Golf Tutorials

How to Keep Your Hands Dry While Golfing

By Spencer Lanoue
July 24, 2025

A slippery golf grip destroys confidence and sabotages shots. Whether from a pop-up summer shower, stifling humidity, or just plain sweat, that loss of connection between your hands and the club can send an otherwise great swing veering offline. This article provides a complete game plan to keep your hands and grips dry, giving you the control and confidence you need to play your best golf no matter the conditions.

Why a Dry Grip is Non-Negotiable in Golf

Before we get into the solutions, it’s important to understand why a wet grip is so destructive. When your glove or hands feel slick on the club, your natural reaction is to squeeze it tighter. This single reaction creates a cascade of problems:

  • Tension Kills Speed: Tightening your grip introduces tension that travels up your forearms, into your shoulders, and through your upper body. Tense muscles can't rotate as freely or as quickly as relaxed muscles. This directly robs you of clubhead speed and, consequently, distance.
  • Loss of Feel: A death grip on the club robs you of feel, especially a. Your hands are your primary connection to the clubhead, and a light, sensitive grip allows you to feel the club's position throughout the swing. This is vital for controlling short-game shots like chips and pitches.
  • Inconsistent Clubface Control: When you're constantly fighting for a secure hold, it's nearly impossible to control the clubface at impact. The club can easily twist open or closed in your hands on the downswing, leading to slices, hooks, and a total loss of directional control.

Simply put, a secure, dry connection allows you to maintain light, consistent grip pressure. This lets your body work correctly, producing powerful, accurate shots. It's a foundational element of good golf.

The Proactive Approach: Essential Gear for Dry Hands

Winning the battle against moisture starts before you even step onto the first tee. Having the right equipment in your bag is the number one thing you can do to prepare for sweat or rain. Think of this as your dry-hand arsenal.

1. Master the Glove Game

A single, crusty glove crammed in your bag's side pocket isn’t going to cut it. A solid glove strategy is your first line of defense.

  • Embrace the Rotation: On a hot, humid day, your glove will become saturated with sweat. Instead of trying to play with a single soaked glove, carry at least two or three. Wear one for a few holes, and when it starts to feel damp, switch to a fresh, dry one. Hang the used glove from your push-cart handle or the frame of your golf cart to let it air out. This rotation system keeps a dry glove on your hand at all times.
  • Invest in Rain Gloves: These are a game-changer. Sold in pairs, rain gloves are typically made from a synthetic suede-like material that gets tackier when it gets wet. They provide an unbelievable grip in a downpour. If rain is even a slight possibility, having a pair in your bag is an absolute must-have. You’ll be amazed at the confidence you have standing over a shot in the pouring rain.
  • When to Go Gloveless: Don’t forget that you can always take your glove off, especially for putting and chipping. This not only preserves your main glove but also gives you a better feel an small shots and gives your hand a chance to breathe.

2. Assess Your Club Grips

Your glove is only half of the equation, the grips on your clubs are just as important. Worn, slick grips offer no real traction, even with a dry glove.

  • Cord Grips for Maximum Traction: Full-cord or half-cord grips have cotton fibers woven into the rubber. These fibers provide excellent traction and help wick moisture away from your hands. They are a fantastic choice for players who frequently battle sweaty hands or play in wet climates.
  • Keep Them Clean: Oil from your hands, sunscreen, and daily grime build up on grips over time, making them slick. Giving your grips a regular scrub with warm water, a bit of dish soap, and a stiff brush can bring them back to life. Just make sure to rinse and dry them thoroughly. You'll be surprised how much tackiness you can restore.
  • Know When to Re-Grip: If your grips are visibly shiny, cracked, or hard, no amount of cleaning will save them. Re-gripping your clubs once a year (or more for frequent players) is one of the best and most affordable equipment investments you can make. A fresh set of grips feels wonderful and will perform exponentially better in managing moisture.

3. The Unsung Hero: The Towel(s)

Never underestimate the power of a good towel - or better yet, two of them.

  • The Two-Towel System: This is a simple but effective pro-level trick. Attach one towel to your bag for cleaning your clubs, and keep a second towel dedicated solely to your hands and grips. Keep this "hand towel" as dry as possible. In rainy conditions, hang it under the canopy of your umbrella. On a hot day, keep it out of the direct sun. A largeTOUR-PLAYER style microfiber towel works best.
  • Drying Technique: Don't just wipe your hands. Before every full shot, thoroughly dry your glove, your "free" hand, and the entire grip of your club. This small addition to your pre-shot routine takes seconds but pays huge dividends.

4. Grip Enhancers and Drying Agents

Sometimes you need a little extra help. For players with excessively sweaty hands, a grip enhancer can feel like a miracle.

  • Rosin Bags or Chalk: Borrowed from baseball and gymnastics, a simple rosin bag (like the Pitcher's Bag) or a small chalk ball provides a dry, powdery coating to your hands and glove, absorbing sweat instantly. It offers a grippy, non-tacky feel. Keep one in a ziplock bag inside your golf bag.
  • Liquid Grip Enhancers: Products like "Dry Hands" or "Gorilla Gold" cloths provide a solution that improves grip without being overly sticky. These are great for applying at the start of the round and can be reapplied as needed. Test them out on the range first to see if you like the feel.
  • Athletic Wristbands: The old-school terry cloth wristband does a great job of one thing: stopping sweat from your arms from running down onto your hands. It’s a low-tech, highly effective solution on a hot day.

On-Course Strategy: Managing Moisture During the Round

Having the right gear is part one. Part two is using it effectively within the flow of a round. This means building simple, repeatable habits into your pre-shot routine.

Building Your Dry-Hands Routine

You need a system that becomes second nature. Here’s a sample routine for approaching a shot in hot or wet weather:

  1. On the way to your ball, grab your "hand towel."
  2. Once you've selected your club, thoroughly dry its grip from top to bottom.
  3. Thoroughly dry the palm and fingers of your gloved hand.
  4. Thoroughly dry your bare hand.
  5. Place the towel back on your bag or cart.
  6. Approach your ball, take your stance, and make your swing with confidence.

Even though it looks like several steps, this whole process adds maybe 10-15 seconds to your routine. By making it an automatic habit, you remove the mental distraction of worrying about your grip and can focus entirely on the shot.

The Art of Removing Your Glove

One of the easiest habits to adopt is to take your glove off between every single shot. As soon as you hit your tee shot, take it off while you walk to your ball. This allows both your hand and the glove to air out and dry. It dramatically slows the rate at which the glove becomes saturated. Stick it in your back pocket or hang it from your bag's towel ring. This practice single-handedly extends the life and performance of your gloves.

Final Thoughts

Keeping your hands dry is not a minor detail - it's fundamental to building a sound, repeatable golf swing. By combining the right gear with a disciplined on-course routine, you can eliminate the tension and uncertainty that comes from a slippery grip and play with confidence no matter the forecast.

Difficult playing conditions, like a sudden rainstorm or high humidity, often test our mental game as much as our physical one. When external factors cause you to second-guess your club choice or overall strategy, having a trustworthy source of advice can make all the difference. That's the idea behind our app, Caddie AI. It provides you with immediate, expert-level strategic guidance for any shot or situation, helping you make smart, confident decisions, even when the pressure is on and your hands are a little damp.

Spencer has been playing golf since he was a kid and has spent a lifetime chasing improvement. With over a decade of experience building successful tech products, he combined his love for golf and startups to create Caddie AI - the world's best AI golf app. Giving everyone an expert level coach in your pocket, available 24/7. His mission is simple: make world-class golf advice accessible to everyone, anytime.

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