grip

[curly1889]

if i have my right thumb for a righty pointing down the club shaft line like right on top of the grip is that bad ?

[Carter]

Re: grip

Generally speaking, yes, it's very bad. This means that you are likely exerting excess pressure with your right forefinger and thumb - a kind of pincer grip - and you are probably doing the same with your left hand. This is a big no-no as it creates excess tension in your arms and prevents any chance you have of making a good wrist hinge and subsequently a good swing (I should know, I used to have exactly the kind of grip you describe).

It also indicates that you are probably holding the club too much in the palms of your hands rather than in the fingers. In fact, you want to grip the club primarily in the last three fingers of each hand.

When you put your right hand correctly in place on the club, a "V" will be formed between your thumb and forefinger - it is this "V" which effectively sits on top of the shaft (i.e. your right thumb rests slightly to the left side of the shaft and the base of your right forefinger slightly to the right side of the shaft - your thumb will definitely not point down the shaft).

Take a look at this pic:

http://bobmenzies.com/content/images/tips/rc_grip3.jpg

Rather than relying on advice from a hacker like me , I would highly recommend that you go out and buy Ben Hogan's book "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf". It has an entire chapter devoted to the correct grip and is one of the most comprehensive descriptions you can find.

[Tmason]

Re: grip

I would highly recommend that you go out and buy Ben Hogan's book "Five Lessons: The Modern Fundamentals of Golf". It has an entire chapter devoted to the correct grip and is one of the most comprehensive descriptions you can find.

A must read for ANY golfer. Too much good info in this book, dunno why it's not more popular.

[msklar92]

Re: grip

part of the problem with right thumb directly down the shaft is that it tends to promote the first move of the downswing with the hands (casting)

[shootin4par]

Re: grip

the reall issues with the right or left thumb pointing down the shaft is when you push on the grip with them you loose angle. Take a club and hold it up at chest high with the wrist cocked, now have both thumbs pointing down the shaft. holding the club push your right thumb harder, you shoul loose angle, do the same with your left as well and again you loose angle. Now put the thumbs a little to the side, right on left side of shaft and left on right side of shaft. Now do the same thing. Now the thumb will move around the shaft, kind of like sliding off, but the angle should remain fairly consistent between your arms and clubshaft. Now in a full swing it would be dumb to think of relaxed thumbs, you want no conscious effort when thinking of pressure points in your hands. put thumbs on the shaft so they are not centered and you wont have to think about them.