How far should you choke down on your golf clubs?
If you want to take a few yards off your usual distance that you get from your club, then choke down on it. As an example, if you normally hit your 7-iron at a hundred fifty yards, but you want to hit it at 144 yards, you can choke down a couple of inches on your iron and take a more comfortable swing.
Should you'choke up on the club'to hit longer drives?
Newell adds that golfers “may lose a little distance” by choking up on the club, but players will likely be compensated with straighter drives. Jack Nicklaus recommends literally choking up on the club to avoid choking -- figuratively speaking -- in a pressure situation.
What does choke down mean in golf?
If you need to take a few yards off the typical distance that you would get from a given club, you can choke down. For example, if you usually hit your 7-iron 150-yards, but you need to hit a 145-yard shot, you could choke down an inch or two and make a comfortable swing.
Is choking up on a golf club a bad idea?
All else being equal, choking up on a golf club will cost you some distance. By choking up you’re effectively shortening the club’s length, which lessens your swing arc, reduces your maximum clubhead speed and limits your potential power. Nevertheless, choking up on the club isn’t always a bad idea.
What happens when you choke up on a golf club?
When you shorten the club, the gains that you make in control will be lost in distance. Your overall swing speed will be lowered by choking up, meaning that you won't be able to hit the ball as far as you would making the same swing while gripping the club at the end.
Does choking up on driver Help?
Choking down on your driver is also a good method when you need to play a tee shot into the wind. The speed of your swing will be reduced when you choke down, which means your spin rate should be reduced as well.
Should you choke up on long irons?
Also, if you're struggling with hitting long irons straight, I also recommend choking up one inch on the club, especially if you're playing in windy conditions. By choking up, you make the club slightly shorter and easier to control which is crucial if you're hitting into the wind.
Does choking down Change distance?
As you choke down on the golf club, it does become shorter and thus, affects total distance. While your spin rates will likely decrease, so will your total carry distance as well. The more you choke down on the grip, the less the golf ball will carry.
Does choking decrease power?
One of the common questions batters wonder about is if choking up decreases power. In general, choking up decreases batting power because most hitters use this method of hitting to simply get the ball in play. When held correctly, choking up increases batting power due to more bat speed through the strike zone.
How do you hit a 5 iron 200 yards?
0:000:50How To Hit Your 5-Iron 200 Yards with Christopher Smith | Golf TipsYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAh so you want to hit your 5-iron 200 yards first learn to hit it honored yards Y PGA Tour playersMoreAh so you want to hit your 5-iron 200 yards first learn to hit it honored yards Y PGA Tour players practice this all the time the ability to hit the same club different distances.
What happens if your golf irons are too long?
What Happens When Golf Clubs Are Too Long? For most golfers, having clubs that are too long will result in the most inconsistent shots. Clubs that are too long will make you stand too upright, which can cause both heel and toe shots as well as a tendency to pull the ball.
Does choking down on golf club help?
6:167:41The REAL TRUTH about Choking Down on the Golf Club - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipBecause we're getting closer to the ball. And a little more upright swing and it's going toMoreBecause we're getting closer to the ball. And a little more upright swing and it's going to eliminate. The left side of the golf. Course more often because we have a more upright swing plane. So if
What does choking up on the bat do?
Sliding the grip a bit toward to top of the bat, which is known as “choking up” on the bat, brings the bulk of the mass closer to the rotation axis; it reduces the rotational inertia. For a given twisting motion, the batter is thus able to rotate the bat more quickly.
Should I choke down chipping?
of the shaft. Many players immediately grip the club and choke down so their hands are at the end of the rubber and sometimes touching the metal of the shaft.
How much difference does soft stepping make?
By using a soft stepping golf iron, you can expect to increase your distance by 10-15 yards.
What to do if you choke down on a golf club?
If you are choking down on the club to hit the ball lower than it can be a good idea to cut off the finish of your swing and finish with the club out in front of your body instead of swinging all the way up to the full finish and having the club wrapped around your back.
Why do golfers choke down on their clubs?
The most common reason a golfer will choke down on the club is to reduce the distance of a shot. If you want to take a few yards off your usual distance that you get from your club, then choke down on it. As an example, if you normally hit your 7-iron at a hundred fifty yards, but you want to hit it at 144 yards, ...
How much distance do you lose when you choke down on a 4 iron?
You’ll lose around 10 yards for most of your shots. Your ball flight will be about 12 feet lower. In both directions, dispersion should be slightly tighter. When you choke down on a 4-iron and it will reduce the backspin you can get on your ball, which is why you’ll gain so much distance.
How does choking down affect swing?
If you’re new to the game, you may not even know what choking down on the club means. When you have a good iron in your hands, you can choke down on a club by moving your hands down the grip at address, in order to reduce the distance of a shot. However, there are other possibilities ...
How far can you hit a 7 iron without choking down?
When you choke down on a 7-iron your ball flight will be lowered about 5 to 6 feet , however, you’ll have almost identical spin rates.
How to reduce drive when hitting a short iron?
So, if you want to learn how to reduce your drive especially if you’re hitting a short iron from a fairway lie, choke down on the club an inch or two. If you’re faced with a shot that could be handled better using a lower spin rate, then choking down on your club is the best way you can accomplish that.
Why do you choke down on your iron?
Another reason a golfer will want to choke down on their iron is to take some spin off the ball. If you keep your hands up at the top of the club when you make a full swing, you’re likely to produce quite a bit of backspin. So, if you want to learn how to reduce your drive especially if you’re hitting a short iron from a fairway lie, choke down on the club an inch or two.
FairwaysToHeaven
For those that choke up on their irons to control and take little distance off their shot, what is the most you'll choke up on a club and how much do you see the distance being affected.
starsail85
1/2" takes 2mph off your clubhead speed which is around 5 yards depending on club
Shilgy
There is no set number of yards that are cut by choking up or down on the grip. I recall Anthony Kim doing a show with Tiger a few years back. Nike had had a contest, I think it was with black or gold balls in some sleeves, and the winners would play with Tiger.
Anaheim944
There was a track man article saying choking down 1" on an iron will lower flight and take off about 10 yards. It definitely worked for me.
JohnKHawk
Older thread I know but I was experimenting with this concept & I think for average golfer gripping down will improve strike & they may actually gain distance. I do this routinely for my 5 & 6 irons my shots generally hit the center of club face & on average go just a far or slightly further as if I didn't alter my grip.
Scottie68
Choking up can have various effects. As stated, it can reduce club head speed, which can reduce distance.
Ipreach
I have the zepp golf training device which measures hand speed and it's more consistent then I thought.
What does it mean when you choke down on a golf club?
Obviously, if you are going to choke down on your club – which means moving your hands down the grip at address – you need to have a good reason. If there wasn’t anything to gain by choking down, after all, you would just keep your standard grip and hit a normal shot. So, what can you gain by choking down?
When to use a choke down shot?
Choke down shots are also used often when the wind is blowing. A shot played with your hands down the grip will usually come out lower and fly lower as it heads toward the target. That’s a great thing when the wind is blowing and making it difficult to move the ball around the course accurately.
Why do you chok down when you are facing a shot?
If you are facing a shot that will be better handled with a lower spin rate, choking down is a way to accomplish just that. You’ll have a bit less speed through the ball, so your spin rate should be lower as the ball leaves the club.
When you make a full swing while keeping your hands up at the top of the club, you are likely to produce
When you make a full swing while keeping your hands up at the top of the club, you are likely to produce a significant amount of backspin. That is particularly true if you are hitting a short iron from a fairway lie.
Is golf boring?
Golf would be a pretty boring game if you hit every single shot the exact same way. It’s the variety of the game that makes it interesting. The fact that you need to be able to produce many different shots in order to rise to the various challenges you’ll encounter on the course is what makes this game so addicting.
Is a golf club shorter than a normal swing?
Remember – the club is now effectively shorter than it would be for a normal swing. That means you don’t have as much club between your hands and the ground, so you will need to do a good job of staying down through impact if you are going to make clean contact.
Should you cut the finish of a golf swing?
If you are choking down as a way of hitting the ball lower, it’s a good idea to cut off the finish of the swing. Rather than swinging all the way up to a full finish with the club wrapped around your back, cut it off on the way through and finish with the club out in front of your body.
How to decide if you should go with more or less clubs?
When trying to decide if you should go with more or less club make sure to factor in the pin location, wind direction and elevation change. Then, based on your personality, what you feel more comfortable doing and what you have rehearsed on the practice range, make the best decision you can and stick with it. Whether you are going with more club and swinging easy or going with less and swinging hard, make sure to make a committed golf swing with a complete finish to avoid decelerating.
Can you clubbing up on the green?
The option of clubbing up may work though, if you can stay committed and the longer club with lower loft is going to stay on the green. When you are in between clubs there are other factors that may help you make a more clear decision.
The Test
Based on the success I had going with a shorter driver, I was interested to see what kind of results I would get if I choked down a bit on my irons.
Sand Wedge
Hitting full shots with my sand wedge surprisingly did not alter my ball flight all too much. Here were some of my key findings:
Four Iron
With the longest iron in my bag I started to notice even more significant changes:
Driver
Just for fun, I did try to grip down on my driver. My shaft is already shortened down to 44”, which is about 1 ½” to 2” shorter than standard. It’s been one of the greatest changes I’ve made with my clubs. It has given me more accuracy off the tee without sacrificing too much distance.
How I Will Use This Information
After I had performed this test I had a bit more confidence over what I can expect when choking down on my irons. It’s not something I really ever did during rounds, but I tried it out several times on the course since then.
What Can You Learn From This
I want to reiterate that not all of you will see the same results as me. However, doing tests like these helps remove question marks in your golf game. If I can get reliable data on how making these small changes will affect my ball flight, I’ll have more confidence on the course.
How far down should your hands be when you choke up a golf club?
Depending on how much you wish to choke up, your hands could be anywhere between one inch and several inches below the top of the grip.
What is it called when you choke your golf club?
Gripping down on the golf club an inch or more from the butt of the shaft – called “choking up” or “gripping down” -- can greatly improve your accuracy. Several prominent pros, including Anthony Kim and Sergio Garcia, choke up on almost every shot, even with the driver. Of course, they generate tremendous clubhead speed, ...
How to play with choked up grip?
As you are learning how to play using a choked up grip, watch your spin rates and adjust your aiming process if you find that you are spinning the ball more with your short clubs. None of the changes that you will notice from choking up on the club are drastic.
How to shorten the length of a golf club?
By moving your hands up the grip toward the club head (or down the grip, depending on how you look at it), you can shorten the effective length of the club, making it easier to hit the ball solidly.
Why do you choke up on the club?
Choke Up on the Club for Better Accuracy and Contact. Two of the most important elements to playing good golf are hitting accurate shots and making solid contact. In fact, those two things usually go hand in hand. When you hit the ball accurately, you are typically hitting it solid as well, as vice versa.
Why is practice important in golf?
Practice is important when learning how to choke up on the club just like it is important when learning any other skill on the course . Many players think that they can just move their hands down a couple of inches and swing away, but there is a little more to it than that.
Why do you stand up when hitting a shot at impact?
Since you are standing slightly closer to the ball at address, you may be tempted to 'stand up' through the shot at impact in order to make room for the club. Of course, you don't need to do that, and the result will often be a topped shot that rolls along the ground.
