Club Slip

[billchao]

That's just not how the body works. In order for you to maintain a constant grip pressure then you would have to think about your grip pressure throughout your entire swing which would be counter productive. There is no need to have a "firm" grip at address because the club only weighs a pound or so therefore you would have to consciously increase your grip pressure to where you "think" it will need to be at impact when it meets resistance from the ball and then the turf. When you pick up a coffee cup or a 50 lb dumbell you don't consciously monitor your grip pressure as your body naturally anticipates the weight it is about to pick up and adjusts accordingly.

It's a feel. Also, I disagree with you, but this isn't the right thread for that discussion.

[mvmac]

It's a feel. Also, I disagree with you, but this isn't the right thread for that discussion.

Yeah obviously the pressure will be changing, how much not sure, but I think the point of your post is that it never starts "loosey goosey".

[Righty to Lefty]

Yeah obviously the pressure will be changing, how much not sure, but I think the point of your post is that it never starts "loosey goosey".

Agreed....the grip pressure will be enough to maintain control of the club and the body will adjust accordingly as the club is swung.

[MS256]

Describing grip pressure on a number scale is very hard to do because, as others have said, we don't all have the same hand strength. A 3 on a scale of 1 to 5 means an entirely different pressure to my wife as it would mean to me.

The description of "a business handshake" that I've heard used is pretty good because different people with different strength can relate to it fairly equally.

[joekelly]

We all have seen the tape on Tiger's right fingers. If he is getting grip burn and sores on those fingers, something is rubbing or moving and he wants to mitigate the damage and keep an acceptable grip pressure, hence the tape.

My experience tells me that some of my fingers grip tightly, others loosely. Surely the right hand and fingers are on the grip 'like a bird' but the left little and ring fingers especially grip much more tightly. And, not bragging or nottin, but i've got sores just like Tiger.

[iacas]

I read once that Tiger wears tape as a superstition. He wore it once out of necessity, played well, and so he wears it now. I don't think it has much of anything to do with getting blisters or anything.

[MS256]

We all have seen the tape on Tiger's right fingers. If he is getting grip burn and sores on those fingers, something is rubbing or moving and he wants to mitigate the damage and keep an acceptable grip pressure, hence the tape.

My experience tells me that some of my fingers grip tightly, others loosely. Surely the right hand and fingers are on the grip 'like a bird' but the left little and ring fingers especially grip much more tightly. And, not bragging or nottin, but i've got sores just like Tiger.

I always wondered why Tiger was better than me. I don't get blisters. (Just joking).

Something else about grip and grip pressure that's worth experimenting with for people having problems:

For a while I was having trouble with pulls and none of the usual answers added up. Turned out that although my grip looked OK at address when I added extra pressure during the swing the club face was slightly rolling shut. It was an easy fix once I figured it out just by standing in the living room with a "normal" grip pressure and then adding pressure to simulate what I might do during a swing and making sure the club face didn't roll.

Mostly consisted of getting in the habit of adding pressure if at all to be from the fingers pressing up from the second joint and not a contraction of the joints that join the palm, which was rolling the club.

P.S. I probably have the club more in the fingers than most golfers and am probably more susceptible to that problem.

[billchao]

Yeah obviously the pressure will be changing, how much not sure, but I think the point of your post is that it never starts "loosey goosey".

Yes, thank you, that's exactly what I mean. I think people overdo the "light" grip thing and end up jerking the club during the takeaway or squeezing harder mid swing and messing up some club alignments, for example:

For a while I was having trouble with pulls and none of the usual answers added up. Turned out that although my grip looked OK at address when I added extra pressure during the swing the club face was slightly rolling shut.

I know because I've been down this road, too.

[Righty to Lefty]

Yes, thank you, that's exactly what I mean. I think people overdo the "light" grip thing and end up jerking the club during the takeaway or squeezing harder mid swing and messing up some club alignments, for example:

I know because I've been down this road, too.

So you disagree with me but you agree with someone else who said the exact same thing that I said? I never said that your grip pressure should be light or firm at address. I said that it is something that you don't have to consciously monitor because your body will do it for you as that what it does naturally as you pick up different size and weight objects throughout your day. Do you ever consciously think about how much grip pressure you need to pick up the remote or you laptop? No, because your body will automatically adjust  in anticipation for the action it is about to perform. Swinging a golf club is no different.

[billchao]

So you disagree with me but you agree with someone else who said the exact same thing that I said?

No, I disagreed with your assertion that you can grip the club however you want and allow the body to adjust accordingly throughout the swing. My position is that a grip on the firmer side gives you better control and less potential for slipping or twisting during the swing.

I never said that your grip pressure should be light or firm at address.

Sorry, you said this, which I may have mistaken for you advocating a light grip pressure:

There is no need to have a "firm" grip at address because the club only weighs a pound or so

I also still disagree with this:

Do you ever consciously think about how much grip pressure you need to pick up the remote or you laptop? No, because your body will automatically adjust  in anticipation for the action it is about to perform. Swinging a golf club is no different.

Picking up a laptop and swinging a golf club are not the same, because the "weight" of the laptop is not changing much as I move it around. A golf club "weighs a pound or so" at address, but as you load it, it will exert a lot more force on your hands. Hypothetically speaking, say it's ten pounds of force at its maximum. My position is that you're better off gripping the club at address as if it weighed ten pounds than the one pound because you're taking the additional variable out of your swing. Remember, I'm talking about feels, not absolutes.

I may not monitor my grip pressure when I'm picking up a coffee cup, but I'm certainly going to grip it harder if I'm trying to throw it at something than if I'm just taking a sip of coffee..

[joekelly]

@ Erik. Do you accept that info, that Tiger incorporates superstitious behaviours into his golf game? What next? Voodoo dolls masquerading as head covers?

[iacas]

@Erik. Do you accept that info, that Tiger incorporates superstitious behaviours into his golf game? What next? Voodoo dolls masquerading as head covers?

Yeah, I've heard him give the answer himself, and he doesn't have blisters or anything when he removes the tape. He'll hit balls on the range without tape, then tape up, play golf, and remove the tape and hit more balls on the range.

It's a superstition. A well known one at that. Tons of people have superstitions.