Gripping the Golf Club

I debated with myself what the next step should be for you to focus on. I really wanted to dive into the golf swing and get cracking! Then, I realized that the first thing you must do is select a club out of your bag. Now that you know the 4 categories of golf shots, it makes sense to get swinging, right? Well, I would be doing you a disservice if I skip over the golf grip.

You see, the golf grip can make or break an effective swing. Having fun is a choice, but not paying attention to your club grip can affect your fun. If you don’t get this often overlooked part of your golf swing correct now, you may find yourself lost and disillusioned later. Really? The grip is that important? Yes! Let’s break the grip down into 3 different options.

3 Types of Golf Grips

1. The 10 Finger Grip
2. The Vardon Grip
3. The Interlocking Grip

I am going to go a step further by giving you the straight truth. There are actually 3 more variations of the 3 grips above. You can apply each of the grip variations to the 3 types of grips above. Each variation has the potential to confuse you and make you lose trust in your swing. My goal is to give you knowledge to use the three grips and three variations that will serve you now and much later

Harvey Penick is one of my favorite golf teachers. He’s more of a philosopher to me. I have to admit that my style of teaching comes from many of the life lessons I’ve read in his Little Red Book. One of the things I must take into consideration is, you and I have never met before. Harvey gives many salient examples during his time as a teacher and mentor. He had the pleasure of interacting directly with his students face to face. Harvey wrote:

“One Grip does not fit all”

7th Paragraph of page 31 – Harvey Penick’s Little Red Black Book

I am crystal clear that my knowledge is limited. There will always be someone who knows more about a particular subject. My goal is to prepare you for your next teacher while having fun along the way. I am a lifetime student. Growing and becoming better is my thing. Growing never stops unless you chose to stop. It’s pretty simple.

Some people choose to have a growth mindset. A growth mindset can be explained this way. If you believe that your basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work, then your view of your capacity is all about learning and being resilient. It might take you longer to learn golf then another person, but you don’t let that stop you despite physical limitations or challenges. You find a way to play the game that works for you. It’s not wrong, or incorrect, in any way as long as you love what you are doing and put in the work.

Other people are blessed with what some call natural talent and genetic gifts. They were born to play the game. Their parent was a great golfer. Based on their inherited genes they should be too. You are the way you are. You can only go so far in golf. You are too old, not flexible enough, not strong enough, or fast enough. You are doomed to failure from the start so why try? This is called a fixed mindset. If you believe you know how to play golf already, don’t need a teacher, and limited by your beliefs you may find yourself never progressing beyond a certain point. I hate to say it, but that is ok too. It’s your choice. Choose wisely, but remember to always choose fun.

The 10 Finger Grip

If you have ever played baseball or softball this is the same grip. All 10 fingers are wrapped around the grip like mine are in the picture above. It’s also referred to as the Baseball Grip. Initially, it feels more familiar and natural to you than the other two grips. If you have small hands like my wife. it might be easier to hold the club this way. There is a drawback to consider. The 10 Finger Grip makes your hands separate easily and makes it hard to control the club face consistently when it makes contact with the ball. This will become abundantly clear in deep grass or on a hot day when you perspire. Your hands will feel like two separate touch points instead of one. Having your hands work on concert together will provide control of the ball and where it goes.

The Vardon Grip

The Vardon Grip is also referred to as the Overlapping Grip. The name comes from Harry Vardon who was an Englishman who won 6 Open Championships which is a record that still stands today. If you watched the movie “The Greatest Game Ever Played” I mentioned, then you have a little background of who Harry was with a sneak peak into where he came from. I recommend trying out each grip on the range and see how they feel to you. Once you pick your grip stick with it. Wrapping your fingers around the golf club grip will eventually feel natural and comfortable.

The Interlocking Grip

The Interlocking Grip

The most common grip was once the 10 Finger. Of course, there are grip variations I mention below to accommodate hand size, finger thickness or length, and overall comfort. I personally use the interlocking grip. My father taught me this grip. His golf idol was Jack Nicklaus who was an interlocking grip golfer. For me it’s all about making sure the golf club feels like one piece in my hands. I am able to make slight grip variations to shape my shots combined with pulling my elbow closer to my body for a draw or moving it further away from my body slightly for a cut. The draw and cut are two shot shapes I learned how to control over thousands of hours of practice. Of course, I promise I will expand more on the draw and cut shots later.

3 Grip Variations

Strong Grip

This is definitely a more advanced topic. I will briefly touch on what it is why you need to know. To make it simple. A strong grip will usually cause the club face to be somewhat closed at impact. The hands are pointed away from the target and looks like the picture above. If you’re a right handed golfer this means the ball will go left. It can cause two types of shot trajectories you may hear called a Hook or Pull. The hope of a new golfer is that this grip will help them hit a draw. A draw when hit properly has a very slight right to left trajectory. It also has some degree of top spin like a tennis ball. This will help the golf ball go further since it’s not working against the air, and it will continue to roll further once it hits the fairway.

Many beginners incorrectly use a strong grip to counteract an open club face. It often is the only thing that keeps them from hitting the dreaded slice that goes to the right of the target. The problem with the slice is a much different fix than over compensating with a strong grip. Keep it simple for now, and be careful who you listen to for advice. If you play with a golfer with a strong grip who aims far to the right of the center of the fairway, it’s because they are counting a lot of ball movement right to left. It can be very unpredictable, and can yield the Duck Hook. The Duck Hook is the opposite of Slice. Trust me, you don’t want to hit a Duck Hook.

Weak Grip

The weak golf Grip is essentially the opposite of the strong grip. If you started with a strong grip and have difficulty controlling a hook shot, then the antidote would be to hold the club like I am in the picture above. The desired result is to mitigate the closed club face at impact. A weak grip will allow you to hit a straight golf shot. The is a big drawback to switching back and forth between a strong and weak grip during a round. Many beginner golfers find themselves having no idea where their ball will go upon impact. It’s definitely a more advanced modification and does take a lot of practice and experimentation. Most teachers don’t recommend changing your grip during the middle of a round.

Neutral Grip

The neutral grip is my personal preference. I am going to give credit to Tiger Woods for inspiring me to make this my choice. In the picture above you’ll notice my left hand isn’t rotated left like the strong grip, or rotated right like the weak grip. My left hand is positioned with no rotation left or right. You’ll learn later about shaping your shots. Shaping the trajectory of the ball left or right is also called working the ball. All it really means is giving yourself the option of hitting a draw or fade on command. It does require having control and consistent ball striking to reliably hit a draw or fade. Another name you will often hear golfers call a fade is cutting the ball. The cut for a right handed golfer produces a slight left to right ball flight. The cut shot for a lot of golfers is the most predictable shot they know how to hit.

The cut also produces a right to left trajectory and has some degree of backspin which can be exaggerated by the wind and is known as the Slice. When this happen it’s usually the result of a open club face at impact. There is another factor in the slice that can be difficult to unlearn which is caused by the golf swing. I’ll save the more advanced topic of the Swing Plane for a future post.

The golf grip is like finding the right size shoes. If you don’t get the right size shoes you can count on blisters, pain, and other discomfort down the line. The golf grip is somewhat similar. I recommend starting with the neutral grip first. You may find yourself changing your swing later because of the grip you use. The correct grip for you can affect your ball flight, distance, and control. Choose the best one for you. Keep an open mind and only make a change to your grip if you’re in pain. Muscle pain because you’ve been playing a lot of golf will eventually get better. Physical pain due to a impact on your hands and wrists isn’t worth damaging your ligaments and enjoyment of the game.