Where do you Vs point in your grip?

**juanrjackson** · April 4, 2009

Sometimes I get in the habit of slicing bad........

Do you Vs point at your right shoulder or face...for right handed players?

**Zeph** · April 4, 2009

I try to aim them at the right shoulder/side of face, yes.
It's useful to know how the grip affect your swing.

Strong right hand will pull the clubhead open
Weak right hand will push the clubhead shut

Strong left hand will pull the clubhead shut
Weak left hand will push the clubhead open

This is very easy to try yourself. First, take a neutral grip with the Vs aiming to the right shoulder. Then try to take a strong right hand. What will happen? The hand is not in a neutral position and will try to pull the grip, shaft and clubface to the right, opening the clubface. If you take a weak left hand it is still not in a neutral position and will try to push back to the left, pushing the clubface shut.

I used to have a strong right hand which pulled my clubhead open, slicing it. I've experimented with it lately and the last session I was pushing the shots 5-10 yards left. If I made a small adjustment I was back onto my target. I think grip is not taken enough into consideration when trying to correct an error. Simply knowing how the ball reacts to the clubhead will tell you that a ball ending up far right (slice) is the result of an open clubface. If the clubface is square at impact, the ball will end up pretty close to where you are aiming. The swing path may send it out to the right or left, but it will fade or draw back.

There are of course a combination in many situations. An over-the-top swing will contribute to an open clubface, but if you manage to get it square, the ball will end up where you aim.

After a shot going to the right, take notice of two things.
1: Where the ball started (left, right straight)
2: Where did it end up

If it started straight and spun to the right, the swing path is straight against the target, but the open clubface give it the spin to take off to the right. Many (myself included earlier) think that an open clubface will push the ball straight right, but this is not correct. It's the swingpath that determines which plane the ball will start on.

After figuring out how your swing path is, experiment with the grip to find out if it could be the reason why the ball spin away to either side. If you have some lines or logos on the grip which mark the square clubface position, use it to give yourself a reference point beside the clubface. You may aim only after this line since aiming with the clubface can often be difficult from your point of view.

**GaijinGolfer** · April 5, 2009

I have the Vs pointing to the right side of my face/right shoulder. I used to have a tendency to slice and going with a strong grip helped to fix this.
I was always taught that if you tend to hit the ball to the right, you want a strong grip to close the clubface at impact and that if the ball tends to go left that you want a weaker grip to open the clubface more at impact.
I find that this holds true, because if I take a weak grip I tend to hit the ball dead right.

Chunkylover77 · April 5, 2009

I have a weak grip for my short game and a strong grip for my power game.

**misty_mountainhop** · April 5, 2009

Always try to get mine at my right shoulder.

...

Apologies, but I cannot see how this makes any sense. For most people, a strong right hand (i.e. grip V pointing

right of right shoulder) will roll the clubface aggressively shut as it comes though the ball. A weak right hand (i.e. grip V pointing left of right shoulder) will prevent the face rolling as it should on the way through and you'll tend to leave the face open. How far your V has to be from the norm before you see an effect is obviously going to depend on an individual's hand action/swing.

**Zeph** · April 5, 2009

That's what I mean, but I may have misunderstood the meaning of strong and weak.

By strong, I meant the hand moving more over the grip, and by weak I meant the hand moving more under the grip.

I've searched around and see that the general perception is that a strong grip is both hands moving clockwise on the grip and a weak grip is hands moving counter-clockwise on the grip.
It made more sense in my head ( ) that a strong hand would take more over the club, while a weak hand would rotate more under it. With this view, a weak grip consist of a strong right hand and weak left hand and vica versa.

I think the hands placement in relation to eachother is the important factor. A weak or strong grip will essentially turn into an open or shut clubface. You may set up with the hands turned either way, but when you come down they will always be neutral unless you force them. By taking a strong grip and holding it strong at adress the clubface will appear square, but if you loosen up and shake the club, the hands will turn back to their neutral position and shut the clubface. A weak grip will do the same, but turn the clubface open.

Sorry for complicating things, but we have the same understanding of how the grip work the clubface, it's just that I used the words strong and weak different. I don't see how a strong grip is strong or how a weak grip is weak. The hands move around the clubface, one hand become stronger, the other weaker. Turning the hands inwards make them stronger, turning them outwards make them weaker.

**juanrjackson** · April 5, 2009

I can't remember where....but I read that a lot of pros grip so they can see 4 knuckles with their left hand with the driver...so they must have really strong grips.

**J_Bone** · April 5, 2009

Sometimes I get in the habit of slicing bad........

I point my V's toward the area between my right ear & Shoulder. Sorry to be vague, but for me it depends on what club I have and what type of shot I'm going to hit. Typically, for my Driver and Irons, point the V's toward my ear and when I hit my wedges I point them toward my shoulder.

You need to go to the Range and try a few and see what works for you. That's what finding your game is all about.

**juanrjackson** · April 6, 2009

I played again yesterday & used a really strong grip....showing 3-4 knuckles on my left hand & pointing the Vs at my right shoulder.....& basically I only had one slice.

Thanks for the pointers!

**Dub** · April 6, 2009

I can't remember where....but I read that a lot of pros grip so they can see 4 knuckles with their left hand with the driver...so they must have really strong grips.

4 knuckles showing and I'll be hooking the shiznit out of the ball.

I generally have the Vs pointing at right shoulder for most shots. I don't adjust my hands so much for draws/ fades as I do other parts of my set up, grip pressure and follow-through positions.

**lumpuckeroo** · April 6, 2009

For the most part, at my right shoulder.

**MiniMoe** · April 6, 2009

the V for my right hand points to my right shoulder. My V for my left hand points to my nose. Technically, this is a weaker left hand grip, but in reality, it makes my left hand face the target. The back of the left hand and the face are the same, so where the hand goes, the face follows. That is also why my club does not twist in my swing. I don't use the wrists to square the club... I don't have to because the club never leaves square during the swing.

**antney79** · April 6, 2009

for a right handed golfer, are you guys saying for strong or weak grip is based solely on your right hand and not your left hand.

I know some people that their "Vs" are point at two different points not just at one area.

I have a tendancy to have a fade at the end of my shots. It starts straight and then tails off to the right, I am assuming my club face is open at impact giving that fade spin.

Could fixing this be a matter of taking my grip and making it strong? From what I am reading here that is just a matter of taking my right hand and placing it more over the top on my left hand making the V face my right ear rather then my right shoulder? I will have to check this at the driving range.

What is the best club to check different grips, would the 7 iron be the best one to work with this on to find what works the best?

**chrt396** · April 6, 2009

subtle adjustments to a solid grip can affect ball flight. Grip size can affect ball flight..bigger grips adding to the fade. The body or hands getting ahead of the ball by a hair can affect ball flight. The deadly circle stays the same. I have been fighting that fade for years. It's getting less pronounced, but BOY..the checklist to prevent it keeps growing larger every day.

**misty_mountainhop** · April 6, 2009

for a right handed golfer, are you guys saying for strong or weak grip is based solely on your right hand and not your left hand.

No; it's a function of both hands. For a RHDer, I would say that the right-hand V right of your right shoulder (does that make sense!) is strong and I'd say the same for the left V. But then I tend to have both in about the same place.

I know some people that their "Vs" are point at two different points not just at one area.

They do but I think that's a personal thing. To some extent, there is no one right answer.

I have a tendancy to have a fade at the end of my shots. It starts straight and then tails off to the right, I am assuming my club face is open at impact giving that fade spin.

If you want a stronger RHD grip, you want to move your right V more in the direction of your right shoulder

away from your face.

What is the best club to check different grips, would the 7 iron be the best one to work with this on to find what works the best?

As good as anything.

On the subject of the role of the different hands in the swing, I was always coached that the left hand controls how square the face is at impact while the right hand controls the way the club face rolls through. You need to experiment a bit with varying the position of both of them and monitor the effects on flight. Don't assume it's all grip though.

**SasQuatch<3** · April 8, 2009

Maybe thats why my drives seem to drift into a slice!

**MrKadash** · April 8, 2009

the V for my right hand points to my right shoulder. My V for my left hand points to my nose. Technically, this is a weaker left hand grip, but in reality, it makes my left hand face the target. The back of the left hand and the face are the same, so where the hand goes, the face follows. That is also why my club does not twist in my swing. I don't use the wrists to square the club... I don't have to because the club never leaves square during the swing.

Ditto this for myself. Now if I could only ditto my handicap to yours.

**Brakkus** · April 9, 2009

Yes this thread caught my eye as today I was hooking 50 yds to the left.My swing didn't feel different,I can see 2 knuckles and my right hand,the palm is side on to the target line approx,and I get a nice draw of about 5-10 yds,but today well left,but then I realised I was squeezing the grip hard at impact my forearms would tighten and the club face closed by quite a few degrees.

Grip is the one fundamental I always check and I must remember to leave them as dead as I can through impact.

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Where do you Vs point in your grip?

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