When teaching golfers how to improve their swing, golf instructors tend to focus on the grip, and with good reason. The correct grip will make your swing more fluid, improving both power and accuracy, which are essential for getting that ball close to the hole.
Nothing affects how the club face strikes the ball more than your grip and the gripping pressure. (This article was written for right-handed golfers, but any lefties among us can adapt it by simply swapping right for left).
The Laying on of Hands
A good golf grip begins with the correct placement of the hands on the club. If you can find them, look out for a set of clubs from the 1980s or earlier with a bevel cut onto the end of the grip, known as a reminder grip. Now illegal for competition, the bevel was designed to fit flat against the meaty heel pad at the base of the left palm, and helped ensure correct positioning. It’s a big help when trying to get your grip just right.
When taking the club in your left hand (with your hand close to the end of the grip), set the head of the club on the ground at the correct angle for striking a ball. Your left hand should now be addressing the club from the side, rather than cupping it from underneath. If you cup it from underneath, you will not be able to see the ’vee' formed by your thumb and index finger.
Gripping the club from the side, this vee should point directly towards you or over your right shoulder. Your left thumb should now be slightly more on the right-hand side of the club than on top.
Though it has nothing to do with actual ’strength‘, the terms ’weak‘ and ’strong’ are used to describe grip. If your left hand is rotated too far to the left side (known as a ‘weak’ grip), your thumb will lie on top of the club, and you will tend to slice the ball. If your left hand is rotated too far right (a ’strong' grip), you will tend to hook the ball round to the left.
Right Hand Rule
When the left hand is positioned correctly, the right hand more naturally finds its complementary position on the shaft. The secret is that the left thumb should nestle closely against the ‘life line’ that runs around the base of your right thumb (so for those of you who just live for golfing, you now know what that life line is for!!). The vees formed by your thumbs and index fingers should be roughly parallel.
Fits like a Glove
Another trick for improving your grip is to draw indicators on an old left-hand golf glove with a marker or pen. You can find lots of videos online to show you how to do this, too. Start by drawing a straight line from the middle fold of your index finger to the last fold of your little finger. When gripping the club correctly, this line should be invisible at the side of the grip, which helps to stop you from loosening your index finger and holding the club sloppily. Another point can go at the centre of the meaty pad at the base of your left palm. However, if holding the club correctly, this point should remain visible as it will not come into contact with the grip.
You should be able to hold the club in your left hand without ever engaging your thumb—this demands that your fingers are correctly positioned and that the club is in firm contact with the base of your palm.
To lock or not to lock
While Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are notable proponents of the interlocking grip, the most common golf grip is the overlapping grip, where the little finger of the right hand overlaps the index finger of the left, rather than interlocking with it. Players with smaller hands/shorter fingers tend to interlock, while those with longer fingers or bigger hands tend to overlap. There is also the ten-finger grip, which means that your two hands butt together, with all ten fingers in contact with the shaft. It’s best to play around with these yourself to find the right combination or permutation—there is no right or wrong here.
Hinge your Wrists
When you hold the club in both hands, hinge your wrists to bring the club up close to your head. If your hands are positioned correctly, the club should lie between your head and your right shoulder.
Grip Pressure
Nothing kills your swing more than too much pressure on the grip, while too loose a gripping style can result in your having to climb a tree to retrieve your nine-iron.
A good swing is exactly that—a swinging action. Anything that swings needs to be lubricated and free to move, and tension in your muscles makes that impossible. Tension results in your misdirecting shots you had lined up perfectly, and in hooking and other problems.
To aid you in relaxing your grip, envisage that you are holding a long tube of toothpaste in both hands—with the cap off. Don’t drop it, but try to hold the tube without squeezing out any of the toothpaste as you swing. Your hands should be soft, but not loose.
Try to focus on ‘holding’ the club rather than ‘gripping’ it—‘gripping’ sounds like clenched teeth and white knuckles, so don’t go there!
Now it’s time to get out on the tee and get to grips with your club!!!
