Golf is a game of tremendous variation. Everyone has their preferred equipment, swing style, course layout, and club grip. There are three main ways that most golfers will grip their club, and they all have their pros and cons. In this article, we are going to take a swing at explaining the Ten Finger Golf Grip.
What Is The Ten Finger Golf Grip?
The Ten Finger Golf Grip is where all ten of your fingers make contact with the club.
It is also known as the golf baseball grip, given that it is the same type of clasp that a baseball player would use on a bat.
The ten-finger grip may be the most comfortable and natural feeling for beginners and may provide a little more distance while a golfer is working on learning the fundamentals of the game.
The other two golf grips are interlocking and overlapping. With each of those golf grips, fingers are either interlaced or overlapped with other fingers, causing some of the fingers to lose direct contact with the club.
Ten Finger Golf Grip Advantages
There are numerous advantages to using the ten-finger palm grip on the golf club. While many professionals and instructors may insist on using an overlapping or interlocking grip, the ten-finger grip is helpful for beginners, seniors, and other players who may have joint pain or a need for a little extra power.
Here are some of the main benefits of the 10 finger golf grip:
- Easy to learn
- Most natural feeling grip
- Extra power for beginners and players with joint pain or weakness
- May experience more distance
- Superior hand feel at the point of impact
- More direct control over the position of the clubface
- Great for sand wedge shots and creating extra backspin
While there are 10 finger golf grip pros and cons, you’ll ultimately need to decide whether it is the right grip for your specific needs.
Ten Finger Grip Disadvantages
The ten-finger grip may not be best for every golfer. As players become more skilled with the basic mechanics of a swing, they’ll want to “automate” as many factors of the swing as possible.
With the ten-finger grip, you have more contact with the club, and as a result, more opportunities within the swing plane to overturn, under turn, or otherwise manipulate the club in a way that may cause excessive spin.
When using the ten-finger grip, both of your hands are generating power. If, at any point, your trailing hand, or your leading hand is moving quicker than the other, it may cause an imbalance of power in your swing.
An imbalance either way can result in a shot fired far off into the rough instead of sailing it beautifully down the fairway.
A beginner golfer essentially learns to swing the club with their arms. However, as a player progresses, they learn to turn with their hips and allow the hands to follow the body through the swing plane.
The ten-finger grip employs the hands so drastically that it may cause too many moving components within the swing.
An advanced swing is one that takes as much manual work out of the equation and relies on properly practiced technique.
This is where having an overlapping or interlocking grip can be more advantageous because it marries the two hands together and forces them to work in unison.
Ten Finger Golf Grip – How To Use It
To use the Ten Finger Golf Grip, grasp your club with your leading hand (right hand for lefties and left and for righties), and place your trailing hand below.
Allow the thumb on your top hand to give the “thumbs up” and become encapsulated by your bottom hand. Allow for your bottom hand to do the same, pointing both of your thumbs downward, toward the clubhead.
Your top hand’s index finger should be in contact with your bottom hand’s pinky finger. All ten of your fingers should be making direct contact with the grip of your club.
There are alternative reasons for using the ten-finger golf grip as well. Sometimes, you may need a little more power on a shot or want to have more control over the spin created by your swing.
For instance, the ten-finger grip is highly effective when using the sand wedge. It allows you to have more power and direct feel on the club, which is crucial in the trap.
If you’re able to go into the sand trap with confidence that you’ll be able to stop the golf ball quickly, you’re more likely to be able to make that shot more consistently.
It can also be useful on approach shots where you want to attack the ball and create a decent amount of backspin to stop the ball right in place on the green.
How To Grip A Golf Club With Ten Fingers
Here is a video that will show you exactly how to grip the club using the ten-finger technique.
Which Pros Use The Ten Finger Grip?
Most pros use either the interlocking or overlapping grip. However, pros from past generations used the ten-finger grip, before the others became more popular.
It is said that Scott Piercy still uses the ten-finger grip, and recent Canadian Open Champion, Bob Estes also used the ten-finger grip for his victory.
What Is The Reverse Ten Finger Golf Grip?
The reverse ten-finger grip is generally only seen among experienced golfers on the putting green. Some players intuit that a reverse grip gives them the semblance of more control when making crucial putts.
The reverse ten-finger grip lets you place your leading hand below your trailing hand on the club. All ten of your fingers would still be making contact with the club, but your hand position would be switched.
Ten Finger Golf Grip Vs. Interlock
With different golf grips come different pros and cons. And one type of clasp may not be perfect for you, but another could be.
The interlock grip is an alternative to the ten-finger grip, along with the overlap grip. The interlocking grip is not as widely used as the overlap, but some professionals and skilled amateurs still use the interlocking grip.
The interlocking grip can be advantageous to golfers with longer fingers. Longer fingers may bunch together underneath the palms too much when using the ten-finger grip.
Instead of all ten fingers making contact with the club, your pinky finger of the bottom hand would interlock with the index finger of your top hand. Each of these fingers would rest between the knuckles of the other.
The interlock grip may give you a little more control within your swing while reducing the maximum power you’ll be able to generate. It may be a happy medium between having maximum power and maximum control.
Ten Finger Grip Vs. Overlap
The overlap grip is likely the most popular among the highest skilled players. With the overlap grip, a golfer would place the bottom hand’s pinky finger between the knuckles of the index and the middle finger of the top hand.
The overlap grip offers the highest level of control in the swing and gives the least amount of hand contact on the club. The overlap grip is not meant for golfers with weaker or smaller hands because it requires additional strength to hold the club tight.
If you’re looking for more distance, then the overlap grip is likely not the best way to go. However, if you have enough rotation power within your swing and want more control over the placement of your shots, it may be worth experimenting with.
Conclusion
If you have any experience or questions or comments about the different types of grips, please leave them in the comments section below.
FAQ
Why don’t more golfers use a 10-finger grip?
Many golfers don’t use the 10-finger grip because it can be hard to keep their two hands balanced. Other golf grips help even out the power between both hands at impact. The 10-finger grip can cause slices or draws more often than the alternative grips. PGA Tour professional Scott Piercy uses the 10-finger grip.
What type of golfer is the 10-finger grip suited for?
The finger grip is suited for beginner golfers. It is comfortable when gripping the club and simple to learn. Many players believe the grip feels more natural compared to other types of grips.
Is the 10-finger grip good for driver?
Yes, the 10-finger grip is good for when hitting the driver. The leading hand on the grip helps produce the power at impact. This is why many golf teachers promote the grip for driver use.
