How to Grip a Golf Club
Is there really just one correct way to grip a golf club? PGA professional Jack Backhouse dives deep into how to grip a golf club
A golfer’s grip is their only connection to the golf club, making it an imperative yet sometimes overlooked part of a golfer’s technique. So, how should you grip the golf club? Watch the video below or read on to find out.
Why a correct golf grip is important
How a golfer holds the golf club strongly affects the direction the golf ball travels and the power it is hit with. There is no one ‘perfect’ way to grip the club. Anyone watching golf on TV can see that professional golfers don’t all grip the club in the same fashion, but there are certain parameters that a golfer should try to stay in so that their grip doesn’t affect their golf in a negative way.
A bad grip can make it impossible to stop hitting the ball too far offline and also reduce the range of motion in the wrists, which leads to less control and club head speed. A good grip doesn’t guarantee a well-executed shot, but a bad grip makes it extremely difficult to pull one off!
Lead hand placement
Lead hand placement is arguably more important than trail hand, as this hand is the primary club face angle controller. The first thing to get right is placing the grip down the middle knuckle of the fingers in the lead hand and then gripping the club so that the majority of the grip sits in the fingers, with your hand pad on top. Gripping in the fingers gives the wrist joint a greater range of motion, allowing for more club head speed and control. Think about writing your name; holding the pen in your fingers gives you more control than if you wrote it while holding the pen in your palm.
Whether you have your hand turned away from the target (stronger) or towards the target (weaker) is up to you as a player, but this should complement your technique and preferred shot shape. A stronger grip will help send the ball more left, and a weaker grip more right for a right-handed golfer. As a general rule, I like to see a right-handed player’s left thumb running down the right-hand side of the grip in a strong position.
Trail hand placement
When you add the trail hand, you should place the middle of the hand onto the thumb of the lead hand; this acts as a vital pressure point and allows your hands to be oriented in the same direction to help your ball flight. Again, the grip should be in the fingers, giving you all the control; waggling the club should feel easy and light.
It is the golfer’s personal preference whether they interlock their fingers, overlap or take a 10-finger grip of the club; there have been golfers who win major championships with all types of grips, so it isn’t really important.
It is important to create a good pinch between the thumb and forefinger of the trail hand as this gives golfers more awareness of where the club face is throughout the swing and allows the club to be released at impact harder.
Golf grip FAQs
Tension: a lot of golfers think or have been told to grip the club lightly. It is hard to swing the golf club over 100 mph with a loose grip, and often, a loose grip feeling will result in more wayward shots, so it is more important to be comfortable with your tension.
Grip size: You should have golf grips suitable to your hand size, and glove size is a good indicator of how big your grips should be. Having grips that are too big will give you less feel and a grip that is too thin won’t allow you to get enough of your hands on the club for power.
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Jack Backhouse
Jack is a PGA Golf Professional who specialises in coaching, teaching golf to beginners and top-level amateurs for 10+ years. He also loves his golf equipment and analysing the data of the latest clubs on the market using launch monitors, specialising in blade irons and low-spinning drivers despite having a chronically low ball flight.
Although Jack has no formal journalism training, He has been reading What's In The Bag articles since he started playing at 12 and studying golf swings since his dad first filmed his swing to reveal one of the worst over-the-top slice swings he reckons has ever been recorded, which set him off on the path to be a coach. His favourite club ever owned was a Ping G10 driver bought from a local top amateur with the hope that some of the quality golf shots would come with it (they didn't), and worst was a Nike SQ driver he only bought because Tiger was using it.
Jack is a member of Sand Moor Golf Club and regularly gets out on the golf course to prepare for tournaments. Jack uses a TaylorMade BRNR Mini driver, a half set of TaylorMade P7MB irons, MG4 wedges and a TaylorMade TP Reserve putter.
