How to Hold a Golf Club Correctly
The correct way to hold a golf club is to have the club sitting mainly in the fingers of both hands, with your hands close together and connected. Start by positioning the clubface correctly, place the club along the bottom of your fingers, then use an overlapping, interlocking or baseball grip to keep your hands working together.
The important thing is that the club isn't buried up in your palms and your hands aren't separated from each other. You want enough freedom in your wrists to move the club and create some leverage during the swing.
Here's how I teach it.
Start With the Clubface
Before you put your hands on the golf club, get the clubface into the right position.
Take the club and hold it out in front of you with the leading edge pointing straight up into the air.
That's your starting point.
You don't want to be trying to work out where your hands should go while the club is sitting at some random angle. Get the clubface positioned first, then put your hands on it.
Put Your Left Hand on the Club First
For a right-handed golfer, start with your left hand.
Place the club along the line at the bottom of your fingers.
Then wrap your fingers around the club and put your thumb on top.
You should feel like the club is sitting more in your fingers rather than being buried up in the palm of your hand.
That's an important part of the grip.
Once you've got your left hand in position, you're ready to add the right hand.
Add Your Right Hand
Now take your right hand and place it onto the club.
Wrap your fingers around the grip and put your thumb on top.
The important thing here is that your hands are close together.
You don't want your hands separated like you're holding a hockey stick.
We're not hockey players.
We want the two hands working together as a unit.
Why Do Your Hands Need to Be Close Together?
The reason I want your hands close together is because we need them working together to control the golf club.
If your hands are separated, you're making it much harder to do that.
We also want to be able to use our wrists effectively during the golf swing.
That's why the way you hold the club matters.
It's not simply about finding a comfortable way to hang onto the club.
The grip affects how much freedom you have to move the club and your wrists.
There Are Three Common Golf Grips
Once you've got your hands in the right general position, there are three common ways you can connect them:
Baseball grip
Interlocking grip
Overlapping grip
Let's look at each one.
1. The Baseball Grip
With a baseball grip, all of your fingers are on the club.
Your hands aren't interlocked or overlapping.
It's basically the way you would hold a baseball bat.
It's a simple way to get both hands onto the club, but it's not the grip I would generally choose if we're trying to keep the hands working closely together.
That's why I want to show you the other two options.
2. The Interlocking Grip
The second option is the interlocking grip.
Start with your left hand in exactly the same position.
Then take the index finger of your left hand and put it between the little finger and ring finger of your right hand.
Then wrap your right hand around the club.
Now you can see that the fingers are locked together.
That helps keep your hands connected rather than allowing them to separate.
Some golfers find this grip uncomfortable.
You might have a ring that gets in the way, or perhaps your knuckle doesn't like the feeling of the fingers being locked together.
If that's you, there's another option.
3. The Overlapping Grip
The third option is the overlapping grip.
This is the grip I use.
Again, start with your left hand in the same position, with the club sitting along the bottom of your fingers.
This time, instead of sticking your index finger out and interlocking it, keep it in.
Take the little finger of your right hand and place it between the index and middle fingers of your left hand.
Then wrap your right hand around the club.
You can now see that the little finger of your right hand is sitting over the fingers of your left hand.
That's called an overlapping grip.
It gives you another way of keeping your hands close together.
Should the Golf Club Sit in Your Fingers or Palm?
This is one of the most important things I want you to understand about the golf grip.
The club should sit more in your fingers, not buried up in the palm of your hands.
Have a look at what happens when you put the club up in your palm.
It's much harder to move your wrists.
Now move the club down into your fingers.
Suddenly you have much more freedom to move your wrists around.
That's what we're looking for.
We want to be able to move the wrists and create some leverage on the golf club.
If the club is buried in the palms, you've restricted that movement.
So when you take your grip, check where the club is actually sitting.
Don't just wrap your hands around it and assume you've got it right.
Which Golf Grip Should You Use?
There isn't one grip that every golfer has to use.
You've got three basic options:
Baseball grip:
All of your fingers are on the club.
Interlocking grip:
Your left index finger and right little finger are linked together.
Overlapping grip:
Your right little finger sits over the fingers of your left hand.
I use the overlapping grip.
But if the interlocking grip feels better for you, that's another option.
The important things are that your hands stay close together and the club sits correctly in your fingers.
A Simple Golf Grip Check
Before you hit your next golf shot, take a few seconds to check your grip.
Ask yourself:
Is the club sitting in my fingers rather than my palms?
Are my hands close together?
Is the clubface positioned correctly before I take my grip?
Am I using an overlapping, interlocking or baseball grip?
You don't need to make the grip complicated.
But you do need to give yourself a good starting position.
Because if the club isn't sitting correctly in your hands, you're making the job of controlling the golf club harder than it needs to be.
Don't Start Fixing Your Swing Before You Check Your Grip
This is something I see quite often.
A golfer is struggling with their ball striking, so they immediately start looking for something wrong with their swing.
They change their takeaway.
They change their backswing.
They change their position at the top.
They try another swing tip they've found online.
Meanwhile, the golf club isn't even sitting properly in their hands.
Before you start trying to rebuild your golf swing, make sure you've got the basics sorted.
Your grip is one of the first things I'd check.
The Simple Version
If you're wondering how to hold a golf club correctly, keep it simple.
Get the clubface pointing correctly.
Place the club into the fingers of your left hand.
Wrap your fingers around the club and add your right hand.
Keep your hands close together.
Choose an overlapping, interlocking or baseball grip.
And most importantly:
Don't bury the club up in your palms.
You want the club sitting more in your fingers so you have the freedom to move your wrists and control the club.
That's the way I want you to start.
Getting Your Grip Right Is Only the Beginning
Getting your grip right is important.
But it's only one part of learning to play better golf.
If you're constantly trying to fix your golf swing without understanding what's actually causing the problems in your game, you can spend an awful lot of time practising the wrong thing.
That's one of the reasons my coaching isn't just about standing on a driving range and hitting golf balls.
I want to see how you actually play golf and work out what is really costing you shots.
If you'd like to understand what's holding your game back, book an on-course assessment and let's work it out.
Watch the Original Video
In the video below, I demonstrate exactly where I want your hands to sit on the golf club and show you the different ways you can connect your hands.
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The Gold Coast offers a range of options including Emerald Lakes, Palm Meadows, Hope Island, Southport, and Coolangatta-Tweed. Paul Williamson provides personalised on-course coaching that goes beyond traditional lessons, covering skills, strategy, and mental game in real playing conditions.
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One-hour lessons provide quick tips but rarely translate under course conditions. Paul’s on-course coaching uses 9-hole assessments to build a tailored plan that actually drops strokes from your scorecard.
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Paul Williamson, a PGA Professional with 30+ years’ experience, provides personalised on-course coaching at courses around Carrara, Hope Island, Robina, Southport, Coolangatta-Tweed, and the broader Gold Coast.
