If you’ve been playing golf for a while, you definitely would have heard about the strong, neutral, and weak grips. When we say these things, it doesn’t mean the force you put into gripping your club. It is basically the position of your hands when you hold your grip for a swing. But, this position can impact your game a lot in various ways.
If you have a tendency to have a strong grip on your club, there is nothing wrong with it. I know it is not easy to make accurate shots with full control when you have a strong grip. But, there are lots of people all over the world playing golf excellently with their strong grips. The list includes Dustin Johnson, David Duval, and various other professionals.
But, it is never easy to learn how you make your ball go farther and straighter with this grip-type. It is obvious that you will try to change your grip. But, it is pretty difficult, and you can confuse yourself with the whole process.
So, if you also tend to play with a strong grip and struggle to make accurate shots, I am here to help you with the same. With some tactics and regular practice, you can do it like everyone else. In this article below, I will give you a detailed overview of how to play golf with a strong grip.
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What is a Strong Grip?
Let’s reveal this thing first of all because a lot of players have numerous misconceptions about it. When we talk about the strong grip, we refer to the position of hands on the golf club. So, with this grip, if you are a right-handed golfer, the left hand (top-hand) will be turned over to the right side after the grip. It means the player will be able to see three of the four knuckles directly. That means the right handle (lower-hand) would be placed more underneath. If you are a beginner in golf and have a strong grip, you will definitely have a lot of frustration with your shots.
Because this hand position ends up keeping your club closer to your body instead of keeping it upwards, the ball is going to go to the left side most of the time. This is not a problem until you know how to align your path properly. However, this could become an issue if you do not know how to utilize this grip-type in a good way.
What is wrong with a Strong Grip?
So, now you know what is wrong with a strong grip. Just because the swing is closed to the body due to the strong grip, the clubs will also contact the ball in a closed position. If that happens, you will definitely see your ball going in the left direction. You can also see some right-left curvature and slices too. So, if you do not have a proper strategy to correct your club’s impact with the ball, you are going to face various issues. In most cases, you will never be able to hit straight shots.
Another big issue is the ball flight. So, because you are not able to swing your club up in the air, you will never be able to level up your ball in the air too. Definitely, you will point-out your strong grip for this thing. But, it is possible to control your ball perfectly and give it your desired flight even with a strong grip.
Basically, all these problems can easily be fixed when you know how to improvise your shots while having a strong grip. Let’s see how to do it.
Should I change my grip?
In my opinion, it is pretty easy to learn to handle your strong grip instead of learning a neutral or weak grip. Also, if your body is made up to have a strong grip, you should keep this skill forward. You will be more comfortable with it and will be able to grow more with this grip type.
I know you are frustrated with your grip and those continuous bad shots. But, believe me, you can overcome this issue if you pay close attention to some details. The main thing happening here is that you are changing the face of your club just because of a twisted hand position.
So, instead of trying to change your grip position, you can just change the way you hit the ball. In simple words, you have to make some modifications to your swing, and you are good to go. People have made this thing too complex for us. But, I will give you the best tips to get this thing corrected easily.
Tips to Play with a Strong Grip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ni-KLgVbT8I
Again, you do not have to fight with your strong grip if you want to correct your shots and flights. You just have to correct your swing and position a little bit. If you want to have full control over your shots, even with a strong grip, you can follow the tips I am going to give you here.
- Change your release pattern (Let your hands lead)
The grip is the primary thing in golf. So, when you tend to hold your club strong, you eventually keep your clubface closed before and even after you hit the ball. This will automatically change your ball’s direction from straight to the left. To reduce this effect, you should try to match your swing with the shot in order to create a functional ball flight. In simple words, you have to do something with your release pattern to reach your target. This is a pretty simple but very effective method to correct your shots by keeping that strong grip on your club.
What to do?
So, instead of hitting the ball with a square clubface, which will automatically happen when you have a strong grip, you have to change the way how the clubface is making an impact. The idea here is to make your hands lead the golf club so that the clubface remains square throughout the swing. The leading hand will dominate and make sure the clubface stays as behind as possible. It’s Ok if your back foot is turning around upwards. This will make your ball flight straight and high as well. You will definitely have some distance issues at the beginning. But, with regular practice, you can master this skill and then achieve perfection with the time.
- Add a forearm rotation (Open your body)
Adding forearm rotation to your backswing will eventually help you to add that loft to your shot. This thing will help a lot if you struggle with getting the ball up in the air. You just have to keep your body open during the impact. Also, when you are swinging your club, do not try to change your grip. Just try to add loft into your shot. This will increase your speed and make you hit the ball with a square face.
With the first step, we saw how you could make sure that your clubface is contacting with the ball in a straight direction. However, with the help of your body, you can increase the speed and then hit the ball to cover a larger distance. Doing both of these things on a regular basis will help you to overcome all the issues with your strong go.
How to play golf with a strong grip – Final Verdict
See, if those world-popular golfers are playing with a strong grip, you can do that too. Don’t get frustrated and just apply these two methods patiently. I hope you will then understand how to play golf with a strong grip?. If you have found this article helpful, make sure to share it with others too. Also, feel free to use the comment section if you have any other questions in mind.