Age and wear cause golf grips to perform poorly, and installing new ones is a way to improve your game. Doing it yourself is not difficult and it cuts the expense dramatically. Make sure you use grips that fit your hands and also the shafts of your clubs. Also, use the proper tools and materials to do the job correctly and safely.
Regrip Often
You should install new grips about once a year or every 40 rounds of golf you play. Wear and exposure to the element as well as oils from your hands slowly degrade your grips. They lose their original feel long before you notice they are becoming hard or slick. Even a small slip of the club in your hands can dramatically affect the shot. Even worse, the involuntary increase in your grip pressure to overcome a loss of traction can cause you to make swings with less power and control.
Do It Yourself
Installing grips on your own clubs can save you money. You can expect to pay $75 to $130 to have a professional regrip your full set of clubs, but buying the necessary materials and doing it yourself can cost as little as $50 as of 2010. Online instructions can help you do the job, such as those found at the Lamkin Corp. site in the Resources section of this article.
Determine the Proper Size
It's important to use grips that fit your hands. The correct size allows the fingers of your top hand to lightly touch the palm but not dig into it. The easiest way to determine the correct grip size is from your golf glove. If you wear a men's large your grips should probably be standard or midsize, and if your glove is extra-large a jumbo grip will be best. Women, juniors and men who wear size small gloves require an undersize grip. Undersize grips are usually 1/64 of an inch less in diameter than standard, midsize is 1/16 of inch larger, and jumbo grips are 1/8 of an inch over the standard.
Match the Shaft Size
If you install the grips yourself, pay attention to the diameter of your shafts when buying the grips. Golf shafts come in a number of different diameters and grips fit properly on only one specific diameter. If you use a grip made for a different size shaft it will change the installed grip size. You can measure the shaft butt yourself after removing an old grip, or find the specifications with the identification on the shaft.
Use the Right Tools and Materials
You can buy all the materials and equipment you need to regrip your clubs at a golf supply store or order from a catalog or online. You should get a rubber shaft clamp to secure the club in a vise, a utility knife with a hooked blade for safely removing the old grips and a good grip solvent. Almost any general purpose petroleum-based solvent will work for installing grips, but do yourself a favor and use a non-toxic grip solvent rather than gasoline, naphtha or mineral spirits.
References
- Golf Pride Grips: FAQs
- The Golf Works: Golf Grip Sets
- "Golf Club Repair in Pictures"; Ralph Maltby; 1982
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