Your irons are ten years old but the heads are fine. The shafts are fine. The only thing letting them down is the grips — shiny, hard, and about as tacky as a bar of soap in the shower. You’ve been quoted £8 per club at the pro shop, which means regripping a full set costs more than a round at a decent course. Meanwhile, the entire job takes about 30 minutes at home and costs roughly £3 per grip.
Regripping golf clubs is one of those jobs that sounds technical but is genuinely simple once you’ve done it once. You don’t need specialist tools, you don’t need any particular skill, and you’ll wonder why you ever paid someone else to do it.
In This Article
- What You’ll Need
- How Often Should You Regrip?
- Choosing the Right Grip
- Step-by-Step Regripping Guide
- Alignment and Finishing Touches
- Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
- Regripping Putters
- Grip Tape: Single vs Double Build-Up
- How to Extend Grip Life
- Should You Regrip or Buy New Clubs?
- Frequently Asked Questions
What You’ll Need
The full kit costs about £15-25 and lasts for dozens of regrips. Here’s what you need:
- New grips — about £3-8 each depending on brand. Golf Pride, Lamkin, and SuperStroke are the main brands in the UK. Buy them from American Golf, Online Golf, or direct from the brand websites. If you’re unsure which clubs to prioritise, start with your most-used irons and wedges
- Double-sided grip tape — about £5-8 for a roll that does 15+ clubs. 2-inch width is standard
- Grip solvent — about £4-8 per bottle. White spirit works as a cheaper alternative (about £3 from Screwfix or B&Q) and evaporates identically
- Stanley knife or hook blade — for removing old grips. A hook blade is safer and won’t scratch the shaft
- Vice and rubber vice clamp — to hold the club steady. A rubber clamp protects the shaft from damage. About £10-15 if you don’t already have one
- Old towel or newspaper — this gets messy
Budget vs Premium Grips
The price range on grips is enormous. Here’s what the money buys you:
- Budget (£3-4 per grip) — basic rubber compounds. Functional, adequate feel, last about a season of regular play. Golf Pride CP2 Wrap and Lamkin Crossline are solid budget choices
- Mid-range (£5-7) — better materials, more tackiness, improved moisture management. Golf Pride MCC (half cord, half rubber) is the most popular grip in this bracket for good reason
- Premium (£8-12) — advanced compounds, multi-material construction, superior wet-weather performance. SuperStroke S-Tech and Golf Pride Z-Grip are the benchmarks
How Often Should You Regrip?
The standard advice is every 40-60 rounds or once a year, whichever comes first. But that’s a rough guide — your actual replacement schedule depends on several factors.
Signs Your Grips Need Replacing
- Shiny patches — the rubber has worn smooth, especially where your thumbs sit
- Hard texture — grips harden with age regardless of use. UV exposure and temperature cycling accelerate this
- Reduced tackiness — if you’re gripping harder to stop the club twisting, the grips are past it
- Visible wear patterns — grooves worn into the rubber from your grip pattern
- Cracking — rubber compounds degrade over time. Cracks mean the grip is well past its useful life
Frequency by Usage
- Twice a week or more — regrip every 6-8 months
- Once a week — regrip annually
- Twice a month — every 18-24 months
- Occasional golfer — every 2-3 years, but check for hardening regardless
According to England Golf, regular club maintenance including grip care is part of getting the most from your equipment — and regripping is the single highest-impact maintenance task you can do.
Choosing the Right Grip
Size Matters
Grip size affects your hand action through the swing. Too thin and your hands become overactive, causing hooks. Too thick and your hands can’t release properly, causing pushes and slices.
- Undersize — for small hands (glove size small). Rarely used by adult men
- Standard — fits most male golfers (glove size medium-large)
- Midsize — 1/16″ larger than standard. Increasingly popular for players who want a slightly quieter hand action
- Oversize/Jumbo — 1/8″ larger than standard. Best for players with arthritis or very large hands who want minimal hand rotation
Quick Sizing Test
Hold a club with your current grip. If your fingers dig into your palm, the grip is too small. If there’s a visible gap between your fingertips and palm, it’s too large. Your fingers should just barely touch your palm.
Material Types
- Rubber — standard, durable, good in dry conditions. Loses traction in rain
- Cord — woven cotton cord embedded in rubber. Excellent wet-weather grip but rougher on the hands. Popular with serious players in the UK where rain is a given
- Half-cord — cord on the upper hand, rubber on the lower. The best compromise for UK conditions
- Wrap — leather-style feel with a wrapped texture. Comfortable but less durable than moulded rubber
Step-by-Step Regripping Guide
Step 1: Secure the Club
Clamp the shaft in your vice using a rubber vice clamp. Position the club so the head is hanging down and the butt end of the shaft points upward. Make sure the club is secure but don’t overtighten — you can crush graphite shafts if you go mad with the vice.
Step 2: Remove the Old Grip
Cut along the length of the old grip with your Stanley knife or hook blade. Start at the butt end and cut toward the clubhead. Peel the grip off. If it’s really stuck, work the blade under the edge and peel gradually.
Warning with graphite shafts: cut gently. A deep cut into a graphite shaft weakens it permanently. Use a hook blade and only cut through the grip material, not into the shaft beneath.
Step 3: Remove Old Tape
Peel off the old grip tape from the shaft. If it’s stubborn, apply a little solvent to soften the adhesive. A plastic scraper works better than a metal one — less risk of shaft damage. Get the shaft as clean as possible.
Step 4: Apply New Tape
Tear off a strip of double-sided grip tape the length of the grip (usually about 25cm). Starting at the butt end, spiral the tape down the shaft or apply it lengthways — either method works. Leave about 1cm of tape overhanging the butt end and fold it over to cap the shaft opening.
Peel off the backing strip to expose the sticky side.
Step 5: Apply Solvent
Pour solvent generously over the exposed tape, rotating the shaft to coat the entire surface. Then pour solvent into the new grip (plug the open end with your finger, pour in about a capful, shake it around to coat the inside, then let it drain through the hole in the butt end).
Work quickly from here — the solvent evaporates fast and the grip needs to slide on while everything is still wet.
Step 6: Slide On the New Grip
Align the grip with the clubface. The logo or alignment mark should face forward (toward the target). In one smooth push, slide the grip onto the shaft all the way to the butt end. It should glide on with moderate force if you’ve used enough solvent. If it’s fighting you, add more solvent.
Step 7: Align and Set
You have about 30-60 seconds before the solvent starts evaporating and the grip begins setting. Use this time to:
- Check alignment — the grip pattern should be straight relative to the clubface
- Push the grip fully home — tap the butt end on a hard surface to make sure it’s seated completely
- Twist if needed — minor rotational adjustments are easy while the solvent is wet
Step 8: Let It Cure
Leave the club for at least 4-6 hours before using it. Overnight is ideal. The solvent needs to fully evaporate for the tape adhesive to set properly. Using the club too soon risks the grip twisting during your swing.
Alignment and Finishing Touches
Getting Alignment Right
For standard round grips, alignment is less critical — you can rotate them freely. For grips with a flat front (reminder grips) or specific textures, alignment to the clubface matters.
Method: before sliding the grip on, mark a line on the shaft at the 12 o’clock position (directly behind the leading edge of the clubface). Use this mark to align the grip’s flat or logo as you push it on.
Trimming the Butt End
Most grips have a closed butt end. If yours doesn’t, or if you’ve cut the grip to length, use a small plug of tape to seal the shaft opening and prevent moisture ingress.
Checking Your Work
After curing, give each grip a firm twist. It shouldn’t move at all. If it rotates, the tape adhesive didn’t set properly — you’ll need to remove the grip and redo it with fresh tape and more solvent.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Not Using Enough Solvent
The single most common error. If you’re stingy with the solvent, the grip won’t slide on smoothly and you’ll end up with it halfway down the shaft, stuck, and misaligned. Use more than you think you need — the excess evaporates harmlessly.
Rushing the Alignment
You have about 30-60 seconds to adjust, which feels like plenty until you’re wrestling a grip into position with slippery hands. Have your alignment mark ready before you start sliding the grip on.
Cutting Into Graphite Shafts
Steel shafts forgive a slightly deep cut. Graphite shafts don’t — a nick in the carbon fibre layers creates a weak point that can cause the shaft to snap during a swing. Always use a hook blade on graphite, and cut with light pressure.
Using the Wrong Solvent
Some people use water or washing-up liquid instead of proper grip solvent. This works temporarily but takes much longer to dry and can leave the grip loose for days. White spirit or proper grip solvent evaporates in hours and leaves the tape adhesive working properly.
Ignoring Grip Size
Regripping with the same size as your worn grips assumes the worn size was correct. It might not have been. Take the opportunity to try a different size — many golfers find that moving up to midsize improves their game by calming overactive hands.
Regripping Putters
Putter grips are a different beast. They’re thicker, often non-round, and sized very differently from iron and wood grips.
Standard vs Oversized Putter Grips
Traditional putter grips are slim and require active hands through the stroke. The modern trend is toward oversized putter grips (SuperStroke being the most popular brand) that quiet the hands and promote a more shoulder-driven stroke.
If you struggle with the yips or have twitchy hands on short putts, an oversized putter grip is worth trying before you buy a new putter.
Installation Differences
Putter grips install the same way as regular grips, but alignment is more critical. The flat front of the grip must align precisely with the putter face. Use a straight edge along the face and transfer the line up the shaft before starting.
Grip Tape: Single vs Double Build-Up
What Build-Up Means
Each layer of grip tape adds a small amount of thickness to the shaft, which makes the final grip slightly larger in diameter. This is how custom fitters adjust grip size between standard sizes.
- One layer (standard) — no size change from the grip’s labelled size
- Two layers — adds about 1/32″, halfway between standard and midsize
- Three or more layers — approaches midsize territory
When to Build Up
If standard feels slightly too thin but midsize feels too thick, two layers of tape on a standard grip splits the difference perfectly. It’s a cheap way to customise grip size without buying speciality grips.
Even Build-Up
If you add layers, wrap them evenly. Lumps or gaps in the tape show through the grip material and create inconsistent feel. Spiral-wrapping (rather than lengthways strips) gives the most even build-up.
How to Extend Grip Life
A proper cleaning routine helps, but there’s more you can do.
Cleaning
Wash your grips every few rounds with warm water and a drop of washing-up liquid. Scrub with a soft brush, rinse, and towel dry. This removes oils, sweat, and sunscreen that degrade rubber compounds. Takes two minutes and makes a noticeable difference.
Storage
Keep your clubs in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight. UV radiation hardens rubber faster than anything else. A car boot in summer is the worst possible storage — the heat accelerates grip degradation.
Glove Use
A golf glove reduces direct skin contact with the grip, which slows oil and sweat transfer. Even if you don’t like wearing a glove during your swing, putting one on between shots reduces grip contamination.
Rain Covers
In UK conditions, keeping grips dry during play matters. A towel clipped to your bag handles most rain days, but for heavy downpours, individual club covers or a decent bag rain cover stops grips getting waterlogged.
Should You Regrip or Buy New Clubs?
If your clubs are less than 15 years old and you like how they play, regripping is almost always the right call. New grips on familiar clubs feel transformative — you’ll swing with more confidence and better control.
The economics are simple. Regripping a full set (13 clubs) costs about £40-100 in materials depending on grip choice. A new set of irons starts at about £400. Unless the clubheads or shafts are damaged, regripping gives you 90% of the “new club feeling” at a fraction of the cost.
The only time to consider new clubs instead is if technology has genuinely moved on. If you’re playing blades from 2008, a modern game-improvement iron will transform your ball striking in ways new grips can’t. But if your clubs are from the last decade, regripping is the smarter investment.
As the R&A equipment guidance notes, proper equipment maintenance affects performance more than most golfers realise — and grips are the only contact point between you and the club.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I regrip clubs without a vice? Technically yes, but it’s much harder. You need something to hold the club steady while you push the grip on with both hands. Some people use a workbench with a clamp, or wedge the clubhead against a wall. A rubber vice clamp costs about £10 and makes the whole job far easier — it’s worth the investment if you plan to regrip regularly.
Is white spirit safe to use as grip solvent? Yes. White spirit (mineral spirits) evaporates cleanly and activates double-sided grip tape identically to branded grip solvents. It costs about £3 per litre from any hardware shop versus £6-8 for branded solvent. The only downside is the smell — work in a ventilated area. Do not use petrol, acetone, or paint thinner as alternatives.
How long does a regrip take per club? About 2-3 minutes per club once you’ve done a couple. The first one might take 5-10 minutes while you get the feel for the solvent timing and alignment. A full set of 13 clubs takes about 30-45 minutes excluding drying time.
Can I reuse old grips? If they’re in good condition, yes. Cut them off carefully by slitting lengthways with a hook blade, peel gently, and save them. To reinstall, apply new tape and solvent as normal — the grip slides on just like a new one. This works well if you’re moving grips between clubs or upgrading shafts.
Do I need to regrip my wedges more often than other clubs? Wedges get used for a wider variety of shots — full swings, half swings, chips, pitches — and the varying grip pressure accelerates wear. If you play regularly, wedge grips wear about 30% faster than iron grips. Some golfers regrip wedges twice a year while doing the rest annually.