tension

[Z][GGY]

I seem to suffer from just too much ... in my grip through my arms and upper torso. i really try to stay loose even more so in my grip but once i start my downswing the white knuckle grip of death creeps in lol

Anyone got any tips as i'm sure this is a common fault :P

[Dynamix]

Marijuana... It'll chill you out

[Z][GGY]

Marijuana... It'll chill you out

No thanks and erm no thanks :P

[Dynamix]

Well suit yourself

[tasker]

Same issue with me - no, not the marijuana

I have been working so hard on the swing this year and made great progress, except for the tension in my arms and hands. So over the past two weeks I have been "letting" the arms and hands stay loose (i mean really loose, like it feels club will escape loose) and trusting it. And you know, it has worked. But it takes constant vigilance, at least for me. So I now use my practice swings in this totally off the charts loose manner and it seems to be helping. So my general conclusion is that it is REALLY hard to actually lose the club despite having a looser connection to the club, so you CAN trust it by relaxing the tension without fear of mortal danger.

[B-Con]

I've also had tension problems. A few techniques I've tried that brought a little success:

* I would stand at address, completely relax every muscle in my arms and hands to the point where the club's just barely in my hand and then slowly re-tighten to the desire point.
* At the top of my backswing, I remind myself that the objective is to swing my hands fast, the left arm is just a catalyst.
* Before I hit I remind myself that the grip is tapered, the butt end is thicker than the middle part, and that my glove sticks to the grip. I'll hold the club very loosely and waggle it around a bit just to convince myself that even if I hold it very loosely the club can't fly out of my hand.

[Z][GGY]

Cheers guys great tips I shall endeavour to reduce the white knuckle ride lol

[ohiolefty]

As long as your left elbow and wrist aren't breaking down, you should try to eliminate all tension. Easier said than done, I realize.

I find that tension makes my bad shots worse. I play with a strong grip and when I get tense the duck hook can result. Nobody likes a duck hook, especially the folks coming up the next fairway.

[soloredd]

You know what has helped me lately? Sounds kind of lame, I know, but I vision Fred Couples and his pre-shot routine right before he hits the ball. He just looks so damn nonchalant when he stands behind the ball and I have begun to incorporate that same thinking. It's tough to not tense up but in my opinion if you can think of other things besides you addressing the ball, it helps.

[$2 Nassau]

As you are addressing the ball, try to identify which parts of your body are tense. It's actually very easy to do and probably takes 2 seconds. Then just simply take a deep breath and relax those body parts. I know this sounds silly, but try it, and don't swing until you've identified all those tense body parts and relaxed them. Again, this only take a few seconds.

[Z][GGY]

Well tried my best today to stay loose but it just got worse all of my body was tense lol I think part of it is my lack of flexibility and overall fitness for which I'll work on over winter and considering i have been only playing just over a year possibly time for some lessons to make sure i'm getting the fundamentals right :)

[saevel25]

-Make sure your grips are good, if they start slipping you will start gripping harder
-Strengthen your grip so you know you have a grip even though the tension is lighter, good way is to squeeze a tennis ball, or try to ring out a towel and hold it as tight as you can

I jsut think most people don't realize how little they have to grip the club to keep control of it, its more of a trust thing.

[Z][GGY]

-Make sure your grips are good, if they start slipping you will start gripping harder

I totally understand my practice swings feel really good but it's when I get over the ball lol I suppose i'm on the right track knowing I have a tension problem lol

[SteelCitySlice]

I have the same exact problem with my grip. I read somewhere (I think an issue of Golf Digest) that a good way to tell that you have a nice, relaxed, even grip pressure is the wear on your glove. If certain areas of your glove wear faster than others, then you know you have an uneven, tense grip. My glove ALWAYS wears out on the thumb first. Is this a good tell for a tense grip or does this happen with other people as well regardless of grip pressure?

[Tomboys]

I've also had tension problems. A few techniques I've tried that brought a little success:

I've found that the opposite works for me. If I focus on swinging the hands fast, I tend to put a death grip on my clubs and I usually end up flipping/coming OTT and wearing a hole in my glove towards the outside part of my palm (towards the butt of the club). As a result (to correct my flip/OTT), my instructor had me focus on swinging the arms more and the hands less. The results were better ballstriking and no more holes in my gloves.

Understandably, everybody is different, so I'm not disagreeing with your thought process because it works for you. Rather, I'm just sharing what's worked for me.

[saevel25]

i guess it might take practice, try to swing slowly and see if you can tell if your hands grip it more during the swing, and try to keep constant pressure.

I know that my swing has good pressure because my hands get no blisters at all after practicing for a while, i wear no glove

[B-Con]

I've found that the opposite works for me. If I focus on swinging the hands fast, I tend to put a death grip on my clubs and I usually end up flipping/coming OTT and wearing a hole in my glove towards the outside part of my palm (towards the butt of the club). As a result (to correct my flip/OTT), my instructor had me focus on swinging the arms more and the hands less. The results were better ballstriking and no more holes in my gloves.

Interesting point.

Apparently we have opposite tendencies, so we need to have opposite swing thoughts. I've had too tight a grip sometimes, sure, but my main tension problem is almost always in my left arm, so if I specifically focus on my left arm at all I set myself up to tense it. That thought works for me because I need to not focusing my arm to avoid tensing it, but I can intellectually keep myself from tensing my hand so thinking about it doesn't hurt me. Sounds like you're the opposite. Just goes to show that one swing thought doesn't fit all.

[Z][GGY]

I've found that the opposite works for me. If I focus on swinging the hands fast, I tend to put a death grip on my clubs and I usually end up flipping/coming OTT and wearing a hole in my glove towards the outside part of my palm (towards the butt of the club). As a result (to correct my flip/OTT), my instructor had me focus on swinging the arms more and the hands less. The results were better ballstriking and no more holes in my gloves.

been checking some of my old gloves (yes I keep some for practice lol) and everything you have said is me to a tee (pardon the pun) I really think it's time to have my 1st golf lesson, I have really enjoyed my first season with golf albeit frustrating sometimes I'm really glad I found this forum as everyone is so helpful cheers guys :)