I have been discussing Jack Nicklaus’ 1963 setup, swing and grip for some time as you all know, and I concluded that his grip in this setup was optimal.
The question however would be, is it optimal, period? Or was it optimal because of the way he set up over the ball, and would a stronger grip than his work as well in a slightly different setup?
These are questions I ask myself when looking into anything, because if the question hasn’t been asked and answered, then I don’t see how one can conclude anything at all with any confidence.
Now, that is a super-weak grip, but again, you never heard of Jack having hooking issues, did you?
But was it just an anti-hook grip or was there something in it?
I have my own ideas about what made it so effective for Nicklaus at the time, but if the factors that made it so effective can be adjusted so that one could achieve the same efficacy with a little or more stronger grip, then it would be the factors and not the strength or weakness of the grip that does the job.
Things have been quiet on the blog due to my having other things of interest that are not golf swing-related, also because I again tweaked my neck sleeping (I have scoliosis so this is always happening) and kept re-tweaking it over the past few weeks.
When you can’t turn your head to either side, you really can’t do much with working on the golf swing except for analysis – and you all know that I have given up on swing analysis for the most part because if it’s a Modern Golf Swing to begin with, it’s dead in the water, mechanically-speaking.
I have had another swing session and am currently evaluating where things stand, but at least the neck is allowing actual swinging, so I should be posting more material as the winter plays out.
More to come.
WAX Golf 
You do have to remember that Jack favored a fade, so yes, his grip will naturally be weaker. I think it depends on the shot you’re trying to hit, draw/fade, high/low. A proper grip, in its simplest form, allows for a free wrist hinge, and from there it’s somewhat variable. At least as far as I know.
He did play a fade, MMJ – but not in the way one would think. He set up aiming at a spot left of the target and then opened his club face in order to start the ball on his desire line and have it fade to the actual spot he wanted his ball to land or end up. That is how I play a fade (or a draw), and it is not dependent upon such a weak grip, as I had a very strong one in the past.
If you found a Nicklaus shot where he hit a draw, I’d wager he had the same grip, just with a closed club face setting up right of the target.
I think the art of the optimal grip has been lost in the years since the advent of the Modern Golf Swing, and I find further proof in the fact that the greatest greats of the Classic Era (find me bigger greats than Snead, Hogan and Lord Nelson), Nicklaus included, all seemed to have the same super-weak grip:
Too many all-time greats here with the same super-weak grip to be a coincidence, and I’m working on finding a definitive answer. I have a good idea but don’t want to pollute the air (and send people down dead-end alleys) before I verify it as correct.