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Gripping the club

jefrazie

jefrazie

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I always heard from one of the guys I used to play with that I had a horrible grip. To explain how I hold the club, I basically use a baseball grip, no interlocking, with the left thumb underneath the right *meaty* part of the thumb. Both my thumbs then point straight down at the ground.

So, the question I'm getting at; is there really any problem with my grip and what would an interlocking or overlaying grip give me over my type of grip?
 
one of my co-workers just got back from seeing slicefixer. so now we're all working on our grip. lol.


a correct golf grip is across the knuckles of your left hand....right hand if you're lefty. interlock or overlap doesn't change that. i'd have to see your ball flight and pattern to determine what flaw your grip might be causing.


at any rate....proper grip is one of the most important elements i stress to my students. without it....the other elements of the swing have to compensate and bad habits are formed.


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My junior year of high school my golf coach sent me to a golf pro to change my grip. I worked with him for three months and my scores were getting worse and worse. I didn't feel comfortable at all standing over the ball. Finally I decided that I would just go back and use my old grip and go on. I have read Harvey Penicks Little Red Book and there was a story in there that basically says, "Beware of a man who has something wrong with his grip, stance, swing, etc. Chances are if he has played with it long enough he knows how to use it to his advantage and play around it or with it." That made me realize that while there are possibly better ways to swing, sometimes it's best to, as my dad would say it, "dance with who you brought."

FYI...I'm left handed and I can see all my knuckles on my right hand and none on my left. My grip is way too strong but it works for me.
 
that's certainy an approach you can take. my grip isn't perfect. i'm sure i don't have to tell anyone that changes take time. A LOT of time. and it gets worse before it gets better.


my thoughts are...

if you're happy and comfortable with your grip the way it is.....then stick with it. tell your buddies that. but if you want to improve....seriously improve.....see an instructor and i would be willing to bet that the grip would be the first thing they overhaul.
 
Your prolly right with that. Every pro I have ever seen told me I had a bad grip. But I hit the ball too consistant to mess with it. Personally, I have found the best way to improve your score is to go to the putting and chipping green more than the driving range. Back in high school and college, we would have to putt and chip for an hour after each round and once a week we did nothing but putt and chip. My theory has sorta become, two bad shots and one good chip is still a par. From my sophomore year to my junior year in high school, my handicap went from a 12 to a 2. I also found that with an improved short game, my confidence was higher. I would fnd myself going after more pins knowing that if I missed, I had a decent short game to back it up.
 
Tbox said:
Your prolly right with that. Every pro I have ever seen told me I had a bad grip. But I hit the ball too consistant to mess with it. Personally, I have found the best way to improve your score is to go to the putting and chipping green more than the driving range. Back in high school and college, we would have to putt and chip for an hour after each round and once a week we did nothing but putt and chip. My theory has sorta become, two bad shots and one good chip is still a par. From my sophomore year to my junior year in high school, my handicap went from a 12 to a 2. I also found that with an improved short game, my confidence was higher. I would fnd myself going after more pins knowing that if I missed, I had a decent short game to back it up.
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That is very true and describes my game also. I took the game up at a late age and am pretty well self taught so I read everything I could get my hands on to start and every instruction book stressed the grip. I guess it is the one thing I do pretty well. If you can scramble, you can play so I would not worry too much about it unless you plan to make a living playing the game.
 
Tbox said:
FYI...I'm left handed and I can see all my knuckles on my right hand and none on my left. My grip is way too strong but it works for me.
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My grip is the same way. Personally, I've always had "baseball wrists" where I release them after they clear my hips, especially with longer clubs where I use more lower body. I tried fixing it through lessons for years until I finally gave up playing golf. Finally learned how to play with it a couple of summers ago and have been steadily improving, and having fun!
 
I believe that if you can hit the ball consistent, leave it alone. Growing up I couldn't afford to have regular lessons so I had to just work with what I had. It took some work but I am now fairly happy with the flight and trajectory of the ball.
 
I am going thru a grip change right now myself, i have always used a conventional interlock grip. I have been playing golf for a year this month and one of my biggest problems has always been that i release the club just a hair too early. I have changed my grip to a overlap grip but, its not a normal overlap grip. It is basically a baseball grip with my left "point" finger overlapping my right pinky so, that all of my right hand is on the grip. I have never saw anyone else use this grip but so far it is working perfect for me, it makes me hold on for that extra split second and my release is much better, i hope it stays that way.
 
Thanks for the replies. My longer driver, wood, iron play is pretty consistent. I tend to lose most of my shots around or on the green. I think I'll stick with this grip and tell my friend to worry about his own hacking. :D
 
jefrazie said:
I always heard from one of the guys I used to play with that I had a horrible grip. To explain how I hold the club, I basically use a baseball grip, no interlocking, with the left thumb underneath the right *meaty* part of the thumb. Both my thumbs then point straight down at the ground.

So, the question I'm getting at; is there really any problem with my grip and what would an interlocking or overlaying grip give me over my type of grip?
Click to expand...

I have the exact same type of grip and have no problems. To be honest for me to change now will take weeks or months of work. I am comfortable using this grip and I see no benefits another grip can give me. I have tried hitting overlap/interlock for a couple of shots and a huge banana slice or a shank is the result. I don't need to change. I think if you learn with that grip you will be fine. It is a normal grip just like any of the others.
 
The first lesson I took the instructor immediately pointed out my bad grip, baseball type. I didn't understand how it mattered so I didn't get very far. Nowadays I feel a good grip allows a good wrist cock, which allows access to a large cache of power. If you look at most golf instructional books or vids they usually start at the grip. Someone notable said "I've never seen a good golfer with a bad grip" or something to that effect. Changing my grip was uncomfortable at first but now I feel as if I'm getting some good action out of my clubs. Also after jumping out of the truck and goin straight to the teebox last summer I hyperextended my right thumb. I'd be willing to bet my old grip crept in and got in the way, ruined that round for sure.
 
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