Get a Handle on a Good Golf Grip

The grip is your only connection with the club so it follows that a good golf grip is an essential component of a good swing and good golf game.

Placing your hands properly on the golf club helps you better control the position of the club's face at impact. During the swing your body turns to create power. Since the body is rotating, the golf club must rotate at the same rate. In other words, the body and the club must turn together as a team.

A fundamentally sound golf grip helps you create both power and feel. The action of your wrists is a source of power so gripping the club too much in the palm of your hand reduces wrist action.

Since our fingers are the most sensitive parts of our hands, placing the club more in the fingers rather than in the palm increases the amount of wrist hinge, which results in longer tee shots and more feel.

Regardless of the type of golf grip you choose, a sound golf grip involves light grip pressure. Gripping the club too tight can cause thin, weak shots that slice. A lighter grip also enhances wrist hinge. This light pressure also increases the amount of clubface rotation, improving your chances of squaring the club at impact.

The Vardon overlap, sometimes called the overlapping grip, is the most common golf grip. Most golf instructors use this grip popularized by Harry Vardon around the turn of the 20th century. To correctly use this grip, take the little finger on your trailing hand and place it between the index and middle finger on your lead hand (for right-handed golfers, the lead hand is the left). The lead hand thumb should fit right along the lifeline of the trailing hand.

The next most common golf grip is called the interlock or interlocking. Several top players, including Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, use this grip. This grip locks the hands together. You might, however, find that the handle migrates to your palms which reduces wrist action and, therefore, power. People with small hands, weak forearms and wrists, and beginners often prefer this grip. To use the interlock grip, take the little finger on your trailing hand and intertwine it with the index finger on your lead hand. The lead hand thumb should fit in the lifeline of the trailing hand.

The ten finger grip (sometimes called the baseball grip) is the least preferred golf grip among instructors but it does have its advantages. It can be good for beginners and people who experience joint pain, have arthritis or small, weak hands. To position your hands properly using a ten finger grip, start with a perfect lead hand grip. Place the little finger of the trailing hand close against the index finger of the lead hand. Cover the lead hand thumb with the lifeline of the trailing hand.

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