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What Jackson Koivun's Glove Reminder Can Teach Every Golfer
By Brendon Elliott
Published on
"Dominate. Trust. Confidence.”
Those three words are written on Jackson Koivun’s glove. After an Auburn career that included 11 victories and an NCAA-record 68.89 scoring average, the 21-year-old won the 3M Open only weeks after turning professional. The words felt less like decoration and more like a description.
Koivun finished at 25-under and gained 17.349 strokes on the field. He led the tournament in Strokes Gained: Approach, hit 61 of 72 greens and made 24 birdies and two eagles while recording only three bogeys. He also gained 5.649 strokes putting.
Those numbers show a player who controlled his golf ball and repeatedly converted good opportunities. Everyday golfers will not reproduce those statistics, but they can borrow the words on his glove by making them part of how they become more in control of their own game.
Dominance Starts With Grip Pressure
When golfers want a shot badly, they often squeeze the club harder. The hands tighten, tension travels into the forearms and shoulders and the swing becomes shorter, quicker and less athletic.
In lessons with my students, I regularly ask them to rate their grip pressure from 1 to 10. Many believe they are at a 4 or 5 when in reality, they are closer to an 8.
Try this simple grip-pressure drill on the range:
- Take a 7-iron and grip it as tightly as possible. That is your 10.
- Loosen your hands until the club is nearly slipping. That is your 1.
- Settle at a 4, with the club secure in your fingers but your forearms still soft.
- Make one small waggle. You should feel the clubhead move without your shoulders tightening.
- Hit six balls, completely releasing and rebuilding your grip before every shot.
Do not judge the drill only by where the ball finishes. Notice the quality of contact, the sound of the strike and whether the club swings freely through the ball. Your goal is four solid strikes out of six without your grip pressure increasing before the takeaway.
That is a useful form of dominance. You are controlling a physical condition before the swing begins instead of trying to control the entire flight after the club starts moving.
Trust the Pressure Through the Swing
Finding a comfortable grip pressure is only the first step. The real test is keeping it relatively stable.
Many golfers start with soft hands, then squeeze harder as the club moves away from the ball. Others tighten at the top because they are trying to create speed. That sudden change can disrupt tempo and make it harder for the clubface to return consistently.
On your next range session, pay attention to one question: Did your hands feel the same at address and at the top?
You do not need to keep the hands limp. The club must remain secure. The goal is to avoid an unnecessary surge of tension.
I like my students to make one rehearsal swing while holding the club at their chosen pressure, then step in and reproduce that same feel. If the shoulders rise, the forearms harden, or the waggle disappears, I have them step away and reset.
You can take this to the course with a simple rule: Once the grip is built, do not squeeze again. Pick the target, make one waggle and swing.
Trust becomes easier when it is connected to a feel you have already practiced. You are not asking yourself to believe in a perfect swing. You are asking yourself to preserve one controllable condition.
Confidence Needs a Physical Reset
Confidence often disappears after a poor shot because golfers immediately search for a mechanical fix. They change the grip, takeaway, ball position or tempo before they have reached the next shot.
Instead, use your glove as a physical reset.
After a poor swing, open both hands completely. Let the fingers relax for a few seconds. When you reach the next shot, rebuild the grip at your practiced pressure and make one waggle before stepping in.
That small action interrupts the common pattern of carrying tension from one shot to the next. It also gives you something more useful than a complicated swing thought.
For difficult approaches or shots under pressure, take enough club that you do not have to force the swing. If a club requires your absolute maximum effort to reach the target, choose the next club, grip down slightly and keep the same relaxed pressure you established on the range.
I have seen many golfers create better contact almost immediately when they stop treating tension as proof that they are trying. Effort matters, but excess tension usually makes that effort harder to use.
PGA of America Golf Professional Brendon Elliott is an award-winning coach and golf writer. Read his recent “The Starter” on R.org and his stories on Athlon Sports. To stay updated on his latest work, sign up for his newsletter and visit OneMoreRollGolf.com.
