It can be a difficult thing to change your golf grip.
When your grip is changed, you will often feel very uncomfortable standing over the ball.
Unfortunately, the only way to get around this is to practice and get more comfortable.
Aside from the types of grips like overlap and interlock, there are also grip strengths.
The strong grip, weak grip, and neutral grip also need to be considered when you are addressing the golf ball.
If you are a golfer who is known for having a strong grip, and you want to hit a fade, we have all the details that you need.
How to Hit a Fade with a Strong Grip
A strong grip will have your right hand a bit more under the club.
This position makes it so that you are going to have more control with the right hand in the swing.
Typically speaking, more control with this hand makes it easier to release the ball and hit a shot that is more right to left.
Typically speaking, the strong grip is going to be a much better option for those who are wanting to hit a draw.
However, this does not make it impossible for a golfer to be able to hit a fade while they have a strong grip on the club.
There are a number of different ways to hit a fade, and learning the different options makes quite a bit of sense.
Step 1: Setup
When you want to hit a fade while you have a strong grip, you are going to need to make sure that you have an open setup.
Your stance and setup need to be more open so that you can allow yourself to turn and rotate towards the target with the clubface slightly open.
The setup should also have the club towards the back of your stance a bit.
Sometimes when the club gets to the ball in the back of the stance, and it is still open, you will be able to get that fade shot even though your grip is so strong.
You won’t want to exaggerate this movement all that much because you can turn a fade into a slice relatively quickly.
Instead, make sure the ball is just slightly back of center, and you can get the shot to fly left to right but in a controlled manner.
Step 2: Feeling
If you are not going to adjust the grip that you have on the club, you will need to feel as though you are hitting a fade.
As you come through the impact position, the clubface will feel as if it is held open a bit.
This feeling is such that you will hold off the release of the club a little longer than usual.
Although many golfers can learn to do this, it does take quite a bit of time and patience to do so.
If you are not a naturally talented golfer, the feeling of holding the club open to hit a draw can become a bit overwhelming.
Again, you always have the alternative of slightly weakening the grip to make things a bit easier.
Step 3: Execution
The third part of this process is combining the setup and the feeling of the held-off release and actually hitting your fade.
This process will take some well-timed swings, and you will have to be sure that this is something that you practice while you are not on the golf course.
Hitting a fade with a strong grip can be difficult.
You have to make accommodations in your swing that you would not typically have to make, and this causes some hard shots.
The execution of this shot will not always go well.
There are times when your timing will be off, and you will end up hooking or slicing your shot.
Golfers who learn to work the ball also typically have equipment that is built to help players work the ball.
If you happen to have equipment that is more of a game improvement type, you will have a hard time hitting a fade at all.
Most of this equipment is built with a slight offset, and when you combine that with the strong grip, you are set up to hit a shot that will turn left.
The execution of the fade with a strong grip is something that you will eventually learn to pull off, but it does take some time.
Typical Way to Hit a Fade
As we mentioned, hitting a fade with a strong grip can be a bit difficult.
The best way to hit a fade is with a weak grip.
A weak grip is when your left and right hands are rotated a bit more to the left.
The weaker grip ends up taking the hands out of play a bit and making it harder to release the club.
When you are trying to hit a fade, you will notice that this slightly delayed release is exactly what you need to complete the shot.
Fades are not hard to hit when you set up the right way and have the proper grip on the club.
As soon as you take a strong grip, you are working against your natural ability to fade the ball.
Most of the time, when a golfer wants to hit a fade shot, they will weaken their grip, open the stance slightly, and feel as though they take a slightly more upright golf swing.
Sometimes, you won’t even need to make more of an adjustment than just the grip change.
Depending on the natural characteristics of your swing, the fade can come quite a bit more easily to some than others.
For some golfers who hit a natural draw, it may take a stance, grip, and swing plane adjustment to hit a fade, but for others who hit mostly straight golf shots, they may only need to slightly weaken the grip.
You will have to experiment with how much adjustment your swing needs to be able to hit a golf shot from straight to the right.
The results will vary a bit based on your natural ability to work the ball and the time that you spend working on these types of shots.
Any low handicap player will tell you that, when you get to the level of really wanting to work the ball, you will have to increase your skill level a bit.
Things get quite a bit more complicated, and you have to be a player who is talented on a number of different levels.
Golfers who are new to the game will want to stick with learning how to hit the ball straight.
Learn what it takes to get a ball to fly straight towards a target and then go from there.
Until you can hit it straight, you will have a hard time getting the ball to go left or right on command.
Don’t do this to yourself until you have more control over what you can do with your golf shots.
Once you establish this type of control, then start playing around with grip strength and set up to be able to hit the ball with the flight that you desire.
What Are the Benefits of Hitting a Fade?
Some golfers love to hit a fade, and others enjoy the draw.
Some of this comes down to natural ability and which one feels better for your individual golf swing.
However, there are other reasons the fade could be a good choice for your game.
Fades are shots that fly quite high; they start out straight, and then they start to fall towards the right side of the green.
A great fade will really only move a few yards from center to the right.
The great thing about the fade is that, because of the higher ball flight and this slight left-to-right spin, the ball will stop where you want it to on the green.
The draw continues to roll when it lands, so many players have a hard time stopping a draw shot from staying in the spot where you want it to stay.
In addition, if you hit a draw with a slightly closed clubface, you are also going to experience a lower ball flight and a bit more trouble controlling the distance.
Essential a draw is a great shot if you are comfortable with it, but hitting a fade does seem to be a more repeatable and consistent shot for most golfers.
The consistency that players get can really be a good choice in the end.
Is a Fade Better Than a Draw?
Since a fade can land softer on a green, it tends to be preferred over a draw at times.
However, some faded shots can turn into slices and can also lack some of the distance that they should be getting.
The fade is a shot that can work very well when the pin is on the right side of the green.
The golfer can aim towards the middle, adjust their grip and their stance, and then hit a fade into the hole so that the ball lands as it should on the green.
It is hard to say that a fade or a draw is better, so you must work with something that is built for your golf game.
Some players take the club on a path that is slightly more inside, and if this is the case, the fade becomes challenging to hit.
The fade is a good shot when it comes to accuracy on the short irons.
Since it is hard to hit a ball to a target with a draw and get it to stop on demand, you will find that the fade can be the better choice.
Many players find that shots with a draw will fly a bit lower and tend to take off when they hit the green.
For that reason, the fade can be better at times.
Most great players will tell you that, if you want to succeed in golf and really start shooting lower scores, you need to be able to hit both a draw and a fade.
You must know how to hit all different types of golf shots so that you can attack any pin at any golf course you play.
Should I Play a Fade or a Draw?
The decision to play a fade or a draw will come down to the course you are playing, the pin placement, and your ability to pull off the shot.
If you feel confident in your ability to hit a fade, then you should do so.
If you think that a draw is a better choice, then keep your grip strong and go for it.
The best golfers know how to hit a fade and a draw, so the more variety you have in your game, the better you can play long term.
What Is a Strong Grip Good For?
A strong grip is the best for being able to hit a draw or a hook.
The strong grip gives you more strength with your hands and the ability to hit a shot that is quite a bit stronger.
The strong golf grip can really come in handy when you are trying to combat a slice.
The slice is a difficult thing to get rid of, and the strong golf grip can do great things to fix it.
Hitting a fade with a strong grip is difficult, but it can be done.
However, if your natural grip is stronger, you should stick with hitting a draw.
Difference Between a Slice and a Fade
Many golfers wonder if there is really much of a difference between hitting a slice and a fade.
The real difference is that, when you hit a fade, you are trying to hit the ball from the straight to the right.
With a slice, the ball flight is typically not the intended ball flight.
Most of the time, slices are not intentional, and they are caused by poor execution.
Unless you are in a trouble spot and need to get out of it, chances are you are not going to hit a slice just for fun.
Golfers who have been playing for many years and understand how to work the ball hit fades.
Those who are new and don’t know how to release a golf club are going to hit slices.
The difference will be relatively easy to see when on the golf course playing a round.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you now see the difference between a slice and a fade and why hitting a fade with a strong grip is quite tricky.
Although you can make adjustments to your stance and to your swing to be able to pull off this fade shot, it is going to take a bit more work.
Golfers who have a strong grip should set themselves up to hit more draws while they are on the course.
The draw helps to ensure that the ball goes the full distance that it needs to and gets all the way to the target.
The balls that draw almost always make it to their target, but a fade can be known to come up a bit short at times.
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