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Switching From Interlock to Overlap Grip


Bearhawk
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Hey guys,

 

I was a 10 finger guy until I got my first lesson in April. Switched to an interlock and have put alot of effort into my swing this summer. Still, after 5 months of hitting the range 3 times a week and playing on Sundays I’m still struggling to release the club and square the face. Too many open face shanks with irons and wedges, and I have felt like I’m losing speed causing me to overswing.

 

After playing a round with my old high school coach he highly suggested switching to an overlap grip. I hit a half bucket of half shots and feel like the release is more natural allowing me to not feel like I have to manufacture a square face but the grip does feel a little less secure. 

 

Anyone make this switch or have any insight. I feel like I’ve wasted quite a bit of time working with an interlocked grip and wanted to be sure before I invest more time in another fundamental change.

 

Thanks in advance!

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I use an overlap grip, it's just what is comfortable for me. I have short fat fingers so the interlock grip always felt uncomfortable. As long as your grip is otherwise sound fundamentally it really doesn't matter which of the two you choose.

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I switched from an interlock to an overlap because the overlap was more comfortable.   It took a few rounds to feel natural but now seems second nature.  

From the land of perpetual cloudiness.   I'm Denny

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I used to be interlock too.  I switched because I started getting pain in my right pinkie finger.   It took a bit before it was second nature.  sort of like crossing your arms differently - have to think about it for a minute and it feels weird while your doing it.   I'd say to took a few rounds for me before I stopped thinking about it.  Until then it felt more weird to me than it affecting the outcome of the shot.

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Thanks for the responses. This only came up because I was growing increasingly frustrated with open face shots at the range last night so with the last 20 balls I decided to just grab a wedge and hit a few pitch shots with an overlap grip. Results were surprisingly good, and excited to give it a go in full today with a range of clubs/shots.

 

I did take 3 driver swings with water balls I picked up Sunday and looked like I had picked up at least 10 yards. The big stick felt very natural with the grip change.

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I switched a few years ago from interlock to overlap because my right pinky nail would dig in. It took about 3 months to get comfortable, but I'm glad I did. I don't think it affected my clubface control though.

Scott

Titleist, Edel, Scotty Cameron Putter, Snell - AimPoint - Evolvr - MirrorVision

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boogielicious - Adjective describing the perfect surf wave

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In high school I learned with the interlocking grip which was never comfortable for me.  Years later after reading Hogan I switched to the overlapping grip.  This took a year or two before I was comfortable, but still felt better for me. My hands are about the same size as "The Golden Bear's" which is average to small.  

As I got older, I wasn't comfortable again so about 10-15 years ago I switched to the ten finger grip. Now in my mid-60's, this is very comfortable for me. Each change took a year or two before it felt natural. 

Enjoy the progress of your adjustments.  There are other changes too as we get older, strengths, injuries, flexibility, aggressiveness, etc that require us to make modifications in how we play this great game. 

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  • iacas changed the title to Switching From Interlock to Overlap Grip

Being more of a baseball player than a golfer, I started golf with a 10 finger grip. Used it for a couple years, before being taught the basic Vardon over lap grip. I fine tuned the Vardon grip into my own version,  which helped me consistently square the club face up at impact.  

By "fine tune" I mean I rotated my hands to different positions, while opening, and closing the club face at set up. Eventually I found the right combination of grip/club face that gave me consistent ball flights. 

At one point, I even gave Jim Furyk's double over lap grip a try. WOW! What a "loosie goosie" grip that was for me.  Might have even  worked for me, except I didn't have his looping swing. 

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On 9/17/2019 at 1:13 PM, boogielicious said:

I switched a few years ago from interlock to overlap because my right pinky nail would dig in. It took about 3 months to get comfortable, but I'm glad I did. I don't think it affected my clubface control though.

That's my story. I used to gouge a hole in that little pocket between the knuckles of my index and middle finger of my left hand. I started with the interlock because that's what Nicklaus did, and if Nicklaus did it that must be the way to do it! Eventually I switched to the overlap or "Vardon" grip and have played it ever since. 

As an experiment, earlier this year I tried changing back to the interlock. I couldn't hit the ball worth a damn! Admittedly, I didn't spend a lot of time on that experiment. I'm 67 now, and not looking to make any huge changes in my game, and to my mind a change in your grip, other than just strengthening or weakening it a bit, is a huge change! 

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  • 1 year later...

I am thinking of making the switch from interlocking. Reason being for whatever reason I cannot seem to make a stronger grip with it. Does this make any sense? 

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1 hour ago, jmanbooyaa said:

I am thinking of making the switch from interlocking. Reason being for whatever reason I cannot seem to make a stronger grip with it. Does this make any sense? 

Of course. Grip is such a personal thing really. To each his own. Sometimes my grip feels like I’m holding a knotted oak branch. And I cannot keep my trail hand on the grip at the top of my swing. I can do it slowly over and over but as soon as I take a real swing...off it goes.

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I switched to interlocking because right side of my hand hurt when making a swing and an interlocking took the pain away. 

Matt Dougherty, P.E.
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I started out with the overlap (Vardon) grip.  Over the years I have experimented in practice rounds with the double overlap and even the triple overlap!  I've also played with the concept of the trigger finger down the grip.  All "mad scientist" experiments.  All failures... but I learned something.  I learned to never do those things again.

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On 9/17/2019 at 9:35 AM, Bearhawk said:

Thanks for the responses. This only came up because I was growing increasingly frustrated with open face shots at the range last night so with the last 20 balls I decided to just grab a wedge and hit a few pitch shots with an overlap grip. Results were surprisingly good, and excited to give it a go in full today with a range of clubs/shots.

 

I did take 3 driver swings with water balls I picked up Sunday and looked like I had picked up at least 10 yards. The big stick felt very natural with the grip change.

I'm not a swing coach and my handicap is my proof. I do think grip changes can be one of the hardest changes to make. I played with an interlock grip in my misspent youth and, after I came back to golf after a 25 year hiatus, I found that an interlock grip hurt too much and I couldn't get used to the overlap so I went to a ten finger grip. Now, after a year of golf, I'm back with the interlock and it's working pretty well for me.

You say that you did better with the overlap grip compared to the interlock but I bet you would have felt even better if you'd gone back to the ten finger grip instead of the overlap as that's what you say you used to use. I'd suggest (as we always do) posting a video in the Member Swings section to ensure there isn't also something else in your grip or swing that might be causing an open face with the interlock grip. Perhaps it's too weak or perhaps you're not getting enough rotation or....

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13 hours ago, jmanbooyaa said:

I am thinking of making the switch from interlocking. Reason being for whatever reason I cannot seem to make a stronger grip with it. Does this make any sense? 

I switched from interlocking because my right pinky nail would dig into my left hand. I have no issue with a stronger grip with either, but overlap feels normal to me now. It took about a month for it to feel normal after the change.

Scott

Titleist, Edel, Scotty Cameron Putter, Snell - AimPoint - Evolvr - MirrorVision

My Swing Thread

boogielicious - Adjective describing the perfect surf wave

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I learned with Vardon and I've always used it. It's the way I roll. 

Julia

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  • 2 weeks later...

I started out with the baseball grip as I felt I could keep the face more square. About a year later I switched to the interlock as it gave me better slingshot effect and increased clubhead speed. But I've been feeling the interlock to be squirrelly as far as controlling the clubhead so have migrated to the overlap, which feels better and better now, good blend of lag and face control. I am also using ten finger grip for wedges as my swing there can be slower and I like the increased stability. 

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Note: This thread is 1257 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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