Get a Grip to Improve Your Swing

The phrase "get a grip" may be one that is commonly said to people to encourage them to get back to reality but it's also one of the most important things that can be said to a golfer. It may seem like every bit of advice that is offered to an up and coming golfer is the most important thing ever but without a firm and confident grip, everything else would be pointless. Even the position of your fingers and hands on the golf club can make a huge difference to your performance so if you want to get on the green in the shortest time; you really need to get a grip.

There is no point in denying the importance of having a proper grip. To ensure proper contact with the ball and to get the best flight of the ball, the placement of your hands is vital. By holding the club too weakly, it is likely that the angle of the club will be off line and this will be enough to ensure that the ball will curve away from its intended target. Similarly, a grip that is too strong will be rigid and will prevent a clean follow through of the shot. This means that the best golf grip would be neutral, in between weak and strong. Judging this is the hard part but over time, a player will be able to determine what level of grip works best for them.

One of the first aspects of the grip is to ensure that the club is held and wrapped within your fingers as opposed to within the palm of your hands. This sort of hold can be easily done by if you pick up the club from a flat position so be sure to hold the grip from your fingers. This will ensure that a stronger grip is placed on the club, ensuring the golfer has better control of their swing.

As well as focusing on the basics of the grip, it is worthwhile looking at the actual grip of the club itself. If it is old and worn then it can lessen the impact of the golfers grip, undoing all your good work. If the grip of the club is weak or slack, the golfer will tend to tighten their own grip to overcompensate and this can lead to rigidity in the arms, which can impact on the strength and speed of the swing. It can seem hard to imagine how such a little thing like the condition of the handle of the club can impact on players overall game but that is the way of golf. There are so many little details and even psychological issues that can derail a golfer and a player needs to be able to overcome the majority, if not all, to get the very best from the game.

Not every player wants to be professional or compete professionally so they may think that its not too important to get the minor details right but even just a few things wrong can greatly impact on a player performance so it is of the utmost importance to try and get as many things right as possible.

When placing your grip, it is important to determine what the top hand is and what the bottom hand is. For a right handed golfer, their left hand will be the top hand and their right hand will be the bottom. Unsurprisingly for a left hand golfer the opposite exists, where the right hand is the top for a left handed golfer.

The bottom hand should be placed where the grip meets the shaft and the top hand should come onto the other end of the grip and slowly wrap around the club ensuring a strong grip. The bottom hand should then be slid down the club to meet the top hand. The hands should then join in either an overlap or interlocking grip with a careful hold being placed on the club. It is up to each golfer to judge their own strength of holding but the grip should be compared to holding something fragile, with enough strength to protect it but not too much to break it.

Holding the grip with your fingers, rather than hands or the palm of your hand, will ensure the line of your arms have a better chance of remaining straight, which will help the swing of the club.

Following these outlines for a great golf grip may not be enough to turn you into a golfing superstar but by bearing in mind the basics, there is a strong chance that your golfing game will be a lot more enjoyable.