In need of a little help

[invaliduser]

I've got one problem which I simply cannot work out. I've had lessons, many many pointers & ideas, but none work.

I'm a left handed golfer and I always slice the ball. Sometimes it goes straight but the balls continually trail to the left.

The root of my problem, however, is that I can actually feel the golf club spinning in my hand during my downswing. After hitting 50 balls at the driving range the base of my palm will get sore and sometimes I'll get a blister on my thumb.

Any ideas? How can I stop the club from spinning? Obviously I could grip it harder but this seems to throw my entire swing off. I have a very light grip and it's more comfortable that way.

Thanks!

 

[Loop]

If on a scale of 1 to 10, very light grip is 1 or 2, then you should grip it around 6.
You need to get a stable grip, but not too firm, nor too light, so that when you waggle, the club doesn't get loose.
For the slice, that's a complicated problem to solve via the net. If you've got a video of your swing, we can do something.

 

[SiberianDVM]

can actually feel the golf club spinning in my hand during my downswing. After hitting 50 balls at the driving range the base of my palm will get sore and sometimes I'll get a blister on my thumb.

Are you wearing a snug fitting glove? The only time I got blisters was when I forgot to bring a glove.

 

[SilverUberXeno]

Step back an inch. You might not be hitting with the sweet spot. If I hit on the toe or the heel, I feel the club move when I hit the ball. What appears to be the sweet spot at address is not actually so. Stand directly over the ball and see where you're setting up at address, you'll be surprised.

 

[invaliduser]

Thank you for the feedback! My grip is probably about a 6/10. When I do my backswing it stays steady but it's the downswing when the club face opens. My glove is a snug fit as well.

I'm definitely going to try and stand back an inch.

Any other ideas? Does anyone ever have this problem?

 

[dave.]

Grip it very light at address,and firm it up as you go back.Losing the grip is usually assoiciated with to firm a grip at address,6/10 is far to firm.

Johnny Miller,once said only 1 in a 1000 golfers grip the club light enough.

You slice because you swing out to in,its impossible to slice any other way.There will be a reason behind this,Leadbetter states the 6 most common cause,you just need a pro to tell you which one.

 

[invaliduser]

Well. I have a video of my swing now. Anyone know how to upload it?

 

[Slingblade61]

what size is the file?
What format?

If you have any web space of your own you could load it up there and link to it.

 

[invaliduser]

It's a Quicktime Movie (.mov) and the size is 6.2mb. I don't have any web space to upload it to.

 

[MLGOLFNYC]

The first thing I would check is where the club is positioned in your right hand. You stated that you feel the club spinning in your hand on the downswing and your also getting blisters.
The club should be positioned underneath your heel pad in your right hand. Sounds like your holding it more in your palm, which is a big cause for not only slicing but weak shots to your left as well.
If your ball starts straight the path of your swing is OK, the ball leaking to the left is caused by an open clubface. If you work on the position of the club in your right hand that will start you in the right direction.
Also, holding the club with more pressure will just keep your clubface open as well as limit power. Your muscles move faster when relaxed. One of the most common things you'll ever hear a golfer say is "felt like I didn't even hit that one" when they hit a great shot.

 

[invaliduser]

Thank You MLGOLFNYC. I've cured the blister problem and have my swing at a pretty consistent state.

I'm a lefty so should I just switch your explanation around?

I hit a bucket of balls today and had my best hits when I held my head higher and stood a little farther back. Should I be fully extended at the time of impact?

 

[MLGOLFNYC]

NO, Not at all. I explained it for a lefty!

 

[invaliduser]

How did I not notice that? The club is on my heel though. Does the standing farther back and keeping my head higher sound good?

 

[MLGOLFNYC]

Is the club on your heel or underneath your heel pad? Two different things.

One way to check.

1. Take your golf grip with your right hand only on a club and palce it by your
side.
2. Lift your golf club up so the shaft is parallel to the ground and toe of the
club points to the sky. (It will feel like your making a wrist hinge)
3. Now, take your last three fingers on your right hand off the grip starting
with the pinky leaving only your thumb and forefinger on the grip.
4. Now lift your thumb off the grip. The only finger on the grip should be the
forefinger that will be wrapped underneath the grip.
5. At this point the club should be balanced with no effort from yourself
underneath your heel pad. You would be able to move your right hand
around without the club slipping or even feeling heavy in your right hand.
If the club head feels heavy or moves to the left side like it's going to fall
out of your hand, the club is not positioned correctly in your heel pad.
Or is your see the grip end lift away from your hand.

Give that a try and let me know what happens?

 

[invaliduser]

I just tried it and was able to hold the club with almost no effort. There should be some right? I mean, you are holding a weighted golf club.

It was very easy to remove all my fingers (except the forefinger) though.