Strong Grip vs Weak Grip in Golf (What are They & Which is Better?)

HackMotion

Aug 2, 2024 . 12 mins read

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In golf, the positioning of the hands is known as a strong grip, a weak grip, or a neutral grip.

The neutral grip is the one you are taught as a beginner, but most golfers don’t stay there. Even the professionals don’t stick with the neutral grip at all times.

Understanding how the strong and weak grips impact your ability to square the clubface is crucial. We will examine whether you should use a strong, weak, or neutral grip and how it will impact your game.

Strong Grip vs Weak Grip (What’s The Difference)

In golf, a strong grip involves the lead hand pronating (rotating inward), which reduces the likelihood of the clubface opening during the swing. Strong grip improves control and can result in more consistent, powerful shots.

Conversely, a weak grip features the lead hand supinating (rotating outward), decreasing the likelihood of the clubface closing. Weak grip promotes higher, more controlled ball flights.

Understanding the role of pronation and supination in the lead hand can help golfers adjust their grip to achieve the desired ball trajectory and improve overall performance.

In addition, the strong vs. weak grip can compensate for other golf swing areas that may need attention. The grip position impacts things like swing plane, angle of attack, and consistency in the clubface control.

What is a Strong Grip?

A strong grip for a right-handed player means the left hand is rotated inward so that more knuckles are visible when looking down.

By moving the left hand to this position, the right hand takes a more active role in the swing.

The right hand is placed more under the club, supporting this position. This grip positioning makes it easier to close the clubface through impact, promoting a draw or reducing a slice.

By having the lead hand in a pronated position, the likelihood of the clubface opening during the swing is significantly reduced. The strong grip helps to enhance control and power.

Benefits of a Strong Golf Grip

The strong golf grip has some benefits, making it the most popular choice among amateur players:

• Control of the clubface: the strong grip lets you feel the clubhead a bit more. As you work through the impact position and need to square things up, the more active right hand is there to help.
• Extra stability: stronger grips may make you feel as though you have more control over the club head. Don’t confuse a strong grip with a tight grip; strong refers to position, and tight refers to pressure.
• Slice fixer: the strong grip is a great way to fix a slice; most golfers slice because the clubface is left open at impact, but the strong grip makes it difficult to leave the clubface open.
• Extra power: with the strong grip activating the hands and arms just a bit more, many players feel as though they can go after the ball with full power and a little extra speed.
• Comfort: comfort is a personal preference, but MANY golfers find the strong grip to offer more comfort.

Negatives of a Strong Grip

If the strong grip was perfect, everyone would have it.

Here are a few negatives to look out for:

• Too much right hand: at some point, your right hand can get too active in the swing; I would watch out for this, especially in the short game.
• Inconsistency in golf shots: if you use smaller muscles in your swing, i.e., hands and arms, there tends to be greater dispersion in your shots.
• Too much draw: sick of hitting a draw on every golf swing; check to make sure it’s not the grip. The strong grip gives us a consistently closed clubface, but sometimes, you may not need this ball flight.
• Increased tension: the way the strong grip wraps that right hand around the club can promote increased tension for some players.

When to Use the Strong Grip

The strong grip is the ultimate slice fixer, but there are other times you can benefit from using the stronger grip; they include:

• Golfers with smaller hands who need more control.
• Any player trying to gain control of the club head.
• Players that like to hit a draw.
• Anyone looking for a little extra power from their swing.

What is a Weak Grip?

A weak grip for a right-handed player means the left hand is rotated outward so that fewer knuckles are visible when looking down.

The right hand is positioned more on top of the club, giving it a less active role in the golf swing.

This grip positioning makes it easier to keep the clubface open through impact, promoting a fade or reducing a hook.

By having the lead hand in a supinated position, the likelihood of the clubface closing during the swing is minimized, allowing for higher, more controlled ball flights. For golfers who hook the ball, this is a much better position to be in.

Benefits of a Weak Golf Grip

The main benefit of a weak grip is the ability to hit a fade; when approaching a green with the pin on the right side, weaken the grip and hit it toward the middle.

• Higher, softer fades: the high and soft fade is such a helpful shot; the ball lands on the green and stays where you need it. The weak grip often helps golfers have a slightly more open face at impact, creating these softer fade-type shots.
• Consistency in ball flight: the weak grip keeps the face square to open at impact; different than the strong grip with a closed clubface, the weak grip makes it easier to hit your shots with less dispersion.
• Great feel around the greens: for a variety of short game shots, you want to improve overall feel; the weaker grip allows for a better feel for a variety of reasons; if you often skull shots or have too much strength in the grip, weakening it could help.
• Less grip pressure: the tendency to grip the club to death is greatly reduced with a weaker golf grip.
• Better timing and tempo: although the weak grip can feel a little less powerful at times, it can help you feel a smoother transition from backswing to downswing and improve the overall tempo of the swing.

Negatives of a Weak Grip

The weak grip can put you at a disadvantage if you need help with power in your golf swing.

• Could make a slice worse: If you weaken the grip too much, it could result in a slice; as I’ve mentioned, make sure the changes to your grip are subtle.
• Less control at impact: as soon as you weaken your grip, your ability to feel where the clubface is and whether or not it is closed is greatly improved.
• Lower clubhead speed: a golfer with a weaker grip will sometimes have a slower swing speed than those with a higher swing speed.

When to Use a Weak Grip

You don’t have to keep the weak grip in play all the time; many golfers will use the weak grip when playing short game shots to help with a softer landing and better control.

• Approaching a green where you must attack a pin on the right side.
• Anytime a higher and softer shot is needed.
• Around the greens for better feel and control.
• When grip pressure needs to be lightened.
• Around the greens for shots with higher ball flights.
• Players who like to work the ball prefer a weaker grip.

What is a Neutral Grip?

The neutral grip is your home base.

With the neutral grip, the left hand is positioned more in the center with no turning towards the left or the right. The right hand can then fit on the club in a more neutral position.

A neutral grip has the perfect balance of all the positives of the weak vs strong grip.

For instance, you will still feel the ability to square up the clubface, but your grip pressure may be a little lighter.

However, not every golfer has the swing dynamics that make it possible to square the clubface with a neutral grip. Some players use a strong grip because they need wrist strength to close the clubface and have a flexed lead wrist at impact.

Benefits of a Neutral Grip

The neutral grip has the main benefit of allowing you to swing on the proper path, which is most natural for your golf game.

• Improved shot-making capabilities: The strong grip increases the chance of a hook, and the weak grip increases the chance of a slice. With the neutral grip, you can take your swing and trust a square clubface.
• Control: the neutral grip gives just the right amount of control to prevent overdoing the shots and cause the ball to hook.
• Consistency in positioning: neutral grips should feel like your home base, make it back to neutral for straight shots, and rely on that swing path and plane that you have worked so hard on.
• Flat wrist at the top: golfers with a neutral grip tend to have a flat wrist at the top of their backswing, making it easier to square a clubface early (something the professionals are very good at).

Negatives of a Neutral Grip

With the neutral grip you won’t find too many negatives. Most golfers who can obtain a neutral grip eventually learn that it’s a consistent and solid option that results in a straight shot.

• Have to make adjustments to hit different ball flights: if your grip is in a neutral position, you will have to make other adjustments to your swing to hit a fade or a draw. Sometimes the simpler adjustment is to just change the hand position.
• Inconsistency in shots: If you struggle with hitting a slice or a hook, the neutral grip may not be strong or weak enough for you.

Strong or Weak Golf Grip – Who Wins?

In the end, you have to find a grip that allows you to consistently return the clubface to square.

This, of course, takes the proper wrist action and body movements, but a strong or weak grip could get you there faster.

Play around with a strong and weak grip on the driving range. Experimenting with the extremes should help you change the way the ball flies and see which is the most consistent position for you.

By wearing the HackMotion, you can also measure the position of your wrists at setup and see how they change from one swing to the next.

How to Know if Strong vs Weak Grip is Better for My Swing?

One of the best ways to work on the strong and weak grip is to use a feedback tool like HackMotion.

The HackMotion golf training aid lets you determine a perfect wrist position at setup, in the backswing, and on the downswing.

With the HackMotion it’s very easy to see the direct relationship your hand position has with the wrist position in your golf swing.

Hand position and wrist position are very much tied together.

To see and feel this without the help of a golf instructor can be difficult, but HackMotion can take the place of an instructor.

FAQs

Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions about the strong grip vs weak grip.

Remember that personal preference and what makes you feel confident will need to play into deciding which grip to use.

Do most pros have a strong or weak grip?

Most pros have a neutral grip, with more than 50% of players aiming for this position. Very few players have a strong grip, with less than 15% in this category. About 30% of players use a weak grip. These grips can also change from time to time.

Do any pro golfers use a weak grip?

Yes, about 30% of golfers who are professional use a weak grip. The weak grip allows for a better feel and a bit more workability in the shots. You’ll see it used quite a bit in short game shots.

What happens if your golf grip is too strong?

If your golf grip is too strong, you may feel as though you hook your golf shots. Hooking a golf shot is a problem as it also creates a lot of topspin; the ball can roll forever.

How do I know if my golf grip is too weak?

If your golf grip is too weak, you may feel a lack of power or notice that the clubface is too far open at impact. If you suddenly start hitting a fade or a slice, your weak grip could be the culprit.

Does a weak grip cause a slice?

A weak grip on its own is not usually the cause of a slice, but it could be. Most of the time, a weak grip can make a slice worse, as the right hand is not active enough in closing the clubface.

Final Thoughts

At this point, you should have a strong understanding of the difference between a strong grip and a weak grip.

It’s best to spend some time at the driving range practicing both the strong and weak grip and ensuring that you know exactly where your hands should be throughout the swing.

If you have been fighting a slice for years and all it takes is a slight turn of the lead hand on the club, go for it!