Should I change my grip at 36??

[dpgator33]

I've golfed on and off for pretty much my entire adult life, starting with a golf class I took as a junior in high school.  From the start, I always used an interlocking grip, and my shot flight was anywhere from a slight cut to an occasional slice, especially with a driver.  In my mid-20s I got away from the game a little, but I always had clubs and played when invited.

At some point, due to comfort or maybe just losing the feel of the interlocking grip, I went to a 10 finger grip.  At around 30-31 I started playing again on a more regular basis, probably 10-15 times a year, not a ton but I did at least get new clubs and hit the range every now and then.

In the last few years I've started playing at least once a month, sometimes 4+ rounds a month, and I've stuck with a 10-finger grip.  I never had lessons aside from the high school class, but I did study my swing and work on technique, etc.  In the past year especially I've taken up the game as more of an obsession than a hobby.  Moving across the country has now become infinitely more appealing in order to find better golfing weather, and my life plan involves joining a club one day soon after my son, now 17, has finished school.

Over the last 6 months or so, what was a moderate draw in my shot shape has become pretty much a straight hook, at least with anything from a 6-iron up.  My driver doesn't seem to be affected as much, but it's become a problem that I've struggled to fix, no matter what I do with my stance, swing plane...pretty much everything but the base of my grip I've tweaked at some point.  I honestly never even thought about it.

Then yesterday I'm at the range with some friends, one of whom is pretty good and knows the golf swing pretty well.  I was warming up and just throwing darts with my wedges and my 9, then I bumped up to my 7 and just started hooking everything.  My buddy asked if he might offer a few tips, so he had me widen my stance, slow down my backswing, put the ball up in my stance...nothing really worked.  Then he noticed my grip and said right away "oh man, you need to use a different grip."

I was hesitant, but I grabbed a 9 with an overlapping grip and just blasted it dead straight (not exactly where I was aiming because of my draw/hook) about 150 yards.  Everyone was like "whoa dude, where did that come from"

I had about 20 balls left and whacked about 15 of them, from 7-iron to 5 iron, even a few 7W shots, all dead straight or with a slight cut, and LONG - like 210 5-iron, 220+ 7W, and I wasn't even swinging hard, maybe 80%.  It felt very strange to be gripping the club that way, and I'm afraid of taking it to the course right away (I have a bunch of scrambles and even a two day tournament coming up in the next few months)

Any thoughts or experiences that I can draw on for advice?  I'm kind of excited about the possibilities, but also nervous about doing something so drastic that could really blow up my game completely.

[geauxforbroke]

There's nothing wrong with a 10 finger grip. Bob Estes experimented with it and had some success, but ultimately switched back to an interlocking grip. If it's something you feel you need to change (and from what you've said, it sounds like a worth while change) then you have to commit to it. Any change as drastic as a grip change takes time, and there will be times that you're tempted to go back to the 10 finger.

[NuclearMike]

I'm 56 and changed from 10 finger to Overlap this year.  It seems to work for me as well.

[wadesworld]

As long as your grip position is solid, any of the grip styles will work.  But in whatever style you choose, the fundamentals have to be there. You have to hold the club in the fingers, not the palms.  The grip has to be neutral enough so that your wrists can hinge correctly, etc.  An interlocking grip without good fundaments is worse than a 10-finger grip that has good fundamentals.

The primary advantage to changing to interlocking or overlapping is exactly what you experienced  - more people are familiar with those grip styles, including pros.  So, using one of those, you're less likely to have some pro (or friend) trying to tell you you need to change your style of grip.

[dpgator33]

Originally Posted by wadesworld

As long as your grip position is solid, any of the grip styles will work.  But in whatever style you choose, the fundamentals have to be there. You have to hold the club in the fingers, not the palms.  The grip has to be neutral enough so that your wrists can hinge correctly, etc.  An interlocking grip without good fundaments is worse than a 10-finger grip that has good fundamentals.

The primary advantage to changing to interlocking or overlapping is exactly what you experienced  - more people are familiar with those grip styles, including pros.  So, using one of those, you're less likely to have some pro (or friend) trying to tell you you need to change your style of grip.

I'm pretty confident that the grip I was using was fundamentally sound as far as placement on the club, it was my execution of the swing with that grip that was flawed somehow.  I didn't realize it until after I swung a few times with an interlocking grip just how much my right hand was turning over before impact.  I mean, I knew it was happening based on the shot shape (hook) and trajectory (lower than it should be) I just couldn't get it to stop no matter how many reps I took.  With my short experiment with the interlocking grip last night, I could feel how much longer I was able to keep the face square to the target, which obviously leads to the desired result of hitting at the point of aim with the proper trajectory.

Thanks for all the responses.  I think I'm going to roll with this interlocking grip for a few trips to the range and a "practice" round or two.  Of course, if my score reflects the improvement that I'm hoping/expecting, I'll record it ;)

[WUTiger]

Originally Posted by wadesworld

As long as your grip position is solid, any of the grip styles will work.  But in whatever style you choose, the fundamentals have to be there. You have to hold the club in the fingers, not the palms.  The grip has to be neutral enough so that your wrists can hinge correctly, etc. ...

As a kid, I tried about all the grips at one time or another, including the 10-finger/baseball grip. From age 18 until last year, I played with an overlap. I switched to an interlock as part of my battle of overswinging on my backswing. The interlock seems to help me get a consistent brake/set point at the top.

Since changing to interlock and getting a quicker wrist-cock, I've put several irons shots in close for birdies this summer. (Now, it I can quit hooking my long clubs OB maybe I can break 90 on occasion.)

Interesting on the teaching pros hand grip: Years ago individual pros were dogmatic about either interlock, or overlap. Now, it seems to be "whatever works, just be consistent."

[mvmac]

Originally Posted by dpgator33

It felt very strange to be gripping the club that way, and I'm afraid of taking it to the course right away (I have a bunch of scrambles and even a two day tournament coming up in the next few months)

Any thoughts or experiences that I can draw on for advice?  I'm kind of excited about the possibilities, but also nervous about doing something so drastic that could really blow up my game completely.

Feeling strange is a good thing when making changes, it means you're not reverting back.  Grip can usually be an easy change to make.  You can practice it 10 minutes a day at home watching TV, before bed, etc.  I'd say stick with it for a couple weeks, maybe get a round in and evaluate for yourself.  If you seem to hit better shots, then keep it up.

[dpgator33]

Originally Posted by mvmac

Feeling strange is a good thing when making changes, it means you're not reverting back.  Grip can usually be an easy change to make.  You can practice it 10 minutes a day at home watching TV, before bed, etc.  I'd say stick with it for a couple weeks, maybe get a round in and evaluate for yourself.  If you seem to hit better shots, then keep it up.

that's pretty much my plan.  I'm a 9-5er during the week but I live close to home so sometimes I come home for lunch and get some practice swings in, plus a couple evenings at the range on the way home from work lately.  I'm going to try to sneak in a round early on Sunday at a pretty easy/open course with a bunch of short 90 degree dogleg par 4s which should make for a lot of short and mid-irons.