Properly gripping your golf club is the first step to a consistent swing. Some grips are meant for power and some are meant for control, but it is important to learn a basic golf grip first before moving on to more advanced grips. For the greatest impact on your game and more consistent scores, find the grip that works best for you.
Significance
If your grip is incorrect, the rest of your swing does not matter. The first skill a Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) instructor teaches is the grip, according to Rick Martino, PGA Director of Instruction on PGA.com. Golfers need to know how to grip a golf club before they can start their swing. Otherwise, you will have no control over the face of the club when it makes contact with the ball.
Considerations
Locating the correct position of your hands on the golf club is necessary for a consistent proper grip. If you change the position of your hands, you will notice inconsistency in your shots and control. In order to find the position right for you, let your left arm hang at your side and grip the golf club with your fingers without changing the natural position of your hand, according to Dan Pasquariello, a Golf Magazine top 100 teacher on the magazine's website. Do the same with your right hand if you are a lefty. Gripping the club in the same spot for every shot will lead to more control.
Expert Insight
The better term to use instead of gripping the club is "placing" your hands on the club, says Martino. The PGA Learning Center uses the term "placing" because it gives a more relaxed and easy feel to the placement of your hands. Do not have a tense and tight grip of the club. Instead, keep your hands relaxed and loose.
Types
There are three basic ways to hold a golf club. Without instruction, beginner golfers normally use the 10-fingered baseball grip. This is the same grip used on a baseball bat and is rarely taught by instructors. The most common grip is the overlapping grip, according to Martino. This grip overlaps the pinky finger of the bottom hand in between the forefinger and middle finger of your top hand on the club. Although awkward at first for beginner golfers, this grip will give you more control and a firmer feel of the club as it makes contact with the ball. The last grip is the interlocking grip, which is close to the overlapping grip but places more of the bottom hand over the top hand on the club.
Benefits
Proper grip is beneficial in two major ways, according to Martino. The first is that the consistency and flow of your swing will result from your grip. A better grip means a better swing. Second, a poor grip is a bad habit that golfers will revert back to in pressure situations or when they are fatigued and concentrating less. Once you find your grip, the proper swing will follow.
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