Question about wrist action...

[deekay]

Hi all,

There is quite a lot of info on grip pressure, but not so much on wrist action. I would just like to know, on a scale of say, 1 to 5, how stiff, or rigid should your wrists be, particularly in the downswing?

I am thinking now in terms of swinging a weight on the end of a string. Obviously the "connection" at the point where the string comes out of your hands is completely flexible. Is this the effect you are looking for when swinging the club (as opposed to hitting with it)?

[boogielicious]

Wrists should be relaxed but in control meaning free of tension in the cocking and un-cocking direction but in control in the flexion direction (think revving a motorcycle throttle).  The flexion direction is controlling the club face.

Try this experiment.  Take your normal grip and swing a club back and forth at about half speed.  Slowly increase grip pressure on the pinky, ring and middle finger of the left hand and ring and middle of the right hand (if you are a righty) as you are swinging.  At the same time, let the wrists totally relax.  You will see that you can really put a lot of grip pressure on without affecting the wrist tension.

While doing the above, see if you can control the flexion (motorcycle revving) while letting the wrist cock be totally relaxed.

@JetFan1983 has a great diagram showing the nomenclature for different motions of the wrist.

[deekay]

"Relaxed but in control" sounds good.

I feel as if my wrists tighten up and then all sorts of bad things happen in my ball striking. But I am aware of the "feel isn't real" syndrome, so I wanted to know whether my wrists should be a completely flexible link between my hands and the shaft, the club simply following down the swing path established by the movement of my hands.

[billm408]

One of my favorite drills- both as a warm up & reminder- is to swing the club with just a thumb & forefinger grip. It forces you to use the big muscles in your swing and allows you to feel how the club sets at the top and releases at the bottom. You can hit balls this way (off a tee) and is a good feel drill for how your arms and hands should behave in your swing.

[joekelly]

@billm408 R u using both hands on the grip?  And using only both thumbs and both forefingers?  I've never tried gripping without using left small fingers so will give a try.

[billm408]

Yes, both hands but just thumb & forefinger. It removes your hands and forearms (small muscles) from the swing completely. Its a great drill and let's you see how the club will do all the work if you stop trying to control it.