Great advice. As you say, every individual should work on weakening the grip a little if they find they are hooking the ball with a stronger grip, but starting stronger is a very good idea. I recently had a lesson and the pro immediately changed my strong grip to neutral and told me to stick with it. I did for a few rounds but it was horrible - slices and pulls all over the place. Driver was a disaster. Went back strong and starting hitting better again, especially driver. I really like that you give clear advice, explain why and then let people know they have to experiment a little to suit their unique swing. Refreshing. From now on any pro who gives me cookie cutter advice, I am walking away from.
Good stuff! It all stems on the very important action of delivery to a direction you want to start the ball; see “predict solid contact and direction shawn clement”
Yep! The golf swing is an evolution for everyone; I went from Weak to strong to neutral to neutral-strong; it depends on how well you swing through the ball and how well you stay centered in the swing and how well you stay braced through impact; the key is to have fun with it! :) Shawn
Fantastic! Thanks Shawn for 2 years of fabulous lessons. I shot 95 without thinking or my back hurting today! All due to your fantastic teaching method. I learn something new every time I watch your videos. My misses are in front of me more often than not and I am amazed at how your methods have helped me! Have a great year at the Richmond Hill Golf Learning Centre! Cal Dallas, Texas
This actually cleared up my first question on a prior video about having a stronger grip to draw. I definitely noticed when I go stronger grip, I get better contact, and more controlled flight path. (more straight) which is what I've wanted. Thank you again! You're the best!
Great question and it can be either! What is important is that when you whip the club through to the target that the flight of the ball has little or no curvature on it; some don't like to square it because they don't like the feel of too much torque in the left forearm; others don't mind it and prefer seeing a square club... Shawn
YES; once you have covered the issues of the grip; see the "golf Pro Lesson be a solid ball striker" and "golf pro lesson tilted spiral" part 1, 2 and 3 and especially 3 to make sure that your perception to target is sound! I will be doing a great DVD on this soon! Shawn
Yes! Remember that Hogan was a "backhander" and that his left hand was the strong one; I can do better left hand with a weak grip and better right hand with a strong one because I am right handed; different feel dynamics are at play here...Great question!! Shawn
I put your concept to work today with very promising results; I have a student of mine(one of many as this is a common issue) who cannot keep his eyes on the ball or has the "wandering eyes in the backswing" which destroys any chance of sustained focus through the ball and towards the target. His dominant eye is right and I asked him to close his left eye and he immediately started keeping his eye in one place on the ball; very very good my friend!! I will do more research and keep you posted!
I was about to quit golf cause of my chronic lack of lag and scooping at the impact. Thanks to your insight, now I can hit the ball with delofted club face & hands forward. My 6 iron carries 145 meters beautifully. I can't thank you enough. All the best from Korea. Ryan.
Ball game. Yup. This was the video that put it ALL together. The swing was feeling good, but the outcome was staying left of target (I'm a lefty). Stronger grip = dead center. Thanks!
Can I just say thank you so much ! I was flushing the ball before I had a lesson , all I wanted was help with shaping the ball and , he changed my grip to neutral and set me back ten years, and started slicing and lost my lag distance and nice ball flight. you have just confirmed that the strong grip is ok !! Thanks .
This means that you are still getting ahead of the ball through impact; when doing the feet together drill (I have a video with this title), feel how the right foot is forced to stay down otherwise balance is completely compromised; then feel the same thing through impact with the feet apart...keep the right foot down way through impact until the right shoulder collects the head into the finish; see "golf pro lesson leverage power" and "golf Pro lesson tilted spiral part 3" ! Shawn
Hey JB; That is a very important point you make that would definitely short circuit the focus and cause the brain to flicker causing self one to take control for fear of missing the ball...very cool comment and thank you very much for that! Shawn
very well reasoned and explained. There is no need for anyone to argue with this. Simply go to the range, warm up, then hit some balls with neutral, then add a knuckle, hit more, add another and just try to develop awareness of what is going on. Shawn, you really broke it down beautifully. I agree that this would apply to at least 80% of the golfers out there. The frustrating thing is that a golfer could have most things right but have a grip that throws the swing out of kilter.
Hey Shaw. I am 38 and grew up on golf from my grandfather but never had the money for lessons or good equip. Your video's are a godsend, anyway this grip video has changed my game went to the range and with that stronger grip (awkward at first) and your two ball drill I just spanked the ball with that flush divot in front of ball feeling. It's amazing how something as small as turning that left hand over a little more makes such a big difference. Thanks Mike
I can't even hardly began to tell you how your videos have helped me to understand some of what I been doing wrong. I have watched about six of your vids. And they are the best I've seem. Thanks so very much.
Hey Fontaine32! Great comment and this is what I say in the video; THAT THIS IS NOT FOR EVERYONE! In my left handed swing when leading with my dominant hand, I can easily go weaker than weak and stripe it! You just don't see the golf masses like I do and answer 100 emails a day from people who have issues you never had to worry about! Also, for body language at the beginnings of golf learning, the strong grip is waaaay better as they won't use the body to square an open face! Shawn
Shawn, Thank you for the best explanation of the grip types that I have even seen. That was the best 7 minutes I ever spent watching a video on the internet! You are by far the best golf instructor I have ever seen, I just wish you taught on Long Island, lol. Thanks again! Mike
My instructor taught me this over the course of this summer and it's been a game changer. It really engages your body and removes the impulse to generate your power with your hands and arms (while removing all of the catastrophic errors that result from a hands-oriented swing). I wish I'd seen this video 9 years ago when it was posted!
Thank you for posting this. I feel this has given me a much better understanding about the strong grip which I am currently working on. For most of my golf playing time I had a neutral grip and also tried to play the shot to not hook it as I used to constantly hook the ball left due to my tennis shots with my right hand doing the hitting. Now I have a better understanding of the grip and got fitted for my driver and the instructor pointed out I needed a stronger grip which I had no clue on. All I can say is trying to impliment the strong grip has done wonders for my driver off the tee and for much less poor strikes with my wedges.
It can be if you want; no problem! a 2 knuckle grip with a 20 degree closed face is like a 3-4 knuckle grip with a square face; play with the options and see what works best for you; the main thing is that you continue to swing to a target! Shawn
Best video on grip I've seen. In my experience, my swing flaws are caused by a poor grip. When my grip is right (strong for me), I don't have to thing about anything else. If my grip gets weak, all kinds of bad things start happening. Like anything else, check the easy stuff first. Thanks for the video!
So many golfers make the mistake when they either open the face to hit a bunker shot or close the face to hit a strong draw, they don't turn the club in their hands; they just turn the hands; well of course, they have not changed a thing so it is important to demonstrate this here in the video! :) After your brain has accepted the feel of the new grip and has made the connection with through the ball, when you focus on your target, you will feel the need to grip it right! Shawn
Hey Tomb29! Thanks for your comment and question! My Daughter was good to go at that age but my son was still far from ready; the key is the attention span and the fun factor; make it a blast for him and he's there; make it feel like homework and you will lose him; if he can stay still for 20 minutes or more, you could start him easy with some clinics or camps where he has some friends to share the learning with; it is very important to shop around to see what the pros do to make it fun!
Hey dfg769; I know exactly what you mean and this video is made for 90% of the golfers out there who have a hard time with the release; I know about the release you are talking about because I also get great results with the weak/neutral grip too; but out of the 80 to 100 students I see every week as well as the ones my assistants handle, I would say this video fits 90% of them; the world tours are chock full of the strong grippers as well; Thanks for the comment though! Shawn
One will work better than the other depending on the person; some people can't use a strong grip because of stiff forearms and others can't look at a closed face; it is just a matter of personal preference; left handed I have a bit of both and right handed I have an open face with a stronger grip...both sides allow be to work the ball at will; Shawn
Another timely and beneficial tip from you. I have been struggling lately to 'learn' how to get my right elbow to lead my hands into impact while squaring the clubface at the same time. Always a very contrived move for me, resulting in many problems as I tried to force it to happen with wrist moves, elbow moves, etc. I have been using a strong left and weak right grip. Tried strong left and strong right today and viola!. Wow. Everything seems to be 'behaving', virtually on automatic. Wow again.
Nice job Shawn.. you're saying everything the new instructors are saying now. Goes to show you that no one 8s reinventing anything..Thanks for the video
Hi Benoit! I would review the grip with my "Golf Pro Lesson Proper grip" and "Golf Pro Lesson Grip 2 wrist hinge" and then use the "Perpetual motion drill" to monitor the grip as you swing back and through in the swing and make sure there is no movement in the contact from the hands to the club; if there is in the backswing, you are not turning enough and the arms are crashing into the rib cage and causing the grip to come apart; if it is in the follow through, check my arm motion video...
It is a medical term (Anatomical snuff box) to identify the part of the wrist that hinges when you hammer nails, throw footballs and cast fishing poles...and of course, load up and release golf clubs with; Shawn
from this video, now i finally know why i have the tendency to address the ball with the clubface slightly close. it's because i have a correct strong grip. what a revelation!!! thanks Shawn..:-)
Hey Paul; thanks for the comment! It just means you had a grip that was too strong and overdid the grip on a few of those shots; keep swinging towards the target and keep a very nice tempo and rhythm; "golf pro lesson timing and tempo" and "golf pro lesson through the ball" Shawn
Hey Mike; Just continue to flow around a steady axis; see "golf pro lesson tilted twirl" and keep it rhythmic with "golf pro lesson how to get great rhythm"; Keep it up! Shawn
Wow! What a difference in my ability to hit it straight or with a slight draw I had the last two days after following the tips in this video. I have tried a strong grip alone with inconsistent results. Turning club face 30 degrees closed, hinging the "snuff boxes" a couple times then adding the torquing of the left hand so the club face is square worked like magic with my irons. Moving the ball back of center is gold too. Only thing is too much of all these things done at once I would over
Best is to look at my "golf pro lesson grip 2 wrist hinge" video for the second part; for the first part, the arm club unit should square itself from a solid braced position against the left side which will create a fantastic anchoring system that will deploy the full release of the hands; so the result is that they release themselves; it should never be a conscious act!! Keep plugging! See "golf pro lesson taut swing philosophy" Shawn
Hey UnclePTM! Thanks for the comment and question! I am suggesting to use whatever it takes so that when you have that effortless and powerful whip to your target with full abandon to centrifugal force, that the ball flies straight; experiment with different options until this is done and stop looking at what other teachers "Think Should Be"; see the comment I answer to DuffyGolfstuff as well...Shawn
Great video. I use to slide like crazy! But the pro showed me to play with a stronger grip, I thought it was a bad thing, now I know better :-) After watching your online videos, and your DVD, I went from a very strong grip to a neutral one, but I still use a stronger, not as strong as before, grip with my 6-5 iron's I realy like the DVD, very detailed. And thanks for sharing on TH-cam! Bless, Tommy.
That's the best explanation I have ever seen, I had a strong grip and did not like the look of it so weakened it so it looked more text book, went from driving it 330 down to 270 I guess what works best for you
Hey Huronmountain; good question; They do not have any relation at all; the arms and club are tracking gravity and the body is getting out of the way; do not confuse club face with spine angle as they do not relate in the swing; Shawn
Sure; see "golf pro lesson student swing analysis" part 1 and 2; in part 2 you will see half way through a nice analogy that will corroborate this address position; Thanks for the comment! Shawn
Right on Itrat! I hope you are getting some great play time out there! Send me an email sometime and let me know how you are doing outside the game too! :) Thanks for the great comment! Shawn
Great explanation! Have had some serious problems with a push-fade with the driver lately, but switched to a much stronger grip to make sure the clubhead is closed at impact. This has resulted in hitting more fairways and more confidence in attacking tight fairways. Still got the occasional monster fade, but atleast i know the remedy to fix it
thank you for your reply. really appreciate someone thinking out of the box and ready to experiment. will try to incorporate your wisdom to my kids' swings. thank you and best wishes.
I find I work better with a more neutral grip on my backhand side but with a slightly closed face; a combo of dominant hand and dominant eye (left eye dominant); this gives me a straight flight; Shawn
Wow! I was told by a golfer to weaken my grip to eliminate my slice and now I am turning on the ball like no tomorrow. So the more I have tried to fix it, the worse it gets. I was even starting to toe in my club to compensate for the wrong grip! Your hammer illustration is a powerful visual and explains exactly what is going on with your body!! Can not wait to see my compression tomorrow morning when we all golf! Thanks a million!
The thing about chip and pitch vs full swing: For many, they need a stronger grip or a more closed club face in the full swing because they are getting ready to swing or whip THROUGH TO THE TARGET which naturally opens the face to a square position through impact; you do not want this for chips and short pitch shots as your hands are already forward and there is no change in the "lower case y" through the shot; closed face with hands centered=square face hands forward; you dig? Shawn
If your spine tilt or braced tilt is good and the ball position is not too far forward, then go with your grip option of more neutral; see "golf pro lesson tilted spiral" part 1, 2 and 3 to cover the other possibilities; Shawn
Shawn, Excellent as usual. Agree with the strong grip concept. I (Hcp 4) grip strong and often address the ball with a closed clubface. I find this works well; however when doing this, the visual perception of the clubface can promote an outside-the-line takeaway which I need to guard against. Outside the line plus strong grip doesn't work so well for me but it may explain Zinger's power fade. JB NZ
Shawn, I go through periods where I take a neutral grip with a closed face and then square it at address. I just never understood why I would periodically do this...it just would help my swing. I think you're are a fantastic teacher, and I send a lot of your videos to my good golfing buddies. Not too many though, as I don't want to help the "enemy" too much. Would love to, some day, get to your neck of the woods and meet you in person. Pete
@clemshaw i got it figured out now, i am getting pretty consistent with my 5-10 yard draw with my driver. Also picked up some yardage over the last month. I use to average around 230 ish off the tee now 3 of the last 4 times i have played my local exec 9 course i have drove the green on the short par 4 that is 260 yards give or take a few depending on tee placement. keep up the work on the great video.
You couldn't be more correct, Shawn! The strong grip promotes the proper use of the lower body during the downswing, and so it also promotes the proper in-to-out "D-plane" action (for those of you who are interested in that concept).
No-one's ever described the grip to me like that before! WHY?! Can't wait to get back out there now. Cheers Shawn! (P.S. didn't Freddie Couples always claim that by really firming up the grip at impact gave him extra yards? Sure I heard that somewhere.)
@cummiskey3030 This is for both you and Reed521; #1 you need to feel the difference between a target bound action and ball bound action; you want the action that releases way out towards the direction you want to start the ball; not release into the ball; see "Ridiculously easy; Shawn Clement" part 1 and 2; If you release to the target in a rhythmic and effortless way and it is still hooking, then you may weaken the grip; Shawn
See my other video called "golf pro lesson grip awareness" where you will use the perpetual motion drill to monitor the grip's pressure and where it falls apart, at the moment it falls apart, your upper arms are crashing into the top of the rib cage which means that you are not COMPLETELY GETTING OUT OF THE WAY! See "golf pro lesson timing and tempo update" Shawn
mannn, 2:50 - 3:30 so explains them left to right grooves on the bottom of my clubs. was so doing that, when I had no knowledge of my grip and how to operate it.
Greetings from the UK Shaun. As always, love the videos - have never come across anyone that explains the fundamentals so well, excellent use of analogy and imagery you just don't get from a book!
Let me answer that with: Often times it is better to admit to a mistake and move on than to try and defend something you know is not right; we look for validation everywhere instead of getting down to the root of the issue; some don't know how to get to the root...:) Shawn
Shawn, this sound's cheesey but watching your video above has had the biggest impact on my game than anything else i've tried to learn before. Despite the initial awkwardness i felt at address, having a stronger grip has given my shots from the PW up, a lot more distance and straightness, my rythm has improved, nice thin divot's in the ground and a much better THWACK sound as i strike the ball, rather than that slappy STACK. There has been other improvements as well. You saved my game!
Thanks Matt; When you do hit the stronger hook, what was your focus over the ball? If you were not focused on the target and how you were going to let the "effortless whip" go in the direction of the target, then you DEFAULTED to the ball and therefore released the "snap" too soon and caused the hook; so be aware of this next time it happens; Good Comment BTW! Shawn
Hi Shawn, great explanation about strong v weak grip. If only I had seen that 20 years or so ago. Anyway, I play off 5 but have always had a weak grip and a longish thumb. I have finally got a short thumb and strongish grip after playing golf for 40 years! Considering going the whole hog and giving myself a strong left hand grip to see if it will help me as I approach the senior golf age. Played yesterday with a +1 golfer with a strong left hand grip, he hit the ball miles.
Great video, I used to play with stronger grip and played better, I realized this today on course, what a difference! I watched this video to reinforce what I experienced today. Thx Shawn!
@AKADRIVEN You and PoshboyRoy get the the first and second stars of the day! :) Way to get through it guys! Great example on how to be fearless in your learning! Shawn
Thank you cause for heck of it I’m having my fitter, now bare with me here, I’m having him turn the irons20 degrees closed and putting the grip brand neutral, so I grip it neutral with closed face and rotate arm. For me seem easier than trying to place hand on grip knuckles up, make sense lol. I love visuals.
Of course! What you think is a neutral grip has the face wide open! Enjoy the experiment! There is a reason why over 40% of the tour pros have a very strong grip!!! Toss the "SHOULD BE AND SHOULD HAVES" out the window! Shawn
@112frankybaby The makeup of the hands stays the same; have a look at my " proper grip; Shawn Clement" and "Grip 2 wrist hinge; Shawn Clement" for complete info on the whole grip including the intricacies of the right hand positioning; Shawn
I've been working on my swing for some time now to get rid of the slice on my driver. I filmed my self and found that my swing was on plane, good release and good bodyrotation. I've allways used the "textbook" grip showing two knockles. By reading and warching vids i found that by altering the grip, i could shape my shots the way i want. For my driver, the standard grip is WAY to weak, so by showing all 4 knockles at adress with a square clubface i got a little draw.... So grip for me is key
Hey Jon! Nice course and great stuff! Please see "Over the top in Abu Dhabi Shawn Clement" then see "Dynamic vs Static Shawn Clement" part 1 and 2; it is all about the focus! You do not swing over the top on purpose; Shawn
This video was very helpful in solving a hook problem. I tried to weaken the grip which did not work at all. I was flipping the club more. After strengthening the grip, I "had" to keep the lag which kept the club square. Thanks! Dan
So Shawn I looked at the rest of your videos and instead of cranking the left arm/hand towards the right, it’s much easier and just let me know if this is right, it’s much easier to grip the club neutral with the club face closed about 20° facing down at the ground and then when you set it down behind the ball, you turn your arm to square it and that should solve that weak grip strong grip thank you
No fade is bad shot (normally with Driver). It was a one off lesson whch was net +ve as I am now a lot more dynamic (bottom out). I have the thru the ball, one leg drill, and one that rocks from right to left to be really useful. I really get what you say, but noted you are a little bit contra the popular words on grip. I am not sure Cabrerra et al hold the club like a tube of toothpaste, so I am kinda with you on this one. I am reverting to my stronger grip..
I had considered my grip to be "normal". Not strong or weak. And when I saw this video and heard you speak about square face at adress or impact I was sort of wondering how I manage to have a square face at adress and also square when hands move in front of the club head at impact.. It was fun to see that I actually had a strong grip. 3-4 knuckles as you said. But I feel no strain in my left arm and club face is square at adress and it feels normal.
I'm a strong grip convert from about a year ago. It has changed my golf game 100%. However I do find it hard to hit a fade now if I need to. lol - small price to pay for crisp impact and penetrating ball flight.
Hi Shawn, tried this at the range today... hit some cracking shots... but also hit some amazing hooks. has anyone else had this problem or is it because u cant be lazy with this grip (and do u find its more of a palmy grip?) and have to make sure u have that weight transfer? paul p.s. dont stop making these vids!
Hi Shawn - Brilliant video! I have a wicked slice that I have battled to overcome and as yet have had no success. I have been using a neutral grip. By shifting to a strong grip position will this eliminate (or even minimize) my slice. Your videos are brilliant and really helpful in understanding technique. Thanks
Great video and very helpful. Any idea why so many pros teach the neutral (2 knuckle grip) with the club face square at the address position?? Ive been taught this way and im sure it has contributed to me having to flip the hands to get the face square.
Great advice. As you say, every individual should work on weakening the grip a little if they find they are hooking the ball with a stronger grip, but starting stronger is a very good idea. I recently had a lesson and the pro immediately changed my strong grip to neutral and told me to stick with it. I did for a few rounds but it was horrible - slices and pulls all over the place. Driver was a disaster. Went back strong and starting hitting better again, especially driver. I really like that you give clear advice, explain why and then let people know they have to experiment a little to suit their unique swing. Refreshing. From now on any pro who gives me cookie cutter advice, I am walking away from.
Good stuff!
It all stems on the very important action of delivery to a direction you want to start the ball; see “predict solid contact and direction shawn clement”
Yep! The golf swing is an evolution for everyone; I went from Weak to strong to neutral to neutral-strong; it depends on how well you swing through the ball and how well you stay centered in the swing and how well you stay braced through impact; the key is to have fun with it! :) Shawn
It’s great to have you back Shawn, unless I’m missing something I haven’t seen you for awhile.
You are definitely missing something because we have not missed a beat and have uploaded every single week since 2006!! Just go to our home page!
Fantastic! Thanks Shawn for 2 years of fabulous lessons. I shot 95 without thinking or my back hurting today! All due to your fantastic teaching method. I learn something new every time I watch your videos. My misses are in front of me more often than not and I am amazed at how your methods have helped me!
Have a great year at the Richmond Hill Golf Learning Centre!
Cal
Dallas, Texas
This actually cleared up my first question on a prior video about having a stronger grip to draw. I definitely noticed when I go stronger grip, I get better contact, and more controlled flight path. (more straight) which is what I've wanted. Thank you again! You're the best!
👍😀🤛💪
Great question and it can be either! What is important is that when you whip the club through to the target that the flight of the ball has little or no curvature on it; some don't like to square it because they don't like the feel of too much torque in the left forearm; others don't mind it and prefer seeing a square club...
Shawn
YES; once you have covered the issues of the grip; see the "golf Pro Lesson be a solid ball striker" and "golf pro lesson tilted spiral" part 1, 2 and 3 and especially 3 to make sure that your perception to target is sound!
I will be doing a great DVD on this soon! Shawn
Yes! Remember that Hogan was a "backhander" and that his left hand was the strong one; I can do better left hand with a weak grip and better right hand with a strong one because I am right handed; different feel dynamics are at play here...Great question!! Shawn
I put your concept to work today with very promising results; I have a student of mine(one of many as this is a common issue) who cannot keep his eyes on the ball or has the "wandering eyes in the backswing" which destroys any chance of sustained focus through the ball and towards the target. His dominant eye is right and I asked him to close his left eye and he immediately started keeping his eye in one place on the ball; very very good my friend!! I will do more research and keep you posted!
I was about to quit golf cause of my chronic lack of lag and scooping at the impact. Thanks to your insight, now I can hit the ball with delofted club face & hands forward. My 6 iron carries 145 meters beautifully. I can't thank you enough. All the best from Korea. Ryan.
Korea in the house!! Thank you for the nice comment! 👍👍🫶🫶
Ball game. Yup. This was the video that put it ALL together. The swing was feeling good, but the outcome was staying left of target (I'm a lefty). Stronger grip = dead center. Thanks!
Can I just say thank you so much ! I was flushing the ball before I had a lesson , all I wanted was help with shaping the ball and , he changed my grip to neutral and set me back ten years, and started slicing and lost my lag distance and nice ball flight. you have just confirmed that the strong grip is ok !! Thanks .
This means that you are still getting ahead of the ball through impact; when doing the feet together drill (I have a video with this title), feel how the right foot is forced to stay down otherwise balance is completely compromised; then feel the same thing through impact with the feet apart...keep the right foot down way through impact until the right shoulder collects the head into the finish; see "golf pro lesson leverage power" and "golf Pro lesson tilted spiral part 3" ! Shawn
Hey JB;
That is a very important point you make that would definitely short circuit the focus and cause the brain to flicker causing self one to take control for fear of missing the ball...very cool comment and thank you very much for that! Shawn
very well reasoned and explained. There is no need for anyone to argue with this. Simply go to the range, warm up, then hit some balls with neutral, then add a knuckle, hit more, add another and just try to develop awareness of what is going on. Shawn, you really broke it down beautifully. I agree that this would apply to at least 80% of the golfers out there. The frustrating thing is that a golfer could have most things right but have a grip that throws the swing out of kilter.
Hey Shaw.
I am 38 and grew up on golf from my grandfather but never had the money for lessons or good equip. Your video's are a godsend, anyway this grip video has changed my game went to the range and with that stronger grip (awkward at first) and your two ball drill I just spanked the ball with that flush divot in front of ball feeling. It's amazing how something as small as turning that left hand over a little more makes such a big difference. Thanks Mike
I can't even hardly began to tell you how your videos have helped me to understand some of what I been doing wrong. I have watched about six of your vids. And they are the best I've seem. Thanks so very much.
Hey Mondoo! Thanks very much and yes; you want to apply this to the driver especially!
All the best, Shawn
Hey Fontaine32! Great comment and this is what I say in the video; THAT THIS IS NOT FOR EVERYONE! In my left handed swing when leading with my dominant hand, I can easily go weaker than weak and stripe it! You just don't see the golf masses like I do and answer 100 emails a day from people who have issues you never had to worry about! Also, for body language at the beginnings of golf learning, the strong grip is waaaay better as they won't use the body to square an open face! Shawn
Shawn,
Thank you for the best explanation of the grip types that I have even seen. That was the best 7 minutes I ever spent watching a video on the internet! You are by far the best golf instructor I have ever seen, I just wish you taught on Long Island, lol. Thanks again!
Mike
My instructor taught me this over the course of this summer and it's been a game changer. It really engages your body and removes the impulse to generate your power with your hands and arms (while removing all of the catastrophic errors that result from a hands-oriented swing). I wish I'd seen this video 9 years ago when it was posted!
Thank you for posting this. I feel this has given me a much better understanding about the strong grip which I am currently working on. For most of my golf playing time I had a neutral grip and also tried to play the shot to not hook it as I used to constantly hook the ball left due to my tennis shots with my right hand doing the hitting. Now I have a better understanding of the grip and got fitted for my driver and the instructor pointed out I needed a stronger grip which I had no clue on. All I can say is trying to impliment the strong grip has done wonders for my driver off the tee and for much less poor strikes with my wedges.
YES SIR!!! The vast majority of tout players have strong grips; there is a fad going on right now with neutral to weak grips and it will not last!
It can be if you want; no problem! a 2 knuckle grip with a 20 degree closed face is like a 3-4 knuckle grip with a square face; play with the options and see what works best for you; the main thing is that you continue to swing to a target!
Shawn
Best video on grip I've seen. In my experience, my swing flaws are caused by a poor grip. When my grip is right (strong for me), I don't have to thing about anything else. If my grip gets weak, all kinds of bad things start happening. Like anything else, check the easy stuff first. Thanks for the video!
After the divot is taken is best! See "golf pro lesson through the ball" and check out the 2 ball drill at minute 6! Shawn
So many golfers make the mistake when they either open the face to hit a bunker shot or close the face to hit a strong draw, they don't turn the club in their hands; they just turn the hands; well of course, they have not changed a thing so it is important to demonstrate this here in the video! :) After your brain has accepted the feel of the new grip and has made the connection with through the ball, when you focus on your target, you will feel the need to grip it right! Shawn
Hey Tomb29!
Thanks for your comment and question!
My Daughter was good to go at that age but my son was still far from ready; the key is the attention span and the fun factor; make it a blast for him and he's there; make it feel like homework and you will lose him; if he can stay still for 20 minutes or more, you could start him easy with some clinics or camps where he has some friends to share the learning with; it is very important to shop around to see what the pros do to make it fun!
Hey dfg769; I know exactly what you mean and this video is made for 90% of the golfers out there who have a hard time with the release; I know about the release you are talking about because I also get great results with the weak/neutral grip too; but out of the 80 to 100 students I see every week as well as the ones my assistants handle, I would say this video fits 90% of them; the world tours are chock full of the strong grippers as well; Thanks for the comment though! Shawn
One will work better than the other depending on the person; some people can't use a strong grip because of stiff forearms and others can't look at a closed face; it is just a matter of personal preference; left handed I have a bit of both and right handed I have an open face with a stronger grip...both sides allow be to work the ball at will; Shawn
Great comment! Thanks very much!
Shawn
Another timely and beneficial tip from you. I have been struggling lately to 'learn' how to get my right elbow to lead my hands into impact while squaring the clubface at the same time. Always a very contrived move for me, resulting in many problems as I tried to force it to happen with wrist moves, elbow moves, etc.
I have been using a strong left and weak right grip. Tried strong left and strong right today and viola!. Wow. Everything seems to be 'behaving', virtually on automatic. Wow again.
Positively yes!
Nice job Shawn.. you're saying everything the new instructors are saying now. Goes to show you that no one 8s reinventing anything..Thanks for the video
Hi Benoit! I would review the grip with my "Golf Pro Lesson Proper grip" and "Golf Pro Lesson Grip 2 wrist hinge" and then use the "Perpetual motion drill" to monitor the grip as you swing back and through in the swing and make sure there is no movement in the contact from the hands to the club; if there is in the backswing, you are not turning enough and the arms are crashing into the rib cage and causing the grip to come apart; if it is in the follow through, check my arm motion video...
It is a medical term (Anatomical snuff box) to identify the part of the wrist that hinges when you hammer nails, throw footballs and cast fishing poles...and of course, load up and release golf clubs with;
Shawn
from this video, now i finally know why i have the tendency to address the ball with the clubface slightly close. it's because i have a correct strong grip. what a revelation!!! thanks Shawn..:-)
Hey Paul; thanks for the comment! It just means you had a grip that was too strong and overdid the grip on a few of those shots; keep swinging towards the target and keep a very nice tempo and rhythm; "golf pro lesson timing and tempo" and "golf pro lesson through the ball" Shawn
Hey Mike; Just continue to flow around a steady axis; see "golf pro lesson tilted twirl" and keep it rhythmic with "golf pro lesson how to get great rhythm"; Keep it up! Shawn
Thanks very much Mike!
We are just a 15 minute drive from Pearson International airport in Toronto...:)
Shawn
Wow! What a difference in my ability to hit it straight or with a slight draw I had the last two days after following the tips in this video. I have tried a strong grip alone with inconsistent results. Turning club face 30 degrees closed, hinging the "snuff boxes" a couple times then adding the torquing of the left hand so the club face is square worked like magic with my irons. Moving the ball back of center is gold too. Only thing is too much of all these things done at once I would over
Best is to look at my "golf pro lesson grip 2 wrist hinge" video for the second part; for the first part, the arm club unit should square itself from a solid braced position against the left side which will create a fantastic anchoring system that will deploy the full release of the hands; so the result is that they release themselves; it should never be a conscious act!! Keep plugging! See "golf pro lesson taut swing philosophy" Shawn
Hey UnclePTM! Thanks for the comment and question!
I am suggesting to use whatever it takes so that when you have that effortless and powerful whip to your target with full abandon to centrifugal force, that the ball flies straight; experiment with different options until this is done and stop looking at what other teachers "Think Should Be"; see the comment I answer to DuffyGolfstuff as well...Shawn
Thank you for the great comments Guys! Shawn
Thanks for the great comment George!
Shawn
I always keep coming back to this video to remind me. Thank you Sean
Great video. I use to slide like crazy! But the pro showed me to play with a stronger grip, I thought it was a bad thing, now I know better :-)
After watching your online videos, and your DVD, I went from a very strong grip to a neutral one, but I still use a stronger, not as strong as before, grip with my 6-5 iron's
I realy like the DVD, very detailed. And thanks for sharing on TH-cam!
Bless,
Tommy.
That's the best explanation I have ever seen, I had a strong grip and did not like the look of it so weakened it so it looked more text book, went from driving it 330 down to 270 I guess what works best for you
Hey Huronmountain; good question;
They do not have any relation at all; the arms and club are tracking gravity and the body is getting out of the way; do not confuse club face with spine angle as they do not relate in the swing;
Shawn
Sure; see "golf pro lesson student swing analysis" part 1 and 2; in part 2 you will see half way through a nice analogy that will corroborate this address position;
Thanks for the comment! Shawn
Right on Itrat!
I hope you are getting some great play time out there!
Send me an email sometime and let me know how you are doing outside the game too! :)
Thanks for the great comment! Shawn
Great explanation! Have had some serious problems with a push-fade with the driver lately, but switched to a much stronger grip to make sure the clubhead is closed at impact. This has resulted in hitting more fairways and more confidence in attacking tight fairways. Still got the occasional monster fade, but atleast i know the remedy to fix it
thank you for your reply. really appreciate someone thinking out of the box and ready to experiment. will try to incorporate your wisdom to my kids' swings. thank you and best wishes.
Have a look at "pure strike shawn clement" part 1 and 2 for a deeper understanding; Shawn
I find I work better with a more neutral grip on my backhand side but with a slightly closed face; a combo of dominant hand and dominant eye (left eye dominant); this gives me a straight flight; Shawn
Wow! I was told by a golfer to weaken my grip to eliminate my slice and now I am turning on the ball like no tomorrow. So the more I have tried to fix it, the worse it gets. I was even starting to toe in my club to compensate for the wrong grip! Your hammer illustration is a powerful visual and explains exactly what is going on with your body!! Can not wait to see my compression tomorrow morning when we all golf! Thanks a million!
Right on Guy!
See my "grip and compression shawn clement" as well as my "farm hammer shawn clement" videos for extra support here.
The thing about chip and pitch vs full swing: For many, they need a stronger grip or a more closed club face in the full swing because they are getting ready to swing or whip THROUGH TO THE TARGET which naturally opens the face to a square position through impact; you do not want this for chips and short pitch shots as your hands are already forward and there is no change in the "lower case y" through the shot; closed face with hands centered=square face hands forward; you dig? Shawn
Yes, also Julius Boros' book title says it all; "Swing Easy, Hit Hard! Thanks for the comment! Shawn
If your spine tilt or braced tilt is good and the ball position is not too far forward, then go with your grip option of more neutral; see "golf pro lesson tilted spiral" part 1, 2 and 3 to cover the other possibilities; Shawn
All clubs my man! Especially the driver!
Shawn
Way to go Kristian!!!!!
Shawn,
Excellent as usual. Agree with the strong grip concept. I (Hcp 4) grip strong and often address the ball with a closed clubface. I find this works well; however when doing this, the visual perception of the clubface can promote an outside-the-line takeaway which I need to guard against. Outside the line plus strong grip doesn't work so well for me but it may explain Zinger's power fade.
JB NZ
Shawn,
I go through periods where I take a neutral grip with a closed face and then square it at address. I just never understood why I would periodically do this...it just would help my swing.
I think you're are a fantastic teacher, and I send a lot of your videos to my good golfing buddies. Not too many though, as I don't want to help the "enemy" too much.
Would love to, some day, get to your neck of the woods and meet you in person.
Pete
Great Idea!! Go for it! Shawn
@clemshaw
i got it figured out now, i am getting pretty consistent with my 5-10 yard draw with my driver. Also picked up some yardage over the last month. I use to average around 230 ish off the tee now 3 of the last 4 times i have played my local exec 9 course i have drove the green on the short par 4 that is 260 yards give or take a few depending on tee placement.
keep up the work on the great video.
This is the best lesson yet. I wish I had known this years ago. No more weak fades for me.
You couldn't be more correct, Shawn! The strong grip promotes the proper use of the lower body during the downswing, and so it also promotes the proper in-to-out "D-plane" action (for those of you who are interested in that concept).
No-one's ever described the grip to me like that before! WHY?! Can't wait to get back out there now. Cheers Shawn!
(P.S. didn't Freddie Couples always claim that by really firming up the grip at impact gave him extra yards? Sure I heard that somewhere.)
@cummiskey3030 This is for both you and Reed521; #1 you need to feel the difference between a target bound action and ball bound action; you want the action that releases way out towards the direction you want to start the ball; not release into the ball; see "Ridiculously easy; Shawn Clement" part 1 and 2; If you release to the target in a rhythmic and effortless way and it is still hooking, then you may weaken the grip; Shawn
See my other video called "golf pro lesson grip awareness" where you will use the perpetual motion drill to monitor the grip's pressure and where it falls apart, at the moment it falls apart, your upper arms are crashing into the top of the rib cage which means that you are not COMPLETELY GETTING OUT OF THE WAY! See "golf pro lesson timing and tempo update" Shawn
Yes; this is a tilt issue; see "golf pro lesson proper spine tilt angle" and "golf pro lesson braced tilt part 1 and 2"
Shawn
mannn, 2:50 - 3:30 so explains them left to right grooves on the bottom of my clubs. was so doing that, when I had no knowledge of my grip and how to operate it.
Greetings from the UK Shaun. As always, love the videos - have never come across anyone that explains the fundamentals so well, excellent use of analogy and imagery you just don't get from a book!
Hi Shawn,
Certainly not golf weather!
I'm busy knocking pictures of my office wall swinging the club around!
Hope you are well.
Thanks
Vinny
Let me answer that with: Often times it is better to admit to a mistake and move on than to try and defend something you know is not right; we look for validation everywhere instead of getting down to the root of the issue; some don't know how to get to the root...:) Shawn
Shawn, this sound's cheesey but watching your video above has had the biggest impact on my game than anything else i've tried to learn before.
Despite the initial awkwardness i felt at address, having a stronger grip has given my shots from the PW up, a lot more distance and straightness, my rythm has improved, nice thin divot's in the ground and a much better THWACK sound as i strike the ball, rather than that slappy STACK. There has been other improvements as well.
You saved my game!
Thanks Matt;
When you do hit the stronger hook, what was your focus over the ball? If you were not focused on the target and how you were going to let the "effortless whip" go in the direction of the target, then you DEFAULTED to the ball and therefore released the "snap" too soon and caused the hook; so be aware of this next time it happens;
Good Comment BTW! Shawn
Hi Shawn, great explanation about strong v weak grip. If only I had seen that 20 years or so ago. Anyway, I play off 5 but have always had a weak grip and a longish thumb. I have finally got a short thumb and strongish grip after playing golf for 40 years!
Considering going the whole hog and giving myself a strong left hand grip to see if it will help me as I approach the senior golf age. Played yesterday with a +1 golfer with a strong left hand grip, he hit the ball miles.
An oldy but goody! :) Shawn
Great video, I used to play with stronger grip and played better, I realized this today on course, what a difference! I watched this video to reinforce what I experienced today. Thx Shawn!
Excellent explanation, TY
oldie but goodie!👍🫶
@AKADRIVEN You and PoshboyRoy get the the first and second stars of the day! :)
Way to get through it guys! Great example on how to be fearless in your learning!
Shawn
Thanks Broonzy! what is the weather like where you are these days? Shawn
Thank you cause for heck of it I’m having my fitter, now bare with me here, I’m having him turn the irons20 degrees closed and putting the grip brand neutral, so I grip it neutral with closed face and rotate arm. For me seem easier than trying to place hand on grip knuckles up, make sense lol. I love visuals.
Perfect!! Keep it up!
Shawn
If you have issues with the hinge then you should revisit the grip as it will be too strong; remember, both snuff boxes need to be active; Shawn
That would be great! I could use some good warm weather for my bones right now! Shawn
Of course! What you think is a neutral grip has the face wide open! Enjoy the experiment! There is a reason why over 40% of the tour pros have a very strong grip!!! Toss the "SHOULD BE AND SHOULD HAVES" out the window!
Shawn
@112frankybaby The makeup of the hands stays the same; have a look at my " proper grip; Shawn Clement" and "Grip 2 wrist hinge; Shawn Clement" for complete info on the whole grip including the intricacies of the right hand positioning; Shawn
Very good video, made sense and was easy to follow. Look forward to trying it out tomorrow. Thanks for your post.
I've been working on my swing for some time now to get rid of the slice on my driver. I filmed my self and found that my swing was on plane, good release and good bodyrotation. I've allways used the "textbook" grip showing two knockles. By reading and warching vids i found that by altering the grip, i could shape my shots the way i want. For my driver, the standard grip is WAY to weak, so by showing all 4 knockles at adress with a square clubface i got a little draw.... So grip for me is key
Hey Jon! Nice course and great stuff! Please see "Over the top in Abu Dhabi Shawn Clement" then see "Dynamic vs Static Shawn Clement" part 1 and 2; it is all about the focus! You do not swing over the top on purpose; Shawn
This video was very helpful in solving a hook problem. I tried to weaken the grip which did not work at all. I was flipping the club more. After strengthening the grip, I "had" to keep the lag which kept the club square.
Thanks!
Dan
There you go! That is how most players on tour do it!
So Shawn I looked at the rest of your videos and instead of cranking the left arm/hand towards the right, it’s much easier and just let me know if this is right, it’s much easier to grip the club neutral with the club face closed about 20° facing down at the ground and then when you set it down behind the ball, you turn your arm to square it and that should solve that weak grip strong grip thank you
😀👍
No fade is bad shot (normally with Driver). It was a one off lesson whch was net +ve as I am now a lot more dynamic (bottom out). I have the thru the ball, one leg drill, and one that rocks from right to left to be really useful. I really get what you say, but noted you are a little bit contra the popular words on grip. I am not sure Cabrerra et al hold the club like a tube of toothpaste, so I am kinda with you on this one. I am reverting to my stronger grip..
Thank you!
You're welcome!
I had considered my grip to be "normal". Not strong or weak. And when I saw this video and heard you speak about square face at adress or impact I was sort of wondering how I manage to have a square face at adress and also square when hands move in front of the club head at impact.. It was fun to see that I actually had a strong grip. 3-4 knuckles as you said. But I feel no strain in my left arm and club face is square at adress and it feels normal.
I'm a strong grip convert from about a year ago. It has changed my golf game 100%. However I do find it hard to hit a fade now if I need to. lol - small price to pay for crisp impact and penetrating ball flight.
Hi Shawn,
tried this at the range today... hit some cracking shots... but also hit some amazing hooks. has anyone else had this problem or is it because u cant be lazy with this grip (and do u find its more of a palmy grip?) and have to make sure u have that weight transfer?
paul
p.s. dont stop making these vids!
Hi Shawn - Brilliant video! I have a wicked slice that I have battled to overcome and as yet have had no success. I have been using a neutral grip. By shifting to a strong grip position will this eliminate (or even minimize) my slice.
Your videos are brilliant and really helpful in understanding technique. Thanks
Great video and very helpful.
Any idea why so many pros teach the neutral (2 knuckle grip) with the club face square at the address position?? Ive been taught this way and im sure it has contributed to me having to flip the hands to get the face square.