3 Ugly Truths About Your Strong Grip

By Troy Klongerbo
January 14, 2017

01/14/2017

Easily, the most overlooked aspect of the game is the grip. As beginners of all ages first get started, it’s very simple to find oneself in the “grip-it and rip-it” type mentality. Here at USGolfTV, we would like to take this chance to emphasize the vital essence of your connection to the game…the grip.

For those of our readers who aren’t familiar with this term “strong grip”, it very simple. With any type of grip, the hands will be placed on the club in basically the same position relative to each other.

To relate to both right and left handed golfers, a “strong grip” occurs when both hands are rotated on the club away from the target, thereby promoting a closed club face at impact. For example, a right-handed golfer would have a strong grip if both hands are more to the right and a “weak grip” is exactly the opposite.

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1. Your Ball Flight is Suffering

Traditionally, it has been taught that a strong grip on the club is a great way to reduce the chances of ball trajectory moving away from the golfer during its flight, called slice or fade.

With the advancements in technology, we are learning more about how the path of the club and the face angle at impact are affecting the way the ball leaves the impact area and moves through the air. With this relatively new information, we now have the ability to isolate the different elements of the swing for each respective outcome.

The grip is the most fundamental contributor to an undesirable ball flight.

For more on how to turn your weak slice into a power fade, check out our article on the “Tour Draw.

The Ultimate Guide for How To Hit A Draw: The Tour Draw, Fix Your Slice

2. Your Chipping is Suffering

Eventually, every golfer is going to end up on, or around, the green. This is where the strokes really start to count.

That strong grip we have been discussing, is going to change the natural angle of the club at impact, called loft. To get achieve a different loft, its much too easy to simply change clubs for a more desirable ball flight, rather then altering the angle of the shaft.
The significance of the design of the clubs used around the greens is often misunderstood.

Wedges are designed to help and not hinder the golfer. A main design feature we are dancing around here is the bounce angle and it prevents the club from digging into the sod or sand creating that all-too-famous “duff”, “chunk” or “flub”.

The strong grip deters the natural design of the clubs used in the short game from doing what they are designed to do, get the ball in the air and land it softly.

3. Your Direction is WAY OFF (and suffering…)

The final issue that a strong grip can lead to is very general directional problems.

The theory is, that this strong grip correlates to a strong or power “mentality” and leads to handle drag. When this happens, the club head lags behind the hands and has a very short distance to square itself to the ball. Obviously here at USgolfTV, we don’t recommend making huge changes in one’s game without direct supervision from adults (we also have a sense of humor), however, making slight alterations to that strong grip can reduce the overall direction issues that a golfer might be experiencing.

So, take this information to the tee, watch that ball fly straighter and lose those extra strokes around the green.

Be sure to check out Todd elaborate on these concepts in this brief video.

To learn more about the different types of grips, check out this “article” by our friends at The Grateful Golfer.

7 Comments

  1. Stop putting false information about the strong grip.

  2. Edgar, we’d love to know what you’re considering to be “false” in this article and open up the dialogue.

  3. I have found that a strong grip has allowed me to get significantly increased distance. At first I had a direction problem, but with practice, I have learned to adjust for directional flaws with my body and hand turning.

  4. This is so true for I find this happening in my swing
    The distance
    The ball suffering in the air high
    The slice
    The direction !!!
    Would like know more or a link !

  5. Rehan, you are spot on…check out this video we did on a strong grip and how it relates to your driver https://youtu.be/hnFrG_GFFBw

  6. Todd, love the lessons. U fortunately I am “becoming” an experienced golfer at 62 and really miss my old distance and am working hard to regain as much as I can.
    I have a tendency to hit my driver straight and 250 one day and then power fade or slice or even push the next day or sometimes one hole on a great round. I love your technical information on swings and you taught me that my ball starts direction based on club head not swing path – which I always thought for 20 + years. I understand how to hit a draw now, and sometimes can do this – one 9 hole round I drew the ball on 6 drives! But the next day I could not get a single draw. Most recently I listened to your shoulder turn lesson- wow- this really clicked with me. the next round I was hitting pretty straight all day( but not great aim). I’m excited to get to my next round with this thought for my swing. This would /could explain to me why one day straight ( turn shoulders while staying down) and one day slicing and pulling- not keeping a good shoulder turn..
    I’d love to know your thoughts on “single plane swing” sometimes I do this with my driver especially and I hit really well.
    I am playing in my golf in SE Michigan. thanks for all the relevant tips.

  7. Bob,

    Thanks for taking time to post and the kind words. The team is committed to providing good solid advice for our fellow golfers. Do you follow us on YouTube? If you find our content helpful, you would really enjoy our latest book which is a step by step process for the Vertical Line Swing https://www.badliegolfbook.com/

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