I very often see golfers trying to hit the ball in a very unrelaxed fashion. When you watch any good player you’ll see that their setup and resulting golf swings are tension-free.

Lessons From The Masters

In the modern era, Ernie Els and Annika Sorenstam spring to mind as effortless power rather than powerless effort golfers.

In the past, Sam Snead was always credited with having the smoothest swing. His analogy for grip pressure was that you should hold your club with the same strength that you would hold a small bird without squeezing it to death.

Arnold Palmer was the opposite of Snead and he was reputed to squeeze the club very tightly. I prefer to follow Snead’s rather than Arnie’s example.

A good way to feel the correct pressure is to hold the club as tight as you can and call that 10 on a scale of 1 to 10. Very loose would be 1. You should try to have 4 or 5 as your normal pressure.

The Sole of Your Club

One misconception that can lead to tension entering a golf swing is the sole of the club lying flat on the ground at address. This results in golfers lifting their hands up too high at address, which gets the arms and shoulders tight.

Your arms should hang straight down from your shoulders with an iron and a little up with a wood, so that the end of the club points to your belt buckle.

The sole of the club should be flat at impact not at address. If your clubs fit you properly, the toe should be up a little. This allows for the natural raising of the hands and a slight bend of the shaft outwards that is caused by centrifugal force.

Don’t Over-Lift Your Chin

Another common fault is the extreme lifting of the chin, which produces tightness in the neck and restricts the turn. Try to feel that you are gazing straight out of your head rather than looking down your nose at the ball.