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Interlocking or overlapping grip?

ozzman

ozzman

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I've been reading Harvey Penick's Little Red Book this week as my annual tradition at the start of the spring. One section that stood out to me was about interlocking vs overlapping grips. Harvey never liked the way that interlocking grip looked and thought it most useful for those with small hands.

What do you use and why? When I started golfing back in the day, I gravitated towards the overlap. However, none of my friends or teachers did, so I eventually switched to the interlock. I think it's the preferred grip by most nowadays, but I'm wondering why it changed.

I think my grip is alright, but I'm not a good enough golfer to think something I'm doing is beyond improvement. I think the next time I hit the range, I'm going to give the overlap a try.
 
Interlocking for no other reason then that is the way someone showed me when I was 5. Tweeked plenty with stronger and weaker right and left hand but always kept interlocking.
 
I have small hands (no pun, doesn't mean jack...lol) so interlocking works for me. Tried overlapping grip, but sometimes I feel like my hands get disconnected at some point during the swing.
 
Interlock, only because that's how I started. I've played around with overlap and ten finger over the years but they both just feel weird to me.
 
I was just having this thought myself and was curious as to what others did. I currently interlock, it feels natural. I have large hands, so I'm considering trying out overlapping again to see how it goes.
 
Small hands and interlock. The instructors I've asked have all told me it's not a big deal which style you choose

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I have smaller hands so interlock has never felt quite right so I have used overlap for most of my playing life.
 
Grew up with interlock but have been doing overlap forever. Maybe I'll toy around with it next time on the range for the heck of it
 
I interlock but I might experiment with an overlap


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I use overlap. Used to interlock but kept getting horrible blisters from gripping too hard. Overlap makes me grip with better pressure and I have become more consistent.
 
I have almost always used the overlap grip. I have done interlock from time to time but always to back.
 
Overlap for me as I have larger hands.

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Interlock. And I've had several teachers try to change it and I continue to rebel and return back to it.


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Overlap - that's what I started with and anything else just doesn't feel right.
 
Hardly anyone used the interlock grip when I took up golf nearly 30 years ago (can't believe it's been that long!!!!!). Nearly everyone played the overlap. Then along comes a certain Mr Woods who plays an interlocking grip and boom.........


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I don't think Eldrick started it. I started golfing in the early 90s before he exploded on the scene, and I was the outlier trying overlap.

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Nicklaus popularized the interlock. Have played with all three (interlock, overlap & ten-finger) at one time or another. Settled on overlap 15 or so years ago and moved to a pretty "deep" overlap 5 or so years ago. By deep I mean my right hand overlaps my left a full two fingers. Helps me swing with a lot of "right hand" and has done wanders for creating lag and moving my ball flight to right to left.
 
I started with 10 finger and changed to interlocking a couple of years ago. i tried overlap but it wasn't comfortable after reading the book it makes sense


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Overlap. Interlock puts too much stress on my pinky.
 
I use both actually. Overlap is my go to grip for all my touch shots.
 
Interlocking or overlapping grip?

Interlock bc it helps me maintain grip pressure. Overlapping I always felt I would lose the club in my follow through
 
Overlap. Tried to convert to interlock a few times but never could get comfortable with it.
 
I do an overlap grip. I try interlocking everyone once in a while and it doesn't feel good. Not sure why.

My son, who is 13, does an interlocking grip. I'm trying to think where he picked that up. It certainly wasn't from me. In fact, I think I remember showing him the ways of the overlap. :angry:
 
Interesting thread that got me thinking.

Ive got what I guess are medium hands. I learned interlocking back in the dark ages, in 1978 when I started, probably from reading Jack's Golf My Way. A few years later, in the middle of a round I switched to overlapping and never looked back. Felt my swing was freer and I got more distance.

I'm sure I've tried interlocking for shots on the range from time to time, but I'm going to try it there again next time I get there, hopefully next week. I'm wondering now with some arthritis in my hands if the interlocking might be better now for that freer swing and accuracy. I just tried a few <half swings at home and the interlocking felt ok and easy to keep on plane coming through the ball with a slight draw . [ Or as free <half swings as I dared in our living room with my wife sitting nearby (lol).]
 
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