Mastering Wrist Position at Address: Why It’s Key to Consistency & How to Perfect It

Britt Olizarowicz

Oct 9, 2024 . 7 mins read

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When setting up to hit a golf shot, you usually think about your stance, alignment, grip, and posture.

However, it’s also important to pay attention to your wrist position.

Maintaining a consistent wrist position at address is crucial if you want to make great shots round after round.

We’ll show you what your wrist position at address should look like, how it can benefit you, and how to identify any issues you might have with your wrist position right now.

Wrist Position at Address (Key Takeaways)

If you don’t have time to read the entire article on wrist position at address, here are the key takeaways:

• Maintaining a consistent wrist position at address is crucial for hitting great shots and achieving shot predictability.
• Excessive flexion or extension, improper grip size, tension in the hands and wrists, and over-rotation will negatively impact your swing.
• A neutral grip position aligns your wrists with your forearms without major extension or flexion, making it easier to control the ball.
• HackMotion can be used to measure and practice maintaining the same wrist position at address.
• Remember, there’s no one-size-fits-all “perfect” wrist position at address; understanding and working with your natural wrist position can produce better results than trying to match the numbers of a professional.

Short on time? Watch this quick video recap by Rob Cheney on wrist position at setup.

Common Issues with Wrist Position at Address

The first part of this process is to look for issues at address. After analyzing more than 1,000,000 golf swings, these issues stand out the most.

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Excessive Flexion or Extension

Setting up with too much flexion or extension in the lead wrist can make it difficult to recover. If the lead wrist is too extended at address, the ability to get the wrist to a flexed position at impact is compromised.

Too much extension or flexion at setup can lead to a loss of power.

Playing with Improper Grip Size

If your golf grip doesn’t fit in your hands (too large or too small), the wrists can get into the wrong position at address. It’s best to go for a club fitting and have your hand size measured to ensure it’s the proper size.

Avoid Tension in Hands and Wrists

Too much tension in the hands stresses the wrists. When this happens, it is hard to release the club and hit straight shots.

If you tense your hands and release them as you read this, you’ll notice that tension will extend into the wrist and change the wrist angle. Even these slight differences can cause problems throughout the swing.

Over Rotation of Wrist

Rotation of the wrists or moving them from left to right on the golf club should also remain minimal at address. When you rotate your wrists too much, it can throw off the swing plane and path.

How to Perfect Wrist Position at Address

Now that we have a better idea of the mistakes most golfers make with their wrists at address, let’s look at how to fix them.

The wrist position becomes a problem because of inconsistency.

Until you start measuring your position at address you may not realize how this inconsistency leads to shots that end up left, right, short, and long of your target.

Maintain a Neutral Grip Position

The best position for your grip at the address is neutral. The neutral wrist position will keep your wrists more in line with the forearms without major extension or flexion. Practice hitting half-swing shots with a neutral grip, then change to strong and weak.

Pay attention to how the changes in grip position impact the ball flight and consistency of your shots.

Slight Forward Press on Short Irons

For more control and precision with short irons, a slight forward wrist press can be beneficial. This forward press position should be minimal. Some golfers exaggerate this detail and push their hands way ahead of the club head.

Instead, keep your hands in line with the ball to ensure that you can make crisp contact and connection with the ball.

Practice Consistency with HackMotion

The best way to improve your wrist position at address is to practice consistency.

If you can put the hands in the same position every time, you can reach consistent positions at the top and then again at impact.

For consistency in your shots, practice maintaining the same wrist position at address.

Wear the HackMotion wrist sensor, record a practice session, and analyze the data. Adjust your grip as needed to help maintain the correct wrist position at address.

Is There a Perfect Wrist Angle at Address?

Everyone has a slightly different natural wrist position. To understand what yours is, start recording swings with the HackMotion device. Understand yours and how it affects your swing.

Once you have a consistent wrist position at address, you can then start to find the proper ranges for the top of the backswing and also the impact position.

Drills and Resources to Improve Wrist Position at Address

One of the biggest misconceptions that amateur golfers have about the wrist position at address is the idea that there should be no wrist extension. In fact, when I first got my HackMotion, it was the first time I ever measured wrist action at address, and I was concerned I didn’t have a completely neutral position.

You don’t need a completely neutral position when you start.

Luckily, having a bit of extension in the lead wrist at impact is completely acceptable, as shown in this video by Chris Ryan Golf.

This next video from Mel Sole shows the relationship between the wrist position at address and the wrist position at the top.

This can easily be measured with HackMotion, but it’s a great visual explanation of why this starting wrist position is so important to focus on.

If you are struggling with how this wrist position at address changes from one golf club to another, the video from Niall McGill breaks that down.

There are some differences in the position, and if you can establish a baseline and then practice consistency with HackMotion, it’s a great way to practice.

Finally, when you master your wrist position at address, use that great starting position to lock in a perfect wrist position at impact.

Final Thoughts

Wrist position is often overlooked when golfers work on their setup. Most focus on their feet, hands, and knee bend, but the position of the wrists is equally important.

If you want to develop a consistent golf swing and hit predictable shots, your wrist position needs to be part of the equation.

Start practicing with your HackMotion to achieve consistent wrist positioning every time you set up for a shot. This type of intentional and focused practice will lead to lower scores. Having HackMotion with you is like having a coach by your side every time you practice.