Golf Fundamentals Information Blog

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Alignment is one of 4 basics of golf that you have to get master along with the grip, stance and posture. Once you have the basics right you will improve rapidly. If the basics are wrong you will find it difficult to improve. If you are not aligned properly, obviously the ball will not go where you want it to. As you can imagine if you are just slightly out in your alignment at the ball, how far will you be out when it has traveled over 200 yards. Good alignment is not difficult and here are some tips to help.

1. Take up a position behind the ball. This is your first step to achieve the right alignment. Stand directly behind the ball and make sure that you keep it between you and your target. Holding the club with the grip, pick a point on the ground that is about three feet from the ball in line with the target you are aiming for. Memorize that spot, whether it is a divot mark, small weed, broken tee peg, because you are going to use it as a reference to address the ball and to aim your club face later on.

2. Walk up to the ball and place the club head square to spot 3 feet in front of you that you had chosen earlier. Take your stance with your body square to your designated target line. Position your feet in accordance to the club, which you intend to use for the shot. The main idea here is to make sure that the lines corresponding to the tips of your toes, your knees, your hips, and your shoulders should all be in parallel to the target line. Your proper alignment, coupled with good swing fundamentals, should be enough to make the ball go straight into the hole with every shot.

3. You can make a quick check by placing your club across your shoulders and checking that they are on the target line. You can do the same with the toes of your shoes to make sure everything is square.

4. Always keep a check on your alignment, even the pros can fall into the trap of thinking they are lined up correctly when in reality they are way out.

Good basics lead to a good golf game. Don’t practice bad habits.

By: Ian Donaldson

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I’m sure you’ve heard the expression “there’s more than one way to skin a cat!” Well, Golf is no exception. There are many different Choices and Preferences that you can make whilst trying to find the Correct Golf Grip. There are however some general areas of agreement amongst the best Teachers and Players in the World and these are:

The Correct Golf Grip needs to be learned! If you’ve never played Golf before in your life and I was to give you a Golf Club, you would almost certainly instinctively hold it in a way that would firstly, hinder the amount of Club Head speed that you could generate, i.e. you wouldn’t be maximising the potential distance you are capable of achieving and secondly, you would find it very difficult to get the Club Face back to square at impact on a consistent basis, i.e. you’d be spraying it all over the place.
Learn the Correct Golf Grip to begin with! of course it can be changed at any time but the longer your muscles and brain get used to a faulty Grip the longer it will take to feel comfortable when applying the Correct Golf Grip. However, if you want to start playing better Golf and reach your potential, then the pain and frustration that you will go through will be well worth it.
The Palms of each hand should be facing each other, or probably slightly inwards! If you stand up and let you arms hang naturally down by your sides you will notice their positions and this is how they should facing each other on the Grip to encourage them to work together. If they are not aligned in a parallel position then they will be working against each other and result in a greater lack of Club Head speed and consistency.
Grip Pressure, it should be light enough to encourage Club Head speed and Feel and firm enough to stop the club from turning in your hands. Think about the feel you get when shaking someone’s hands, not too firm so your crushing it and not to light that it slips out.

Ultimately you need to find the Correct Golf Grip that you feel comfortable with and one which will help you achieve your best potential results.

In terms of Choices and Preferences, there are 3 main Correct Golf Grip styles:

Overlapping Grip
Interlocking Grip
Ten Finger Grip

The Overlapping Grip which would generally be considered the Correct Golf Grip for Golfers with large fingers and strong hands and was introduced by one of the games great players Harry Vardon.

The Interlocking Grip should be considered if you have smaller weaker hands, as you may feel you hands are more secure and unified with this Correct Golf Grip. Jack Nicholas is a great example of someone who uses this type of Grip

The Ten Finger Grip is generally used by Juniors or ladies with smaller hands and not recommended for those outside of this group, as the right hand will have a tendency to put more pressure on the shaft and make it difficult for both hands to work as equal partner.

By: Jack Castanho


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Golf grip tips are vital for many reasons, but are often not given much attention. New golfers unfortunately believe you can hold the club in any position and then pound a drive down the center of the fairway.

It’s been said that over 9 tenths of all mis-hits result from to a incorrect on the golf club. Knowing that, what golf grip is correct for your swing motion?

Like snowflakes no two golfers are built alike. Since all golfers built differently, you will have your own exclusive grip.

How To Find Your Natural Neutral Golf Grip

To find your natural grip you’ll want to stand at attention. Now simply have your arms and hands hang down at your sides. Next, look down and observe how many knuckles are visible on your target hand (the target hand is the left hand for right handed players). For most golfers it will be either two or three knuckles.

Now, grab one of your golf clubs and take hold with your target hand. As you place your grip, make sure you keep the same number of knuckles visible while your hands were hanging down at your sides. This is your natural grip.

For many golfers this may feel unnatural at first. That’s ok, it will become routine in time, but now you are trying to create the right grip that squares up your club face at impact to hit straighter and longer shots.

Golf Tip Adjustments

Now with your natural grip, let’s see if you need to make any quick adjustments. Where are the “V’s”, created by the forefinger and thumb of each hand, pointing as you take your grip and golf stance? They should be pointing towards your nose and trail (right shoulder for right handed golfers) shoulder.

Do you hold the club with your palms or fingers? Be sure to use your fingers and not the palm. When the club is gripped in the palm it creates incorrect positions.

Ok, you have your brand new grip. Let’s go to the practice range and hit some real golf balls.

Observe where the golf balls are flying. Are they slicing? If so, move your “Vs” more closer to your trail shoulder. This will give you a stronger grip. Stronger relates to a position no how tight you hold the golf club.

Are they hooking? If so, move your “Vs” more closer to your chin. This will become a weaker position compared to the neutral position.

As you begin hitting straight shots you know your grip that is right for you. It does take a lot and practice, but it is something that will stick with you forever.

By: Kent B. Thompson

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Firstly I am going to make a few points about the grip

I am not going to go into how to actually hold the club.
That part is for another time.

However, I will say this. Make sure the palm of the right
hand and the back of the left hand and the club face are
all square to the target.(right handers)
This is at address and at impact..

I am actually going beyond this important step and am going
to make a few observations in the field of uncertainty,
carelessness and error.

The first important point is to make sure you maintain a
firm and constant pressure during the whole swing. This
means maintaining the same pressure as you had when you
started your swing, at the top, after the ball has been struck
and right through to the end of the follow through.

So many golfers, especially the beginners and the less
experienced of us pay little attention to their grip at the
top of the swing and after the ball has been struck.
What is the importance of the grip after the ball has been
struck? they may well ask

Well, maintaining the same grip pressure at the top of the
swing is vital in the performance of a good shot.

You must be sure not to relax it as so many do. The degree
of suppleness that the player has may play a part in not
being able to maintain a constant pressure at the top. If
this is so, then try a swing where you don’t take your club
so far back.
That is, shorten your back swing. You will
find that you hit the ball just as well, if not better and
your accuracy will improve. Many older players play like
this and score very well.

Now what about after the ball has been struck? Reducing the
grip pressure just after the ball has been struck will
result in a golf shot that lacks firmness. If you have a
tendency to do this, it can be overcome by finishing your
swing with a good follow through. The grip will remain
constant.
Incidentally, a good follow through will give you more
accuracy and a better club speed as you hit your ball
making the ball travel further.

Further to loosening your grip at the top. Players who do
this are fully aware of what they are doing, but are
unaware of the effect of this manoeuvre. They feel that
they can regain normal pressure on the way down.
However, changing grip pressure at the top makes it
impossible to maintain a square club face from address to
the striking of the ball.
Loosening at the top will have the effect of the club face
being off square at impact and so a poor shot will result.

By: Bill Maitland

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Interested in the correct golf swing sequence! Carry out following golf swing drill …

Many beginners are interested in the proper technique. In the first step, you should position yourself in line with the flag. After taking position, while approaching your ball you should watch out for a small stone or a fallen leaf in a direct line between your ball and the flag you are aiming for. Just draw an imaginary line between these two points in your mind, put your club face square to it, and stand parallel to this imaginary line. You are ready to begin the perfect golf swing.

The second step is to grip your left hand properly. Place the club in the left hand in a way so that the shaft lies across the top of the forefinger. It should fit under the thicker part of the palm so that the club remains stable. You should not provide any room for the club to move therefore make sure that the little finger is around the grip and the thumb is straight on top of the shaft with a natural grip.

In the third step, grip your right hand correctly. Fold your right hand just over the left thumb. The thumb of the right hand should point to the right shoulder.

In step four I suggest three golf swing grips which help you to grip the back of the golf club correctly. The most common method used in golf is the Vardon or Overlapping Grip. In this method you have to place the little finger of the right hand between the index finger and middle finger of the left hand. The Interlocking Grip is easier for those with small hands. In this method the right little finger and the left index finger are locked together. This is the second most common method to grip. Finally comes, the Baseball Grip which is popular among people and children with very small hands as they can wrap their fingers around the club.

The fifth step points towards adoption of correct stance. The proper posture will allow perfect balance and poise throughout the swing. For a mid iron shot, the feet should be apart at the same width of the shoulders. The feet, the shoulders, the hips and the knees should be parallel to the target. The right foot should be placed straight at a right angle to the line of flight of the ball. This will allow your weight to come on the inside of the foot and result in an easier follow through. Place your left foot a bit to the side to make it easier for the body to follow through the swing.The upper torso should lean forward slightly from the waist, while the knees slightly bent to allow flexibility.

Maintain a distance of about a hand between your body and the club. Your posture should keep the weight of the body on the balls of the feet and not on the heels. As you approach the ball, keep your arms straight but relaxed, and the left shoulder higher than the right. Next dip your right shoulder a bit so that the club touches the inside of your left leg.

Step Six: In this final step you finally perform the swing. Some people find it very useful to perform the waggle at this point as it ensures that the body weight is evenly distributed on the feet. But remember your upper body and shoulder should not move during the waggle. Waggle helps to relax your body. The action of the arms starts with the rotation of the body, by maintaining the same grip pressure of the hands throughout.

Remember your body should be relaxed for a perfect golf swing. The hips should lead the shoulders all the way through until the swing ends. Practice the swing sequence a couple of times. Soon you will have a better golf swing.

By: John Davenport

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