Having the right grip won't assure that you will have a good golf swing and hit the ball consistently from tee to green. However, having the wrong grip will assure that you won't hit the ball correctly and that you will likely tense up when an important shot has to be taken. While there are three basic ways to grip the club, most golfers use the overlapping grip. Making sure that grip is comfortable and well-formed will help you hit the ball better.
Too Tight
This is by far the biggest problem that most high-handicap and beginning golfers face any time they face an important shot. Instead of holding the club at a six on a scale of one to 10, golfers tighten that grip to an eight or nine when they face an important shot. Tightening your grip will prevent you from taking a full swing and getting the kind of club head speed at impact that brings about the best shots. A relaxed grip will help you get more speed with the club head and better distance.
Too Loose
This is a problem many golfers encounter when they are close to the green using the pitching wedge or a sand wedge. Golfers want to have a great feel for the ball when they execute a shot that is 100 yards or closer. Sometimes they relax their fingers in order to get that feel. While that sounds good in theory, it often leads to a deceleration during the swing. You should not slow your swing down on a close shot; you should shorten your back swing. Relaxing the grip too severely and slowing the swing down will result in a poor execution of the shot.
Finger Placement
The overlapping grip is used by elite amateurs and top pros. Hold the club in your left hand (for right-handed golfers) about 1/2 inch from the top of the club. Place the small finger of your right hand in the gap between your forefinger and middle finger. Make sure both thumbs are placed down the shaft of the club. Some golfers interlock their left forefinger and right small finger with the interlocking grip. This is a much tougher grip for most golfers, because it is harder to hit the ball accurately. The baseball grip is favored by some golfers, but this will not give you the control you need for most shots.
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