Proper grip

[Alohaed]

Reading the thread on AK choking up on his clubs got me thinking. What is really considered choking on your grip? Whether it be how far down or how much of the top of the club's grip is exposed? Similarly for the correct grip, the same question. As I've stated some time ago, choking on my driver and 3 wood made a huge difference. I am hitting them straight and far. No more slice. I don't have a club handy, but I think I have about an inch of the grip exposed.

[Shanks A Million]

Reading the thread on AK choking up on his clubs got me thinking. What is really considered choking on your grip? Whether it be how far down or how much of the top of the club's grip is exposed? Similarly for the correct grip, the same question. As I've stated some time ago, choking on my driver and 3 wood made a huge difference. I am hitting them straight and far. No more slice. I don't have a club handy, but I think I have about an inch of the grip exposed.

When you address the ball, you should be able to see the grip cap. That's about all. If you grip down low enough that a decent amount of the grip is showing, you are choking up.

I have no real hard data on this, but I can try to explain it here. The reason choking up works so well is all about leverage. We all know about the simple machine called the lever. A golf club is the same as a lever. Recall that a shorter lever requires less force to manipulate the same amount of opposing force. When you choke down, you're holding the club closer to the fulcrum (center). The center of gravity in a club is about 1/4 of the way from the toe to the grip cap. This means that when you hold the club, the ball exerts about three times as much force as it would if you hit it with the clubhead in your hand. By the same token, you can exert three times as much force on the club (the actual full swing changes this quite a bit though.) Because of all this, a longer lever requries more precision to use. Try flipping a light switch with your finger, and a ten foot pole, and see which one is harder. When you choke up, you reduce the ratio, and it takes less precision to execute the shot. As you get better, your small muscles that provide balance in the swing will be able to control the club better. For this reason, it will become easier to hit longer irons. However, that's not the only issue with long irons, but that's a topic for discussion later.

[laquintaboy82]

theres no such thing as a proper grip just do what feels right to you and what works for you theres no such thing as a grip you must use i tried most fundamentals that are considered proper but didnt work for me dont feel obligated to do what peolpe say , heck everybodys different i grip tighter,i swing harder and i hit the ball further than most. with my irons if i want to draw it in i actually open my stance a bit because standing parallel is proper but to me my dominant eye is my back eye and with my open stance it allows me to see and feel down the target line. so do what works for you not what shanks a million times or anyone else says you have to do.