Delo’s Divots: Without getting into a lesson in semantics,
choking up on a club or choking down on a club gets its beginning
from baseball, and therein lies the problem.
Without getting into a lesson in semantics, choking up on a club or choking down on a club gets its beginning from baseball, and therein lies the problem.
In baseball you hold the bat in a semi-vertical position pointing upward. So when your Little League coach told you to choke up on the bat with two strikes, up meant up toward the head of the bat. In golf you hold the club in a semi-vertical position pointing down. So choking down means toward the head of the club.
Now since that is clear as mud, let’s talk about what choking “down” on a golf club will do. When you choke down, you are moving your hands closer to the club head. The closer your hands are to the club head, a couple of things happen — some good, some bad.
You will have more control on your shot when you choke down. You will hit the ball lower when you choke down. You will hit the ball shorter when you choke down. So if control and feel are important, such as in a short delicate chip shot, you should choke down. Always choke down when you have to hit a low shot under a tree. It’s also OK to choke down on a short putt — under five feet.
If you need to hit the ball higher and longer, you should never choke down. Never choke down when you have to lob a shot over a sand trap or hit a ball over a tree. Never choke down on a very long putt. When you want to try and get a few extra yards on your tee shot, grip it toward the butt end of the grip. It’s even OK in that case to have the heel of your hand hanging over the grip a bit. You might lose some control, but you should hit the ball farther.
The next time you are at the range, experiment with these different hand positions and see what it does to your shot. Then when you get out on the course, you will be an expert.
