This blog post is about the most basic step of swinging a golf club: how to hold the golf club. This seems extremely elementary if you’re an experienced golfer, but I see the struggle of newer golfers on this- they want to just grab a golf club and swing. For kids, I often use the most basic illustration of forming a hotdog with the left hand thumb and the right hand is the bun. It is honestly more technical than that if you want to maximize your swing. This blog post will give you the information you need to hold the golf club in a way that sets you up for success.

Your Left Hand

I like to see the left hand grip the club in the fingers. We save the palm for putting because we don’t want a lot of wrist action. Placing the grip in the fingers allows for more wrist cock. Hold the club in the base of the fingers, where they meet the palm. The hands can either be palm up, vertical (like shaking hands), or palm down. The left hand grip should be palm down about 30-45 degrees. That will help us come into impact with a square clubface, without having to do a lot of things with our hands.

I like to see the left hand thumb long, pointing down on the club, because it allows the club to hinge a lot easier.

As far as pressure, you’re going to want to grip it with more pressure in the last 3 fingers of the left hand.

Your Right Hand

The right hand is going to sit very high on the left hand and not touch much of the golf club. The right hand is only used for feel and lag pressure. You will see the left hand thumb popping out at the bottom of the right hand. The right hand grips the club in the fingertips. The left hand should be palm up about 20 degrees. Since the right hand is so far up, you’ll need to find a place for your pinky finger. I suggest overlapping it or interlocking it. I don’t want to see all 10 fingers on the club.

As far as your right hand thumb, I like to see rest on the left side of the grip. Some people use the right index finger as a trigger finger. I don’t like that, because it can impact the club too much in the golf swing. I like to see the fingers stacked on top of each other and relaxed.

I have a full video of P1 tips on YouTube:

I also offer swing analysis, golf lessons via Zoom, or you are welcome to come visit my driving range for an in-person golf lesson. For more information, contact me.