Grip Pressure Training Aids: Stop Death-Gripping, $15

A death grip tenses your forearms and wrists, kills your clubhead speed, and pulls the ball left. On a scale of 1 to 10, most amateurs grip the club at an 8 or 9, and the correct pressure is a 3 or 4. Nobody has ever measured their own grip pressure, so almost nobody knows they are doing it.

The entire golf training industry makes money selling you swing fixes. Almost none of it sells you the cheapest fix that exists: hold the club lighter. Two pieces of molded plastic fix a death grip for $15 to $20, and the tests below show you whether you actually have the fault.

How to Tell If You Grip Too Hard

Run these three tests next time you are at the range.

The white-knuckle test. Grip the club like you normally do and look at your knuckles and forearms. If your knuckles are white or your forearm muscles are visibly flexed at address, you are over 7 out of 10. A proper grip leaves your forearms soft.

The glove-wear test. Look at your glove palm. A death grip wears through the palm and the base of the thumb fast. Light grip pressure wears the glove evenly. If you replace gloves every few rounds with palm holes, you are choking it.

The toothpaste test. Take the cap off a tube of toothpaste and hold it like a club. Squeeze just hard enough that toothpaste would not come out. That is a 3 or 4 out of 10. That is the pressure you want on a golf club. If your instinct is to squeeze the tube flat, you grip too hard.

If you failed any of these, the products below are for you. If you passed all three, your grip is fine and no product will fix what is not broken.

1. SKLZ Grip Trainer: ~$15

Buy this if you failed the white-knuckle test.

The SKLZ Grip Trainer is a snap-on molded grip that fits over your existing club. Its grooves force your hands into the correct position, and a correct hand position naturally produces a lighter grip. When your hands sit in the right grooves, a death grip feels wrong. The shape does the coaching.

At about $15 on Amazon, it is the cheapest fix in golf and you can keep it in the bag for a range warm-up or a few swings in the living room.

What does not work. It is a position trainer, not a pressure sensor. It teaches a lighter grip indirectly, by correcting hand position. If your grip position is already fine and you still squeeze too hard out of habit, this alone will not break the habit. It also assumes a right-handed finger placement and has no left-handed version.

Verdict: buy it first. $15 to fix the most common grip fault is the best value in this entire category.

2. G-Rip Grip Trainer: ~$18-$20

Buy this if the snap-on version feels like a gimmick and you want the real thing.

The G-Rip is a full replacement training grip: a molded grip you actually install on a club, not a clip-on that sits over one. Because it replaces the grip entirely, you swing with it like a real club, which is more transferable than a snap-on attachment.

At $18-$20 it costs about the same as the SKLZ but gives you a permanent training club you can swing full speed. The left-handed mold exists but is easier to find on the UK site than US Amazon, so lefties should confirm the variant before ordering.

What does not work. You have to install it, which means either buying a spare club or regripping one you use. It is also a position trainer with the same limitation: it teaches a lighter grip through correct hand position, not through direct pressure feedback.

Verdict: buy it if you want a dedicated training club. The G-Rip and the SKLZ solve the same problem; you do not need both. Pick the form factor you will actually use.

3. The Only True Pressure Feedback Device: SensoGlove ($89.95)

There is exactly one consumer product that actually measures grip pressure in real time, and it is a glove. The SensoGlove has sensors in the fingertips that read your grip pressure and beep when you squeeze too hard. At $89.95 it is the only way to get feedback on pressure itself rather than position.

I am not re-reviewing it here because it is a glove, and we already covered wearable grip gloves in our gloves guide. The short version: it works, but $90 is a lot for a habit you can fix with a $15 molded grip and the toothpaste drill.

What I Would Actually Buy

If you failed one test: the SKLZ Grip Trainer at $15. Start there. Most death grips are really hand-position problems, and the snap-on grooves fix both at once.

If you want a dedicated practice club and you already know your hand position is fine: the G-Rip at $18-$20 installed on an old iron.

If you have tried the cheap fixes and still squeeze too hard: the SensoGlove at $89.95 is the only product that will tell you, with data, when you are over-gripping. It is the right tool for the golfer who needs proof, not feel.

The one sentence to remember: your death grip is costing you speed, and the fix is a $15 piece of molded plastic plus the toothpaste drill. The industry will not sell you a $20 fix because there is no money in it. That is why the article you are reading now barely exists anywhere else.

Where to Buy

• SKLZ Grip Trainer ~$15 at Amazon.
• G-Rip Grip Trainer ~$18-$20 at Amazon.
• SensoGlove $89.95 (see our gloves guide).

Prices verified September 2026. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. The SensoGlove is covered in depth in our golf grip gloves article; the links above open Amazon searches where a direct ASIN is not available.