Strong to Neutral Grip - Worth It?

[Lefthook]

I bet there are almost as many definitions of neutral here as there are posters.

[pinhigh27]

Way more good players with grips on stronger end of spectrum than weak. Can match parts to make either work but strong better for most.

[IamMarkMac]

> @pinhigh27 said:

> Way more good players with grips on stronger end of spectrum than weak. Can match parts to make either work but strong better for most.

 

Yeah, I keep hearing people say that the pros you see with strong grips are professional athletes and I wouldn't have their same athletic ability to move and time my swing but I do see plenty of good, casual golfers who use a strong grip without being particularly athletic.

Again, I don't really have any data to back that up other than what I personally see. I guess there must be some reason why most instruction, both IRL and online, are geared towards the neutral grip.

[elthrill]

I believe youll swing to match your grip. And rotation is necessary to play the game well. So you need to look at your rotation/pivot before you mess with your grip.

 

I changed mine because i was a stall flipper and once i learned to pivot correctly i couldnt matchup with my strong grip. The ball was going left of left.

[IamMarkMac]

> @elthrill said:

> I believe youll swing to match your grip. And rotation is necessary to play the game well. So you need to look at your rotation/pivot before you mess with your grip.

>

> I changed mine because i was a stall flipper and once i learned to pivot correctly i couldnt matchup with my strong grip. The ball was going left of left.

 

In my case, when I pivot correctly that's the only time the strong grip works. If the body is lazy at all, the hands cast and I'm looking at a straight left turn hook. That's actually one of the positives of the neutral grip for me. It seems to eliminate wild left as a possible shot shape.

[BB28403]

You could try Interlock in a strong grip. Strength and stability .

[farmer]

Years ago, I read an article in some magazine that addressed grip strength. The author, a well known teacher at the time, said to stand naturally with your arms hanging relaxed at your side. Look at your left hand, however many knuckles are showing is how many should show in your grip. The theory was that this was the natural way your hands would be at impact.

[howellhandmade]

Good thread for me. I’ve been “fighting” a strong grip for a while. Today I just scratched where it itched and hit the ball pretty solidly.

[gsrjc]

Can you get to a point that the grip is too strong that you actually hold off the club and the ball starts to go right so you don’t allow the toe to turn over?

[thepinkbomber]

If mechanics are sound why don't you let ball flight tell you what to do?

 

Hit balls and look for a pattern then adjust. Stop when you get the desired shape you want.

 

Each person is unique with a grip. If I took a strong grip with either hand it would hook off the planet. But take someone that has trouble closing the face then strong may help them quickly.

[JAMH03]

I think it's time for pics

[NoTalentLefty]

For me, a strong grip can work but I'm inconsistent. Get some great draws but overall my preference is the neutral grip to slightly weak grip. That is a personal preference since my start back in the 1970s and probably have problems switching. Golf is an interesting game. Look up golf grips, and what most of consider what is a proper golf grip is, more of a finger palm with top hand, all fingers in both hands, something in between. No one agrees and no one agrees on strong vs Neutral vs. in some cases a weak grip. No one way to swing a club. Love it.

[Djmc25]

On 3/26/2019 at 12:06 AM, IamMarkMac said:

So I see a lot of instructors dissuading players from a strong grip. Even single handicappers are made to weaken grips for consistency. For those who had a successful strong grip and then went to neutral, was it worth it? Or did you end up going back to strong, perhaps?

I’m also being told that a strong grip is better when you’re older. I’m almost 47 so this might be the best time to effect a “rest of my life” grip change.

For my part, I can hit good shots with a neutral grip. They are straighter and less wild for me but also at least a club in distance loss. They also don’t feel as good (solid) as a nice, full of lag, strong grip rip. But again, maybe this changes with commitment to a new grip? Thoughts anyone?

Late to this post. Switched to neutral last year after a lesson (was a struggling 6 at the time). Went to a 10. Fought the shanks. My release pattern and path didn’t match a neutral grip. 
 

I fought for 6 months to make the new grip work. Learned a ton about the swing. switched back to 2-3 knuckles ish and am ripping it again. 
 

just my experience. 

[Dwayne Williams]

Just switched back to a strong grip. Was more neutral for the last year, but tried a strong grip again and gained a ton of distance. I went to the course a couple of weekends ago and for some reason decided to employ a strong grip. On the 4th hole, I drove the ball 310 yards on a 385 yard par 4. I haven't gone beyond 300 yards since I was in my early 30s. It's a lot harder for me to control my ball with the strong grip, especially with my irons that have super jacked lofts. But, I have to admit, the extra distance is exciting. It's wild that just a little shift with your left hand on the club can generate considerably longer shots. I'm driving my ball on average 40 to 50 yards farther with the strong grip. 

Edited April 25, 2024 by Dwayne Williams

[RobToTheT]

Two instructors I know - at two different clubs - independently said to me while on range sessions it might be a good idea to strengthen my grip. I think over time my trail hand has been going weaker and weaker paired with a neutral lead hand. This year my shots had become increasing weak - just short fade-y shots that had no power in them. One if not two clubs short vs where I had been. Whatever I was doing to make the grip play was killing my distance and impact.

Had tried to strengthen my grip but for the life of me could't make it work until I did that one simple thing where I turned the club head 45 degrees shut, put a neutral grip on that head-angle, then opened the club back up to square. Just a sort of mental trick I guess that let me set up stronger.

 

Instant difference. I mean literally instant. From the first swing speed was up, contact was better and distance was back - all this confirmed on the GCQuad. Practiced it for two days and went and played my two best iron round in a year. I definitely have to really concentrate on in-to-out for a draw vs starting it on line and watching it fall left. Driver has not been as easy to incorporate. I have been experimenting with gripping just a little less strong with it.

The good thing is at least I understand the left hook miss - meaning i know it is because the body rotation either quit or was too slow. Have only lost a couple right since starting this (and I have no idea how that happened)
 

It's been two weeks or so now and I'm encouraged enough to keep trying to make it stick.

[Spinozist]

a) personally the only issue I've had with a strong grip (both hands) is that over time it got stronger and stronger to the point where I had a hard time controlling the ball. So I recently weekend it a bit, but now it's just normally strong. 

b) my driver grip (right hand) is notably stronger than my wedge grip. Although it's another variable, I find it works. 

 

[Ri_Redneck]

It is completely legal to have a mark or use grip or shaft markings to ensure consistent placement of the hands on the club. I have done it for years and recommend it to everyone who asks what the heck I'm doing when I take my grip. It looks weird because the face is so closed when I do it.

 

BT

[Pepperturbo]

When I took up golf, I used 3 books. One was B. Hogan's 5... It was his Vardon grip advice that my grip is modeled after, and I've used the same neutral grip since. Except when I want to flight the ball or pull a wedge, then I tend to revert to a reverse overlap grip. For some reason, that grip tends to use my strong right side, allowing me to influence trajectory more.

 

Also, I found that when I stand with my arms hanging at my side and put a club in my left hand, it's essentially at 1 o'clock, or neutral. I tried a stronger grip, but my hand feels wrongly positioned on the club. To ensure my grip is centered, I use MCC Plus4 Align grips, so without thinking, my grip is set right. I can't say whether this is applicable today, but it works for me still.