’T
An incorrect, or insecure grip, can trigger devastating
subconscious reactions in the mind of the player during the
golf swing. If the grip is placed on the club in too strong a
position, causing the ball flight pattern to be to the left, the
player will normally develop a tendency to make “in swing”
corrections, either consciously or subconsciously. Should
the golfer “chase” the desired flight line in an effort to make
the ball go there, he will have to do so with his own physical
strength, and in the process, will put some degree of backpressure
against the swing-plane. Unless this back-pressure
and the resulting plane reversal is compensated for, a mis-hit
shot will occur.
As can easily be seen, a domino effect of compensations
may begin to occur. Example: Too strong a grip, ball goes
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left…. player physically tries to block hook, unintentionally
reverses swing-plane and hits ball fat, etc., etc.. Get the idea?
The subconscious mind will try to make compensations for
anything it senses may be wrong in the swing, regardless of
whether or not those corrections are based on solid mechanical
principles. One can easily become so mired in a series of
incorrect compensations, starting with, and triggered by a
faulty grip, that it is difficult to ever “dig out of the hole.” If
we learn to hold the club correctly in the beginning, it is much
easier to develop a properly functioning golf swing which is
free of compensations. In fact, a totally efficient swing is
unlikely to occur unless the grip is correct. Once we know
how to hold the club properly, learning to swing the club with
realistic expectations that the ball will go on line, is far less
complicated. However, even with the advantage that we now
have a correct grip, there are a few other details to consider
before we hit the ball like Jack….