Strong grip

[mtsalmela80]

Butch Harmon offered a tip on how to get rid of pushes in golf digest, basically saying if your torso turns too fast for your arms, your arms will be left behind, leaving your clubface open. As it was stated, a stronger grip can remedy that (that is my solution to the problem!), but it may not be correct. As someone with a chronic push, the tip sounds pretty good. I will certainly give it some thought the next time Im at the range.

Maybe someone here can confirm the idea.

[Zeph]

A strong grip may put a band aid on a chronic push, but that does not fix the problem. If you got a flat tire on your car, do you install a fifth wheel, or do you fix the one that is flat?

[Travtex]

A strong grip may put a band aid on a chronic push, but that does not fix the problem. If you got a flat tire on your car, do you install a fifth wheel, or do you fix the one that is flat?

Well, as I said -- I've had problems with a push, and have been playing with what I think the consensus was a "SUPER" strong grip. Now, I also like to throw in as many if not more hooks and pull hooks so if what you tend to do is consistently push it a hair, then maybe a grip tweak can band-aid it. Just thinking from what I've experienced (Admittedly little) you can hit a push with any old grip. Problem for me there is rotating my forearms all over the damn place, I think.

[Keep It Simple]

Give the stronger grip a try see what it yields. Two knuckles visible on the left hand is commonly considered strong and three knuckles borders on extreme. And don't listen to bad advice about a neutral grip being better. Somebody telling you definitively about what grip to use without looking at your swing has no business giving out advice.

[Zeph]

Somebody telling you definitively about what grip to use without looking at your swing has no business giving out advice.

And yet here you are doing the same thing.

I don't see people saying what grip he should use, but that he should be catious about doing so. He mentioned that he believe he rolls the arms on the takeaway because it feels natural. Well, the golf swing is probably the least natural sport that exist, breaking away from what you've been doing for years is the only way to improve. If you practice making a change and everything feels like normal, chances are you are not doing anything different. Like I mentioned earlier, if the grip is not very weak, making it stronger to get rid a of a push is not a good idea if he is turning the club face open. He still have to time it perfectly when playing. With a stronger grip, he could end up pulling it instead of pushing. Of course a video would be preferable, but when none is offered, we have to go with what the OP says.

[Keep It Simple]

And yet here you are doing the same thing.

No, I am telling him to give it a try and see what happens. I am not telling him it is the correct thing to do. But if he tries it and it works........

There are advantages and disadvantages to different grips and the choice should be made based on the players swing and ability. Not all players are built with the same level of athleticism and not everyone is trying to make the PGA tour. A strong grip can sometimes make it easier for a player to square the clubface in absence of strength and coordination.

[Zeph]

You don't have to be an athlete to keep the club face square. The reason why many struggle with keeping it square is because they roll it open in the first place. Of course, a lot of teachers teach exactly that. Rolling it open so you can close it on the downswing. This is hard to get right when trying to maintain the flying wedge at the same time, and the extra speed gained from opening and closing the club face is so small it is hardly worth the effort. Opening the club face means you got another detail in the swing that has to be timed perfectly swing after swing. If you manage to keep the club face more square to the plane throughout the swing, you will be more accurate.

[cutshot878]

Old thread, I know. My apologies. Most of the pros on the PGA Tour use a strong grip or a mixed grip with at least one strong hand right?

http://www.aroundhawaii.com/lifestyle/health_and_fitness/2011-09-pga-tour-grip-styles-part-2.html

It's become a "power game" right? Hitting 200 yard 8 irons. Granted those 8 irons have strong lofts but still. Grip it strong and use your core and big muscles to move the clubhead, not the small muscles of the arms and hands with a neutral or weak grip in a perfectly timed flip. When I watch the young guns all I see is a strong grip, a huge shoulder turn on the backswing and then a massive explosive hip clearing move that allows the clubhead to free-wheel straight into the back of the ball with tremendous velocity?  Think Scott Stallings, Harris English and Shawn Stefani.   What's wrong with a strong grip?  It seems to work on the PGA Tour? Your average club player isn't flexible or strong enough to use his big muscles?   A little help from the Sand Trap admin gurus?  I stand at the Oracle, awaiting the answer. Humbly.

[iacas]

I don't think the average PGA Tour player has a strong grip. If neutral is 0 and weak is -10 and 10 is strong, I'd probably imagine the average is 1 to 2.

Strong grips tend to have players starting the ball right with more loft (pushes, push-draws, push-cuts). Weaker grips tend to roll the face and play more of a pull-fade. Generally speaking.

[Brakkus]

Plus 1 on the issue of opening the face with your wrists. I have a habit of hitting the occasional push its probably my main miss. When my grip was strong I could hit it 20 yards right. Went more neutral and just about cured the problem but I now work on scroll where I maintain my hands at address later into my swing and then my natural wrist break seems to put the weight into my trigger finger. I know when I have turned my wrist because the weight feels like it goes into the palm. Now I have gone more neutral my club face stays square longer. I hit some 5 irons yesterday caught some of them real pure one went out to 200 yards. In fact 7 months ago I could barely get past the 150 marker. To say I'm pleased is an understatement. My club averages have gone up I estimate by about 20 yards. Mainly I would say the grip change has been the biggest effect along with other things I implemented.

[ChuckDee]

Originally Posted by wildcorndog

I am considering out of desperation changing my grip to a stronger grip to get rid of my very bad push.... But how much is to much when it comes to how strong ur grip is?

Worse move I ever made, regarding my golf swing was to try and start to play a draw.  Before I knew it, I had started to duck hook my drives.  I should have just stuck to my gentle fade swing.  It was consistent and reliable.

[saevel25]

Originally Posted by wildcorndog

I am considering out of desperation changing my grip to a stronger grip to get rid of my very bad push.... But how much is to much when it comes to how strong ur grip is?

A stronger grip will promote a push, a weaker grip will promote a pull.

A grip depends on the person. One person might hit perfect push draws with there hands very Strong, V's pointing towards the right shoulder. Or Some might hit duck hooks with that grip.

[Yukari]

Just what I was looking for!

Lately, I was having problem with push as well.  Having read through this thread, it dawned on me that I too tend to roll my wrist on the back swing when I get too comfortable with my swing.  I had forgotten that rolling my wrist was problem before, but now I realize that is probably what I am doing.

I can't wait to get out tomorrow and try to eliminate the rolling my left wrist on the back swing.

TST is great site for information - even the ones I've forgotten!!!

[Strandly]

What do you mean rolling the wrists?  Do you mean failing to maintain a flat left wrist?

[JCRuzanski]

Sounds like he means what I was doing, a clockwise roll at the beginning of the back swing, which opens the clubface almost instantly. [quote name="Strandly" url="/t/34906/strong-grip/30#post_904973"]What do you mean rolling the wrists?  Do you mean failing to maintain a flat left wrist? [/quote]

[Strandly]

Oh so turning the club so it's sort of horizontal to the ground?  That makes some sense if that's what's going on.  I had a short phase of this and was pushing the ball right as well but I identified it by flat shoulders during the backswing.  The wrist rolling and flat shoulders probably go hand in hand for this problem.

[JCRuzanski]

For me it was a turning of the club with the left wrist... if you stop your backswing when it's parallel to the ground the clubface should be slightly closed, so I've had success with... the rolling of my wrist on takeaway happened because I thought the face should have been parallel also... wrong.