A good grip plays a key factor in developing a good swing, and consequently
a good game. The basis for developing a good grip involves correct
placement of the club in the hands and tightness of the grip to ensure your
hands work effectively together as one.

Positioning of the club in the hands

During a swing the club should be placed more so in the fingers than the palm
of the hand. This will increase wrist hinge, and thus increases the chance of a
longer shot.

Hands are either positioned in the lead hand grip or the trailing hand grip.

The lead hand grip ensures optimal placement of fingers on the club. Place
the club at an angle at which it is running alongside all of your fingers.

Position the leading hand thumb over the back of the shaft, only the knuckles
of both index fingers and the middle finger should be visible. The leading
hand is that which holds the butt end of the grip and is usually the opposite
hand to that which you use most – for example, the left hand for a right
handed person.

The trailing hand grip provides large amounts of power to hit the ball a great
distance. Hold the club with your top hand grip, placing the handle on the
middle section of your ring and middle finger and the top section of your index
finger (across all three). The trailing hand is that which holds the lower end of
the grip and is usually the hand you use most (for example, the right hand for
a right handed person).

The pressure with which you hold your club will ultimately affect the direction
in which the ball will go. A light grip pressure, as opposed to a tight grip, is
ideal as this also aids in increasing wrist hinge. Be wary of gripping your club
too tightly as this may result in weak shots that tend to slice.

There are three main types of grip.

1. Vardon overlap (also know as the overlapping grip): This is the
most commonly used grip, and is most often adopted by professional
golfers. In this grip the little finger on the trailing hand overlaps the first
two fingers on the other. The lead hand thumb should fit along the
lifeline of the trailing hand.

2. Interlock or Interlocking: This grip locks the hands together and is
particularly beneficial for people who have small hands, weak forearms
or are beginners. If not performed correctly, the interlock grip may
reduce the power of a swing, as it may decrease wrist action. This grip
involves holding the club with the trailing hand and ensuring the thumb
is at the center of the grip. The little finger of the trailing hand should
then be interlocked with the index finger of the leading hand. The lead
hand thumb should fit alongside the lifeline of the trailing hand.

3. Ten finger grip (also known as the baseball grip): This grip is
particularly beneficial for beginners and for those suffering form
arthritis, joint pain or weak hands, as all fingers are used to grip the
club. To perform this grip, hold the club with the leading hand and bring
the trailing hand underneath. Position the little finger of the trailing hand
so that it is touching the index finger of the leading hand. Ensure no
fingers are overlapping.

A commonly held belief in many sports is that there is one ‘perfect’ technique that is suitable for every performer, and of all sports, this view is arguably most prevalent in golf. Most anecdotal coaching texts and instructional videos describing the golf swing emphasise a set grip, stance, backswing, downswing and follow-through. Although slight variations are inevitable owing to personal beliefs of the authors and instructors, and the influence of ever-changing modern coaching trends, the techniques being advocated in the instructional media are essentially the same and are generally considered to characterise an ‘ideal’ golf swing.

The golf-related scientific literature, too, appears to perpetuate this traditional ‘one size fits all’ view. For example, in a book by Ralph Mann, of CompuSport International, and Fred Griffin, a well-respected golf instructor, the techniques of over 100 US PGA, LPGA and Senior PGA tour players were analysed with the aim of identifying the characteristics of the golf swing most related to performance. Although minor differences in patterns of movement between golfers were acknowledged, Mann & Griffin (1998) reported a number of commonalities in their techniques that were used to construct a computer-generated 3-D model of the ‘perfect’ golf swing. This model, now more widely known as the ‘ModelPro’, has since been promoted as the template or criterion golf swing that all golfers should aspire to achieve.

In this article, we argue against the existence of one ‘perfect’ golf swing owing to the variability in technique within and between golfers (Riley & Turvey, 2002; Glazier, Davids & Bartlett, 2003; Davids, Glazier, Araújo & Bartlett, 2003). Rather than viewing any deviation from a perceived ‘common optimal movement pattern’ as being undesirable—‘noise in the system’ as it were—and a potential weakness in a golfer’s technique, we suggest that movement variability should be viewed in a more positive light, as it may reflect how the golfer uniquely satisfies the confluence of constraints acting on performance in the best possible way (Newell, 1986; Newell, van Emmerik & McDonald, 1989).The view that movement variability may be beneficial to performance has also been supported by recent models of motor control, which have suggested that inter- and even intra-performer movement variability may play a functional role in helping each individual adapt to specific performance contexts (Davids, Bennett & Newell, 2005). In the following sections, we provide a brief exposition of the constraints concept before explaining how the various sources of constraints impact on the golf swing. We conclude by discussing the implications of adopting a constraints-led approach for golf practitioners and their students.
The role of constraints in shaping and guiding the golf swing

The concept of constraints is central to many branches of science, including mathematics, physics and biology. Roughly speaking, in the context of golf, constraints are internal or external features that limit or set the boundaries within which the golfer must perform. Constraints coalesce to ‘determine’ what patterns of movement are produced, not by prescribing them, but by eliminating certain configurations (Kugler, Kelso & Turvey, 1980). According to the influential framework outlined by Newell (1986), constraints emanate from one of three sources—the performer, environment or task.

Performer constraints can be classified as those that are internal to the human movement system. This category of constraint can be further sub-divided into structural and functional constraints. Structural performer constraints tend to be physical constraints that remain relatively constant over time and include factors such as the golfer’s height, mass, strength and flexibility.. Functional performer constraints, on the other hand, tend to vary quite considerably over time and can be either physiological or psychological. Major functional performer constraints include the specific intentions of the golfer geared by tactical needs, performance anxiety, confidence and any deficiencies in perceptual systems.

Environmental constraints can be classified as those constraints that are external to the human movement system. They tend to be non-specific constraints that pertain to the spatial and temporal layout of the surrounding world or the field of external forces that are continually acting on the human movement system. Examples of environmental constraints include ambient light and temperature, acoustic information, ubiquitous gravitational forces and the reaction forces exerted by terra firma and other contact surfaces.

Task constraints can be classified as those constraints that are specific to the task at hand and include task goals, the rules of the task, and any implements or tools (e.g., different golf clubs) used to perform the task. It is the constraints of the task that operate as an umbrella over all other constraints in influencing what patterns of movement are produced (Higgins, 1985; Clark, 1995). The main task constraints in golf include not only swinging the golf club so that the club head is travelling at the optimum speed at impact, but also ensuring that the point of impact occurs on or near the centre of percussion (or more commonly known as the ‘sweetspot’) so that energy transfer is optimised, and that the club head is correctly orientated to strike the golf ball in the intended direction (Hume, Keogh & Reid, 2005).

The relative impact of performer, environmental and task constraints is very much dependent on the activity being performed and the specific requirements of each performance situation. As striking a stationary golf ball can be classified as being a relatively ‘closed’ skill (i.e., there is spatial and temporal certainty), environmental constraints are only likely to have an impact on the golf swing in certain circumstances, such as when playing from an excessively sloping lie, when exposed to inclement weather conditions or when impeded by a tree or out-of-bounds stake. Performer and task constraints are, therefore, probably the most influential in shaping the golf swing under ‘normal’ playing conditions. Although some constraints are clearly more influential than others, an important aspect of the constraints-led approach is that these three major categories of constraints interact to shape performance at any one time (Newell, 1986; Newell, van Emmerik & McDonald, 1989).
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