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Tyler Ferrell is the only person in the world named to Golf Digest's list of Best Young Teachers in America AND its list of Best Golf Fitness Professionals in America.

Eliminate Tension with the Hogan Open Right Thumb Drill

After this video, you'll be able to:

  • Feel the difference between gripping with your thumb and using your fingers for control.
  • Develop a smoother transition through the ball by eliminating unnecessary tension.
  • Understand how to engage your forearm muscles properly for improved swing mechanics.

Learn how to reduce excess pressure in your grip with the Hogan Open Right Thumb Drill. This technique will help you achieve a more fluid swing and better ball striking.

Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.670
This drill is the open right thumb, so one of my students, I had them do this

2
00:00:07.670 --> 00:00:08.040
drill and

3
00:00:08.040 --> 00:00:12.360
they said, "Oh, that's the way Hogan used to practice, so I don't know I've

4
00:00:12.360 --> 00:00:12.680
never been

5
00:00:12.680 --> 00:00:17.720
able to fact check it, but it seems reasonable to me, so I'm going to call it

6
00:00:17.720 --> 00:00:18.880
the Hogan open

7
00:00:18.880 --> 00:00:20.400
right thumb drill."

8
00:00:20.400 --> 00:00:24.400
And basically, this is to help with golfers who have a tendency to use too much

9
00:00:24.400 --> 00:00:24.920
of their

10
00:00:24.920 --> 00:00:28.040
thumb or the webbing of their right hand.

11
00:00:28.040 --> 00:00:31.910
More like a baseball pressure point or pushing on the club, more like this,

12
00:00:31.910 --> 00:00:32.800
with that right

13
00:00:32.800 --> 00:00:36.080
thumb down or with the webbing and the right thumb.

14
00:00:36.080 --> 00:00:41.040
Instead of pushing on it more with that pressure of that first joint on that

15
00:00:41.040 --> 00:00:42.320
index finger, similar

16
00:00:42.320 --> 00:00:47.800
to the alignment stick loading or the finger release or some of the other trail

17
00:00:47.800 --> 00:00:48.840
hand drills.

18
00:00:48.840 --> 00:00:54.200
So when I activate the muscles on the top side of my arm, up on this forearm,

19
00:00:54.200 --> 00:00:55.160
by pressing

20
00:00:55.160 --> 00:01:01.150
a lot with either the thumb or again the webbing, this will encourage this

21
00:01:01.150 --> 00:01:03.040
movement here on

22
00:01:03.040 --> 00:01:04.320
the way through.

23
00:01:04.320 --> 00:01:09.280
If I activate more of the pressure in the middle fingers and connect to the

24
00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:10.440
club through this

25
00:01:10.440 --> 00:01:16.600
index finger, it'll activate more the inside of the arm kind of like this.

26
00:01:16.600 --> 00:01:22.170
So what we're going to do is we're going to hit some shots with the thumb no

27
00:01:22.170 --> 00:01:22.560
longer

28
00:01:22.560 --> 00:01:23.800
in contact.

29
00:01:23.800 --> 00:01:26.360
And I want to emphasize that it's the whole thumb.

30
00:01:26.360 --> 00:01:30.360
What I see a lot of students when I try to do this drill for the first time is

31
00:01:30.360 --> 00:01:30.960
they will

32
00:01:30.960 --> 00:01:36.960
just pick up, they'll just pick the thumb off but not kind of the meaty part.

33
00:01:36.960 --> 00:01:41.160
They won't disconnect from the left thumb, they'll just pick the thumb up off

34
00:01:41.160 --> 00:01:41.840
the grip.

35
00:01:41.840 --> 00:01:44.760
I want the whole thumb out of commission.

36
00:01:44.760 --> 00:01:48.720
I want that thumb off the left thumb as well.

37
00:01:48.720 --> 00:01:53.980
So now I have to get a little more of the control in my fingers there.

38
00:01:53.980 --> 00:01:58.940
So in my the middle two fingers gripping there and that index finger pushing on

39
00:01:58.940 --> 00:02:00.160
the grip.

40
00:02:00.160 --> 00:02:04.280
I still feel like I have a lot of control of the club.

41
00:02:04.280 --> 00:02:07.490
It might feel a little lost if I were to take full swings, which you're more

42
00:02:07.490 --> 00:02:08.080
than welcome

43
00:02:08.080 --> 00:02:13.840
to, but especially down in the release zone.

44
00:02:13.840 --> 00:02:18.930
Not having the thumb on should have very little impact in how well I'm able to

45
00:02:18.930 --> 00:02:19.720
do the right

46
00:02:19.720 --> 00:02:22.320
hand or the trail hand release.

47
00:02:22.320 --> 00:02:33.590
So thumb completely off doing either nine to threes or again you can do this

48
00:02:33.590 --> 00:02:34.720
all the

49
00:02:34.720 --> 00:02:35.720
way up.

50
00:02:35.720 --> 00:02:40.680
We'll go kind of a ten to two.

51
00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:46.250
So because the key movements of the right hand are more in line with this

52
00:02:46.250 --> 00:02:47.480
finger and pushing

53
00:02:47.480 --> 00:02:51.020
through the inside of the arm, taking the thumb off should have very little

54
00:02:51.020 --> 00:02:51.560
impact on

55
00:02:51.560 --> 00:02:53.040
your stock swing.

56
00:02:53.040 --> 00:02:57.740
If you find that you have a lot of forearm rotation and roll, you find that

57
00:02:57.740 --> 00:02:58.480
this elbow

58
00:02:58.480 --> 00:03:03.040
starts pointing at the camera kind of like this.

59
00:03:03.040 --> 00:03:09.950
And then this is a kind of a foolproof way to remove some of the power from the

60
00:03:09.950 --> 00:03:10.600
right

61
00:03:10.600 --> 00:03:12.160
hand doing that move.

62
00:03:12.160 --> 00:03:15.650
You may feel, if you do too many of these at first, that the left hand might

63
00:03:15.650 --> 00:03:16.320
get a little

64
00:03:16.320 --> 00:03:18.720
sore because it's having to do a little bit more work.

65
00:03:18.720 --> 00:03:26.170
So work yourself up in terms of doing reps, but this should help coordinate the

66
00:03:26.170 --> 00:03:27.200
two hands

67
00:03:27.200 --> 00:03:34.350
into doing more of your tour release really by removing one of the key culprits

68
00:03:34.350 --> 00:03:34.880
that I

69
00:03:34.880 --> 00:03:38.520
see with a lot of pore golfers.

70
00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:42.520
In particular, I tend to see this being a problem for X baseball players more

71
00:03:42.520 --> 00:03:43.000
so than

72
00:03:43.000 --> 00:03:44.080
any other sports.

73
00:03:44.080 --> 00:03:47.530
So even if you don't think you have this problem, if you played a lot of

74
00:03:47.530 --> 00:03:48.360
baseball, I would

75
00:03:48.360 --> 00:03:52.840
highly recommend trying to hit some shots with that thumb completely out of the

76
00:03:52.840 --> 00:03:53.400
way.

77
00:03:53.400 --> 00:03:56.760
And if it becomes hard to do it, then it could be an indication that you need

78
00:03:56.760 --> 00:03:57.040
to do

79
00:03:57.040 --> 00:03:59.040
a little bit of a release training.

80
00:03:59.040 --> 00:04:00.040
Okay.

81
00:04:00.040 --> 00:04:16.960
So now we'll do nine to three, solid, and we'll do ten to two, also solid.

82
00:04:16.960 --> 00:04:26.720
Now we'll try for the full swing, the toughy.

83
00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:28.000
Pulled it a little bit.

84
00:04:28.000 --> 00:04:29.920
That's one of my tendencies.

85
00:04:29.920 --> 00:04:32.840
Let's try one more full swing.

86
00:04:32.840 --> 00:04:38.720
We'll get it on this one.

87
00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:41.400
So really good, no connection from the thumb.

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Tyler Ferrell is the only person in the world named to Golf Digest's list of Best Young Teachers in America AND its list of Best Golf Fitness Professionals in America.

Eliminate Tension with the Hogan Open Right Thumb Drill

After this video, you'll be able to:

  • Feel the difference between gripping with your thumb and using your fingers for control.
  • Develop a smoother transition through the ball by eliminating unnecessary tension.
  • Understand how to engage your forearm muscles properly for improved swing mechanics.

Learn how to reduce excess pressure in your grip with the Hogan Open Right Thumb Drill. This technique will help you achieve a more fluid swing and better ball striking.

Video Transcript
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.670
This drill is the open right thumb, so one of my students, I had them do this

2
00:00:07.670 --> 00:00:08.040
drill and

3
00:00:08.040 --> 00:00:12.360
they said, "Oh, that's the way Hogan used to practice, so I don't know I've

4
00:00:12.360 --> 00:00:12.680
never been

5
00:00:12.680 --> 00:00:17.720
able to fact check it, but it seems reasonable to me, so I'm going to call it

6
00:00:17.720 --> 00:00:18.880
the Hogan open

7
00:00:18.880 --> 00:00:20.400
right thumb drill."

8
00:00:20.400 --> 00:00:24.400
And basically, this is to help with golfers who have a tendency to use too much

9
00:00:24.400 --> 00:00:24.920
of their

10
00:00:24.920 --> 00:00:28.040
thumb or the webbing of their right hand.

11
00:00:28.040 --> 00:00:31.910
More like a baseball pressure point or pushing on the club, more like this,

12
00:00:31.910 --> 00:00:32.800
with that right

13
00:00:32.800 --> 00:00:36.080
thumb down or with the webbing and the right thumb.

14
00:00:36.080 --> 00:00:41.040
Instead of pushing on it more with that pressure of that first joint on that

15
00:00:41.040 --> 00:00:42.320
index finger, similar

16
00:00:42.320 --> 00:00:47.800
to the alignment stick loading or the finger release or some of the other trail

17
00:00:47.800 --> 00:00:48.840
hand drills.

18
00:00:48.840 --> 00:00:54.200
So when I activate the muscles on the top side of my arm, up on this forearm,

19
00:00:54.200 --> 00:00:55.160
by pressing

20
00:00:55.160 --> 00:01:01.150
a lot with either the thumb or again the webbing, this will encourage this

21
00:01:01.150 --> 00:01:03.040
movement here on

22
00:01:03.040 --> 00:01:04.320
the way through.

23
00:01:04.320 --> 00:01:09.280
If I activate more of the pressure in the middle fingers and connect to the

24
00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:10.440
club through this

25
00:01:10.440 --> 00:01:16.600
index finger, it'll activate more the inside of the arm kind of like this.

26
00:01:16.600 --> 00:01:22.170
So what we're going to do is we're going to hit some shots with the thumb no

27
00:01:22.170 --> 00:01:22.560
longer

28
00:01:22.560 --> 00:01:23.800
in contact.

29
00:01:23.800 --> 00:01:26.360
And I want to emphasize that it's the whole thumb.

30
00:01:26.360 --> 00:01:30.360
What I see a lot of students when I try to do this drill for the first time is

31
00:01:30.360 --> 00:01:30.960
they will

32
00:01:30.960 --> 00:01:36.960
just pick up, they'll just pick the thumb off but not kind of the meaty part.

33
00:01:36.960 --> 00:01:41.160
They won't disconnect from the left thumb, they'll just pick the thumb up off

34
00:01:41.160 --> 00:01:41.840
the grip.

35
00:01:41.840 --> 00:01:44.760
I want the whole thumb out of commission.

36
00:01:44.760 --> 00:01:48.720
I want that thumb off the left thumb as well.

37
00:01:48.720 --> 00:01:53.980
So now I have to get a little more of the control in my fingers there.

38
00:01:53.980 --> 00:01:58.940
So in my the middle two fingers gripping there and that index finger pushing on

39
00:01:58.940 --> 00:02:00.160
the grip.

40
00:02:00.160 --> 00:02:04.280
I still feel like I have a lot of control of the club.

41
00:02:04.280 --> 00:02:07.490
It might feel a little lost if I were to take full swings, which you're more

42
00:02:07.490 --> 00:02:08.080
than welcome

43
00:02:08.080 --> 00:02:13.840
to, but especially down in the release zone.

44
00:02:13.840 --> 00:02:18.930
Not having the thumb on should have very little impact in how well I'm able to

45
00:02:18.930 --> 00:02:19.720
do the right

46
00:02:19.720 --> 00:02:22.320
hand or the trail hand release.

47
00:02:22.320 --> 00:02:33.590
So thumb completely off doing either nine to threes or again you can do this

48
00:02:33.590 --> 00:02:34.720
all the

49
00:02:34.720 --> 00:02:35.720
way up.

50
00:02:35.720 --> 00:02:40.680
We'll go kind of a ten to two.

51
00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:46.250
So because the key movements of the right hand are more in line with this

52
00:02:46.250 --> 00:02:47.480
finger and pushing

53
00:02:47.480 --> 00:02:51.020
through the inside of the arm, taking the thumb off should have very little

54
00:02:51.020 --> 00:02:51.560
impact on

55
00:02:51.560 --> 00:02:53.040
your stock swing.

56
00:02:53.040 --> 00:02:57.740
If you find that you have a lot of forearm rotation and roll, you find that

57
00:02:57.740 --> 00:02:58.480
this elbow

58
00:02:58.480 --> 00:03:03.040
starts pointing at the camera kind of like this.

59
00:03:03.040 --> 00:03:09.950
And then this is a kind of a foolproof way to remove some of the power from the

60
00:03:09.950 --> 00:03:10.600
right

61
00:03:10.600 --> 00:03:12.160
hand doing that move.

62
00:03:12.160 --> 00:03:15.650
You may feel, if you do too many of these at first, that the left hand might

63
00:03:15.650 --> 00:03:16.320
get a little

64
00:03:16.320 --> 00:03:18.720
sore because it's having to do a little bit more work.

65
00:03:18.720 --> 00:03:26.170
So work yourself up in terms of doing reps, but this should help coordinate the

66
00:03:26.170 --> 00:03:27.200
two hands

67
00:03:27.200 --> 00:03:34.350
into doing more of your tour release really by removing one of the key culprits

68
00:03:34.350 --> 00:03:34.880
that I

69
00:03:34.880 --> 00:03:38.520
see with a lot of pore golfers.

70
00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:42.520
In particular, I tend to see this being a problem for X baseball players more

71
00:03:42.520 --> 00:03:43.000
so than

72
00:03:43.000 --> 00:03:44.080
any other sports.

73
00:03:44.080 --> 00:03:47.530
So even if you don't think you have this problem, if you played a lot of

74
00:03:47.530 --> 00:03:48.360
baseball, I would

75
00:03:48.360 --> 00:03:52.840
highly recommend trying to hit some shots with that thumb completely out of the

76
00:03:52.840 --> 00:03:53.400
way.

77
00:03:53.400 --> 00:03:56.760
And if it becomes hard to do it, then it could be an indication that you need

78
00:03:56.760 --> 00:03:57.040
to do

79
00:03:57.040 --> 00:03:59.040
a little bit of a release training.

80
00:03:59.040 --> 00:04:00.040
Okay.

81
00:04:00.040 --> 00:04:16.960
So now we'll do nine to three, solid, and we'll do ten to two, also solid.

82
00:04:16.960 --> 00:04:26.720
Now we'll try for the full swing, the toughy.

83
00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:28.000
Pulled it a little bit.

84
00:04:28.000 --> 00:04:29.920
That's one of my tendencies.

85
00:04:29.920 --> 00:04:32.840
Let's try one more full swing.

86
00:04:32.840 --> 00:04:38.720
We'll get it on this one.

87
00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:41.400
So really good, no connection from the thumb.

Have questions about this video?

Ask Mulligan for personalized guidance on technique, drills, or how to apply what you've learned.

Ask Mulligan
Related topics
This video hasn't been assigned to any topics yet. Browse all topics in the sidebar.
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