Had my 1st golf lesson tonight, tutor said I had a great swing and strong grip, and so thats the usual first two lessons skipped! Been instructed to turn my shoulders and drop my left on the upswing, and to stop my left wrist from cupping, both of which I have found very easy to achieve.

Just thought i'd start posting what i'm being taught and my general progress in here.

Comments welcome

Have fun on the practice ground!!



Did the pro get you to soften your grip to a more neutral position?

Well i'd already sorted my grip before the lesson, having found some great vids on you tube. Had been playing with a weak grip for years!

He said to imagine gripping a tube of open tooth paste but not squeezing any out, pretty good way of teaching I thought.

Ball positioning next week I think, and he said I could get my driver out. On lesson two, I must be pretty good Amate who has lessons with the same guy has had 8 lessonsand still no driver!

I love that optimism you get from a good lesson or two

Slingshot

GBWG.

I'd be interested to see what your grip was like before. When you say 'drop my left on the upswing' what do you mean?
As for grip pressure it's my preference to go with something a little more measurable such as 5 / 10 in terms of strength of pressure, as I can't remember the las time I held a tube of toothpaste like I hold a golf club!!
I hope you progress well, but more importantly enjoy it.

I've seen the toothpaste analogy in several books and could never hold a club as lightly as that concept implies. Thanks for putting my mind at rest, Sam

Slingshot

My grip originally was, I discovered, to be weak, with the point between my left thumb pointing towards my chin, and not my right shoulder.

I'm quite a stocky guy, as is my instructor, and if I were to rotate my shoulders squarely I would easily lose sight of the ball. So he told me to lower my left shoulder on the upswing.


Went to the range last night and had a howler, dont know if it was a mental thing or if my stance was wrong, i dunno, but half the 120 balls i hit were duds, didnt need that before the 18 i'm playing tomorrow.

I like the thought that you grip the club as hard as you need to for the shot you are going to play, if it's a soft chip onto the green from 30yds that you want to land delicately then it's a soft grip, however if you are thrashing a 5-iron 185 out of the rough and want to hold onto the club in the process then you need to grip somewhat harder. I don't strangle the life out of my grip but I reckon it would be FIRM to say the least - a tube of toothpaste wouldn't stand a chance!

James,

I like the variance in grip pressure you describe and would be inclined to agree.