The slice has always been a problem to many a golfer but this article isn’t here to talk about slices, so here’s a nice segue to fix that; many things can trigger a slice but frequently the grip is the cause of most the trouble. Here’s how to cure you of that: buy a better grip. But if you’re a thrifty little devil, here are some other tips you can use to improve your grip. For instance, make sure that, when looking down on the club, you can see the first two knuckles of your dominant hand (whether you’re left- or right-handed) and a V-shape formed between the thumb and forefinger pointing right towards your non-dominant side’s shoulder. This V-shaped grip is just what the doctor ordered to cure your slicing tendencies.
Many golfers believe that they have to hold the club forcefully to hit it strong for a nice, good drive. In reality, a tense muscle is a slow muscle. Relaxed muscles work best in achieving good results in any sport, especially golf. Club head velocity and not the tightness of your grip, is vital for increasing distance in your drives or in your shot in general. Dexterous muscles can work better in achieving this goal than tense ones. Grasp the club nimbly to hit it far; just not too nimbly, unless you want to achieve a comedy of errors in Happy Gilmore Proportions. A flying golf club to Bob Barker’s head, anyone?
Speaking of dominant hands and dominant sides, even though you need to keep the right side (if you’re a right-hander) solid for a strong shot, don’t let this tendency carry through your grip. Many golfers tend to grip the club too firmly with their dominant hand, which leads to needless tension on your grip. As always, tension is never a good thing in slicing, driving and most especially gripping; the added stress will addle your shot and make it too over the top. So to fix that, just check if your dominant hand’s grip, arm and shoulder tension are okay right before each swing. Relax them if they’re too stiff but don’t slacken them too much or the shot will become weak. Remember the Tiger Wood’s mantra: light muscles like Tiger’s win pro-golf tournaments.