What Does Choking Down on a Golf Club Do?
- Control. When you choke down on the golf club, you can gain quite a bit more control. ...
- Distance. Choking down on the club will reduce the distance you can hit the ball. ...
- Wind. When you are hitting into the wind or even downwind, it is good to keep your ball flight lower. ...
- Getting Out of Trouble. ...
Why do golfers choke down on the club?
When you choke down on the golf club, you can gain quite a bit more control. Choking down shortens the club by about an inch or a half-inch. If you have a shot into a green that requires some precision, choking down is a great choice. You can also choke down on the driver when you are hitting shots off the tee.
Does choking down on a golf club reduce spin rate?
Mar 24, 2022 · What is Choking Down in Golf? Choking down on a golf club means moving your hand farther down the grip, which allows you to make varying distance shots with different clubs. There are a number of reasons golfers choke down. Yes, we did mention that choking down is usually a bad habit but if done in the right situation, it can lead you to victory. Choking down …
Does choking up help or hurt your golf shots?
May 06, 2020 · 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.
What is a choke down shot in golf?
Apr 14, 2022 · Choking down will reduce swing speed, increase control over the club head at impact, and reduce your shot distance. Choking down on your driver can also help if you need to hit a tee shot into the wind. Your swing speed will decline by choking down and you will put less spin on the ball. Contents hide 1 Will choking down on driver Help?
What does choking up on golf club do?
3:0814:42When to Choke Down on the Golf Club - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipBy going longer and picking up club speed by going for longer golf shaft. You can definitely noticeMoreBy going longer and picking up club speed by going for longer golf shaft. You can definitely notice the club speed. Difference by choking down on the club. And then gripping to the end of the club. I
Does choking down on golf club change swing weight?
Choking down lightens the club's swingweight and effectively makes the shaft stiffer. It also makes it difficult to hit the ball high enough for all situations.Mar 4, 2009
Will choking down 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.May 10, 2017
How far should I choke down on my driver?
To hit a more conservative tee ball, I always choke down on the grip a full two inches (No. 1) and narrow my stance so my feet are only slightly wider than my shoulders (No. 2). I tee the ball lower and farther back, maybe three inches inside my left instep.Mar 22, 2011
Is it OK to choke down on golf club?
Choking down lightens the club's swing weight and effectively makes the shaft stiffer.” Sadly, Anthony Kim has seemingly left the game forever but Trevino is right about how gripping down affects the club. Choking up does change the weight and makes the club shorter and slightly stiffer.
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.Nov 14, 2003
How far down should a golf club shaft be?
around an inchHow far down the golf club should your hands be? There should be around an inch from the top of the grip to the end of the club. By holding the club right at the top of the grip, it will result in a loss of control and increases the likelihood of shots to come out of the heel of the club.Apr 6, 2018
What does choke down mean?
: to eat (something) with difficulty or without enjoyment The meal was overcooked, but I managed to choke down a few bites.
Why do you choke down on a 9 iron?
As mentioned earlier, the primary purpose of choking down is to reduce the distance. It’s the same as using a 9-iron which is shorter than your 6-iron. They affect the distance but if you choke down on bigger iron, you will achieve the same results.
What happens when you choke down on a golf club?
When you choke down on the club by half-inch or an inch, your shot into the green has precision. You can also start with the tee shot by choking down to gain more time to develop a strategy.
How to make sure your ball lands right?
During windy weather, to make sure that you hit right, keep the ball flight lower. By lowering the flight, your ball will fly with precision and without any backspin. Usually, a ball in flight wavers and you are praying that it lands right.
What does choking down on the golf club do?
So, now you know what choking down on the golf club does. The 3Ps will help you in rough situations and allow you to make perfect hits on the fairway. As a beginner, learning this trick will allow you to the enter the big leagues and impress other golfers with your swings.
Can you hit a full shot with a sand wedge?
Hitting a full shot using a sand wedge and choking down will not alter your flight significantly. In most cases, you will only lose a couple of yards of distance. Additionally, dispersion will typically be the same, however, choking down can center your shots over the target much better.
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.
How far can you hit a 7 iron?
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. Instead of trying to hit with your 8-iron as hard as you possibly can, you can choke down on a 7-iron instead.
How to swing a wedge?
Instead of trying to go easy or make a half-swing, try to create two or even three distances for each wedge. Here’s how it could work with your gap wedge: 1 Normal gap wedge: 105 yard shot 2 Choke up one inch: 98-100 yard shot 3 Choke up two inches (close to the shaft): 93-98 yard shot
Why do you choke up on short chip shots?
The main reason is because it makes it easier to accelerate on short chip shots.
How many wedges are in a golf bag?
This is one of the easiest ways to improve your game, yet so few players work on this stuff on the range. Think about it, most golfers have 3-4 wedges in the bag. Usually, there is a 10-15 yard gap between each wedge.
Does choke down on a golf club affect total 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.
Does choking down make a golf club shorter?
Choking down lightens the club’s swing weight and effectively makes the shaft stiffer.”. Sadly, Anthony Kim has seemingly left the game forever but Trevino is right about how gripping down affects the club. Choking up does change the weight and makes the club shorter and slightly stiffer.
Can you choke on a putter?
Putter. Finally, you can also choke up on your putter as well. Studies have found that most golfers are playing too long of a putter, which leads to some serious issues before you even take the club back. When a putter is too long, it’s hard to get your eyes in the right position and get the ball started on line.
Is it worth choking up on a golf club?
Sure, you will lose some distance by choking up but in general, it’s almost always worth it. This is a great way to add new shots in your bag and save yourself when you’re hitting it poorly.
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.
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.
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:
Seven Iron
My dispersion was tighter in both directions. I had better distance control (8 yards between shortest/longest shot vs 13 yards). Looking at my dispersion left to right, I also had a tighter dispersion of about 10 yards.
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.
