OVERLY STRONG GOLF GRIP CAUSING ARMY GOLF: LEFT RIGHT, LEFT RIGHT… // SCOTT ORBAN
McKenzie Meadows Golf Tip: Overly strong golf grip causing army golf: Left Right, Left Right… BY SCOTT ORBAN, PGA EXECUTIVE PROFESSIONAL, MCKENZIE MEADOWS GOLF CLUB
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ur golf clubs have telltale signs of how we are impacting the ball and this allows me to predict my students’ shot pattern. If I examine your driver and you have ball marks on the top line and high on the face you might be familiar with the following results. If you are right-handed, your tendency will be to aim to the right and pull the ball to the left. Inconsistency will occur with pushing or slicing the ball to the right, and your iron distances are erratic. Then out of nowhere on a tee shot you have a ball pop straight up in the air with a sky ball (figure 1). Your golf shots are flying in opposite directions with no concept of why. Very frustrating army golf; hitting the ball left right, left right… If I’m seeing these results from your golf shots, and these marks on your golf clubs, then it is very likely that you are gripping the club with what we term ‘an overly strong grip’ and you need a change to your grip. Golfers don’t like their grip being messed with and I don’t blame them. The grip is your connection to the club. The change will be a bit scary, and feel very unfamiliar during the process, but understanding why you are making the change and the positive effects it will have on your results will allow you to persevere. An overly strong grip can cause the clubface to close during the natural swing motion. But this grip also allows the golfer firm control, over-control and manipulation of the clubface through impact. This is needed because the clubface wants to close using this grip with a fluid golf swing. This golfer will attempt to resist this closed face – opening it back to square or overdoing it – causing an open clubface and thus a push or slice. Manipulation through impact means the golfer is working against the forces of the natural swing motion and the
release of the clubface this produces. In most cases this causes a reduction of swing speed. In all cases it causes the ball to be hit all over the clubface causing variety of distances with the same club. Most damaging is that when your clubface angle is varied, you will subconsciously vary your club path to compensate. Manipulating the clubface through impact puts a lot of strain on your hands, forearms, elbows and shoulders as you resist the force of the natural swing. This is contrary to allowing the club to release properly through the impact zone, allowing you not to think about squaring the club. While this is a specific example, I want you to understand how grip affects the clubface angle through impact. When you match this with natural flow of a proper golf swing, you will not have to think about or manipulate the clubface through impact. What? Yes, now you can work on your golf swing motion. The grip or hands will allow the clubhead to find its way to square naturally through impact.
ABOVE: IMPACT MARKS FROM THE BALL HIGH IN THE CLUBFACE, AND ON THE TOP PART OF THE CLUB. TELLTALE SIGNS OF A CLOSED CLUBFACE AT IMPACT. HTTPS://WWW.MCKENZIEMEADOWS.COM/ACADEMY/GOLF-TIPS
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