Stop Strangling the Club
Loosen Your Grip
Settle in. Let’s talk golf.
If you’ve read any of my other posts, you know this about me:
My instinct is to swing hard.
Fast.
Aggressive.
Baseball-style.
Which is ironic.
Because I’m not even a baseball player.
I think I made it to T-ball.
Maybe.
Golf, as I am painfully learning, is not baseball.
It’s refined.
Controlled.
Intentional.
And one of the hardest lessons for me?
Grip pressure.
The 6 Out of 10 Rule
I kept hearing instructors say:
“Your grip should be about a 6 out of 10.”
Ten being as tight as you can possibly squeeze it.
Six?
That felt loose.
Too loose.
Martin Hall from School of Golf explains it this way in one of his videos – about a 6 out of 10. Firm enough for control. Light enough for fluidity. Rick Shiels has said similar things.
When I first heard that, I thought:
“If I grip it that light, the club is going to twist out of my hands.”
So naturally…
I squeezed harder.
(I’ll link Martin Hall’s video below so you can fact-check it yourself. You know I do.)
What Actually Happens When You Squeeze Too Hard
When you grip too tightly:
• Your forearms tense up
• Your wrists lose flexibility
• Your shoulders tighten
• Your tempo speeds up
• Your swing becomes jerky
Sound familiar?
It did to me.
I wasn’t just gripping the club tight.
I was tightening my entire upper body.
What Happened When I Loosened Up
Then I tried it.
6 out of 10.
Not lazy.
Not limp.
Just controlled.
And something interesting happened.
My hands relaxed.
My wrists became more fluid.
My arms stopped fighting the swing.
My tempo slowed down naturally.
And suddenly…
My swing started to resemble what it’s supposed to look like.
Not perfect.
But smoother.
More connected.
More repeatable.
The Twist Myth
I was wrong about something else.
The club didn’t twist out of my hands.
It stayed stable.
Why?
Because speed and structure, not tension, create control.
Tension actually works against you.
It restricts the natural motion your swing needs.
The Bigger Lesson
Golf feels like it should reward effort.
Grip tighter.
Swing harder.
Force the result.
But golf rewards efficiency.
Relaxed muscles move better.
Loose wrists create speed.
A controlled grip creates better timing.
Small change.
Big impact.
Try This
Before your next shot:
Take your normal grip.
Then loosen it slightly.
Wiggle your fingers.
Relax your forearms.
Then swing.
See what happens.
The Next Shot
Your next shot doesn’t have to be perfect – just intentional.
Loosen up. Then let the club do the work.
Are you a club strangler too?
Be honest.
Drop it in the Clubhouse – I know I’m not the only one who thought tighter was better.
Real Talk. Play Better.
Effort builds results.
