Grip Pressure

[CaptStubins]

Help

I keep hearing that your grip pressure should be as light as possible. I recently tried gripping my putter more tightly and my putting has improved vastly. I am now able to control the clubhead better, my stroke is tighter and the ball rolls perfectly end-over-end when I put a line on it. I am going to try the same thing with my full swing and see what happens. In the mean time, does anyone else advocate a tighter grip? Thanks in advance.

[MidWestPro]

Nope.

 

A tighter grip means tightened fore-arms which is bad especially in putting. This takes all flow away from putting and your full swing and you start to steer the club into the ball which is never good. It has to be a natural motion.

[TML]

I'm not sure how you can grip the putter like that. In fact, putting is so natural when the putter could almost slip out of my hands. If I place any pressure on the grip, I lose all feel.

[tarik]

I agree, a tighter grip will make distance control harder and will prevent the putter head from releasing. But hey, if it works! :golfer:

[jeffy]

I think too light a grip can be a problem if there is no sensation of the fingers gripping the club. What I find effective is Manuel de la Torre's advice to grip the club feeling some pressure in ALL ten fingers. He says it is very important to keep the grip pressure CONSTANT throughout the swing. He also advises that you not consciously think about how tight to grip it; that should happen subconsciously.

[crew_138]

I definitely would not grip tighter on your full swing... bad juju. The centrifugal force will do that for you. Keep grip light on full swing... but the putt swing is to each his own. If your grip is tight then you forearms are tense and will cause you to push and pull shots.

[taylormadefan]

I definitely would not grip tighter on your full swing... bad juju. The centrifugal force will do that for you. Keep grip light on full swing... but the putt swing is to each his own. If your grip is tight then you forearms are tense and will cause you to push and pull shots.

 

It's also the design of a golf grip / shaft that will aid in that.

 

That's why golf grips are so thick in the butt and taper down to be so narrow closer to the clubhead. That way even with centrifugal force, the club won't fly out of your hand even with light grip pressure since the thick butt section resists it.

 

With that said, do what works best for YOU. You've got nothing to lose by giving it a shot, and if it works better, then more power to you!