Welcome to the Golf Grip Lesson. This lesson is designed to help you get your hands on the club properly. There is no other fundamental in golf that has a greater impact on your shots than your grip. That is because your hands are the only things that attach you to your club. Any movement of your hands will obviously move the club head. You must get your hands in a comfortable position and there are a few key fundamentals that make it much easier for you to hit good shots.
Use this lesson to make sure your hands are well placed on your club so that can give yourself the best opportunity to hit your ball towards your target.. This is one of the lessons that you will want to revisit on a regular basis. You would think that once you built a solid grip that it would stay with you forever...but it doesn't. You must continually check your golf grip fundamentals to make sure they stay the same.
Step #1 : Start With Your Left Hand
Hold your left hand out in front with your palm perpendicular to the ground. This is a great starting position, because you can line your club up with proper part of your hand.
While holding the club in your right hand line up the grip to your left hand. Make sure that the grooves on your club face are pointing straight up and down. This will make sure that your club will be straight when you are finished building your grip and you place your club behind your ball.
The handle of the club should touch your left index finger on the spot you would wear a ring, and then also cross the palm side of the knuckle of your left pinkie finger.
Step #2 : Wrap Your Left Hand
From the position in Step One, wrap the fingers of your left hand around your club.
Your thumb should point down the middle of the handle. As you can see your thumb will naturally be on a small angle, but your thumb should sit on the middle of your club.
An important key is that there is no space between your thumb and side of your hand. This will help keep your hand in a strong solid position. It will also keep your thumb tucked up towards your hand. This is called a “short” thumb and will give you much better control of your club...especially at the top of your backswing.
By keeping your thumb tucked into the side of your hand a line will appear. This line should be pointing just ahead of your club face (approx. 8 to 10 inches). This is a great self test to be sure your left hand is sitting properly. If the line is pointing at your club head then your hand is in a weak position and that will cause too much forearm and club head rotation during your swing. Too much rotation leads to inconsistent shot making.
Step #3 : Right Hand Starting Position
Keep your left hand position solid with your club still out in front of you.
Place your right hand so that your palm is facing you.
Line up your club where you would wear rings on your four fingers. This puts your club in the crook of your fingers and will give you great control over your club.
This starting position is very important because it ensures that your right hand will finish in the proper position.
Step #4 : Secure Right Hand
Wrap your right fingers and hand around the club.
Your right palm should cover your left thumb. If you started in the right position then there should be a little crease formed on the life line of your right hand. Your left thumb should fit perfectly into this crease of your right hand.
Your right hand thumb should tuck into the side of your right hand. This forms a line just like your left hand. These two lines should be parallel to each other.
Step #5 : Choose Your Grip
Once you get the foundation of your golf grip finished, you then have a choice to make. You have a choice of three different styles of grips. All have their benefits, but the most important thing is to choose the style of golf grip that feels the most comfortable to you. You can use the Overlap Grip, Interlock Grip, or Baseball Grip. If you are new to the game, you may want to try each of them to see which is the most comfortable.
Golf Grip #1 : Overlap Grip
Your right pinkie should rest comfortably on top of your left index and middle finger.
Your left index finger should be a little higher than the rest of your fingers and form a little hook for your right pinkie.
Golf Grip #2 : Interlock Grip
Allow your right pinkie to slide in between your left index and middle finger.
Your left index and right pinkie should cross and hook onto each other.
Golf Grip #3 : Baseball Grip
Your right pinkie should sit beside your left index on your club. Your hands are not connected in any way.
You should try the other two grips before you go to this grip. The other grips are better for helping your hands work as one unit, whereas the baseball grip keeps them separated. This means there is a greater chance one of your hands will dominate your grip on your club.
Thank you for taking the Grip Lesson. There is nothing more important than a good grip. Placing our hands in the most efficient and effective position makes golf much easier to play and learn.
Please...(and I truly beg of you)...take your time to learn the grip properly. It will make all the difference whether you are an advanced player who is struggling with their game, or a beginner just taking up the game. As a new player, it is much easier to learn the rest once you have a good grip.
Once you have mastered your golf grip, and you wish to continue working on your fundamentals, then I would suggest moving on to learning how to aim your clubs properly. Most of the time the body positions of the setup is taught next. However, it is very beneficial to know how to aim properly. Other than being able to aim directly at your target, it will help you when it’s time to work on your setup routine.
Congratulations to Steve Stricker on his victory at the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
I believe the commentators said he has won 9 times in his 40s. That is amazing!I also agree with Sir Nick and Johnny Miller that his swing will be copied in the future. Technology has reduced the need for hand action in the golf swing to generate power. Watch the old videos of Bobby Jones to see how much action he created compared to that of Steve Stricker.
A great objective for any player is to eliminate any unnecessary movement. Stricker does a great job of that. His hands stay very quiet on the backswing. His wrists hardly hinge at the top of his backswing. You can see from the above video that his backswing is all shoulder turn.
His downswing starts from the hips and he simply turns everything through the golf ball at the same time. His hands and wrists release naturally without any effort. This is a great way to have a consistent rhythm through the golf ball on every shot. This swing delivers enough power to win on Tour.
European Tour Winner Quick Lesson
Congratulations to Louis Oosthuizen and his victory at the 2012 Africa Open.
Louis burst onto the scene with his dominating performance at the Open Championship. Many have predicted multiple wins for this player. His victory this past weekend is likely one of many to come.
In the video above pay really close attention to when the video ends. Take a look at his left foot. Notice how all his weight his on his left heel. This is a great sign that he has cleared his hips properly.
One of the key reasons for starting the downswing with your lower body is to clear your hips out of the way to create more room for your arms to swing through impact. It is a great indicator as to how well you cleared your hips, when almost all your weight is on your heel.
If your weight is leaning on you toes or even the middle of your foot then you have not rotated and cleared your hips enough through your downswing and past impact. You really want to feel the pressure of your weight on your heel like Oosthuizen.
Make sure you start your downswing with your lower body. At the top of your backswing; either pull your left knee or your left hip (right handed player) towards the target. Also make sure your hips keep rotating through impact and into your finish position with your weight on the heel.