Developing Grip Strength For Golf

!±8± Developing Grip Strength For Golf

For many golfers the most important body part involved in the swing, is the wrist and hand. The action of the wrist and the hand has the greatest effect on where the ball goes. The hand is the golfer's ultimate tool for feel and action of the club. It essentially dictates direction and distance. In the golf swing the wrist must produce as much range of motion at a very high rate of speed as any athletic movement. It comes as no surprise that the left wrist/hand is one of the leading causes of injuries among many professional golfers. Golfers who lack grip and forearm strength will be prone to injuries to their hand, wrist and elbow. The stress is greatest during the downswing portion of the swing. Injuries usually result from overuse or from trauma suffered by hitting a fat shot. Most common injury is tendonitis of the wrist. Easy way to avoid these types of injuries is to begin strengthening the grip and forearm musculature. Here are some great ideas to develop an iron grip for golf.

Power holds: Take a bar and just hold it, like at the top of a deadlift. The key is to load it up with heavy poundage so that you cannot hold it for more than 20-30 seconds at a time (you can experiment with the duration).

Farmer's Walk: Take two heavy kettlebells, grab them and hold them at your sides. Now, walk as far as you can. Not only is this a great exercise for producing grip strength but it is excellent for conditioning.

Wrist Rollers: Take a wooden handle, hang rope from the middle, and put a weight on the other end. Roll the weight up and down, rolling in each direction. Try making the handles thicker if you want to challenge your grip at different angles. Grade your effort by both the number of times you completely roll and unroll the weight, and the speed at which you can roll the weight.
Static Hangs: Grab a chin up bar....and hang for time. This is also a fantastic stretch for your back.

Work on these exercises twice a week for four weeks than once a week, not only will you develop tremendous grip and forearm strength but you develop the muscles surrounding the wrist, hand and elbow to help protect you from injury. For more exercises like these ones go to http://www.back9strength.com and order your copy of Back 9 Strength: The Ultimate Golf Fitness Rolodex.