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Trail Hand Grip - Putting

Troubleshooting the trail hand grip can produce a few notable putting benefits, especially as it is the dominant hand for a majority of golfers. In this video, we will re-visit some anatomy and discuss the correct force applied to the handle during the stroke; players who go through this analysis will typically identify one or two tweaks. With the trail hand properly in place, players can expect an increase in face control and improved putting from short distances.

Playlists: Putting

Tags: Putt, Drill, Intermediate

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This concept video is discussing the trail hand grip for putting.

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So what we're going to discuss here is kind of why we're trying to get the grip in certain

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places.

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So in the grip video, I talk about where you get the center of your palm or the capitate

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joint, where you squeeze there, kind of in line with that first knuckle or in line with

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the middle of the grip.

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And what do we want to do with this trail hand index finger?

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Well, if I start with the premise that my goal is to get most of the rotation happening

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more from the shoulder blades and arms and less from the wrist and forearms, then

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essentially what I'm doing up here is I'm supporting the bottom and I'm applying using

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my left hand, but I'm applying all the force kind of in line with the plane of action.

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So it's in a pendulum motion, but it's in line with the plane.

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So as a real simplistic way of looking at it, if I was to put my fingers on the grip just

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like this so that they're on the side of the grip, in line with the target, this would

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provide enough stability that then I could rotate back and forth and apply force and I

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wouldn't have it in a lot of feats twist.

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If I start to push more on an angle like this, that will tend to close the face.

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If I start to push more on an angle like that, that will tend to open the face.

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So ideally, I'm going to push relatively close to the direction that the face is traveling.

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So that means that if I take this my normal grip, I pretty much have the middle of my index

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finger on the middle of the grip and I have my capitate joint, the middle of the palm

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kind of right there and right there both on the middle of the joint.

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So now just like I was doing with my two fingers like this, I can basically apply a force

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through the middle of the club.

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It happens to go in.

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This is where some of the unconventional grips like the claw and the pencil grip make

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a whole lot of sense because I basically just take either the index finger or the inside

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of the finger and I apply the pressure on the inside or on that backside of the grip and

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it's very hard to get that hand to twist unless I was that have a jerky motion with

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my forearm.

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So I'll have some golfers at first just to kind of experience that take one finger and

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place it in the middle of the grip.

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Just like this and then feel like they rotate back and forth and they just apply

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force kind of in that direction.

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Then I'll have them take their open hand and put it on the grip on the side and feel

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like they can again control the face without twisting it and then lastly we'll take whatever

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their normal grip is and feel like it stays in that same alignment and orientation and that

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helps communicate where and why we're trying to get the trail hand grip in a specific direction

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if that gives you a little bit more autonomy if you feel like you're trying to do the

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right grip but something just feels off.

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Just your grip until you feel like you have a couple different stable pressure points

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right in the middle of the grip and that tends to help stabilize that face rotation

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and give you a little bit better chance of controlling your start line especially on the

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short puts.

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