The fingers are used to do more than grip the club. It is important that the fingers work correctly in order to create an efficient and consistent golf swing. The fingers have more of an effect on the golf swing than most people realize. Inappropriate action of the fingers will cause the hands, arms, and body to execute an improper golf swing.
The little fingers provide 50% of hand strength. Thus, subtle changes in the engagement of the little fingers can have a significant effect on the golf swing. The little fingers control the tightness of the grip on the club. When the little fingers grip the club with too much force, the wrists and forearms become too tight and immobile. The best way to see if the golfer’s grip is too tight is to keep the elbows against the side of the upper body and bend the elbows until the club’s shaft is parallel to the ground Have someone gently pull the club head away from the golfer and notice if the wrists are bending. Loosen the grip of the little fingers until it feels like the pressure of the little fingers are providing a pressure of only 1 where the maximum pressure is 10. Now when the club head is gently pulled away from the golfer, the wrists will move up. This movement in the wrists indicates the correct grip pressure of the little fingers.
The little fingers barely do anything; they just lay there. The friction of the middle fingers, ring fingers, and the thumbs on the club provides sufficient pressure to control the club.
Ben Hogan’s Secret
OK. Everyone has said they know Ben Hogan’s “secret” to his golf swing. You may have heard things such as:
- Cupping his left wrist at the top of the back swing
- Driving his right knee in the down swing
- Manipulating his arms or hands in the back swing or down swing
- It was his strong mind and mental strength
Now, I will tell you about my version of Ben Hogan’s secret. Well, it is really not a secret, because it is in his book “Five Lessons the Modern Fundamentals of Golf.” Ben specifies that supination of the left wrist is the most important action for the best ball contact. On page 104, Ben states that “Every good golfer supinates his left wrist. It is a ‘must’.” Ben spends five pages (101 – 105) discussing the benefits of supinating the left wrist. Unfortunately, he does not specify what causes the left wrist to supinate. I would like to describe how to efficiently create supination of the left wrist.
The Secret is in the Right Index Finger
Ben Hogan mentions in his book when describing the grip how the fingers of the last three finger of the left hand press up. That is part of the secret but not the whole secret. What is omitted is what he describes in this video:
The key words are “at all times.” This means the fingers are engaged throughout the whole swing! Feel the inside of the tips of the little fingers stretch up to cause the other fingers to apply the pressure that Ben Hogan describes.
In the following video, Bobby Jones states: “here’s a thing about the hands that is very important.” He shows how the left little finger has a light touch so that the grip of the club moves freely in the left hand. Feeling the grip press against the tip of the left little finger allows the back swing to mature. This creates the pause that results in a rhythmic swing.
Feeling the inside of the tips of the little fingers stretch up allows the grip to move freely and is not a forceful feeling. Rather, it is a constant engagement. The stretch of the inside of the tips of the little fingers creates supination in the left wrist. The constant stretch keeps the hands in the proper orientation during the swing, and prevents the hands from trying to hit or help the ball. This engagement of the inside of the tips of the little fingers provides the best chance to make solid contact with the golf ball. When I feel the vertical stretch, I am able to achieve a “smash factor” of 1.5 with my driver. The smash factor of 1.5 means the ball was hit on the sweet spot of the club face and results in the optimal ball speed for a given swing speed.
My blog post, “Feel an Efficient Down Swing,” states to feel the hands stretch up in the back swing created by the momentum of the upper body.
During the Stretch, feel the stretch up of the inside of the tips of the little fingers. Feel the grip press against the tip of the left little finger. Feel the stretch in the arms.
During the Snap, feel the bottom of the pelvis “bounce” down, feel the top of the right abdominal “bounce” up, and feel the inside of the tips of the little fingers stretch up. This causes the right elbow to snap down in front of the body and causes the right upper arm to quickly snap down and up to the finish. This action creates the supinating left wrist and makes it difficult for the right hand to overpower the left hand. This is why Ben Hogan wished he had “three right hands.”
During the down swing, as the hands reach the level of the right hip, the “power zone,” feel the inside of the tips of the little fingers “bounce” up. This adds more club head speed and makes the club head “shallow out” at the bottom of the swing which creates a more consistent contact.
This is what, in my opinion, is Ben Hogan’s secret. At least this is the first explanation of how to create supination of the left wrist and what to feel in the fingers during the swing to produce a shot that is straight and long. The average golfer does not know how to engage the fingers to produce consistent shots. Accomplished golfers do so unconsciously.
My blog articles, “Chipping” and “Basic Bunker Shot,” describes the additional use of the right index finger.