Learn the Perfect Bow Grip in 3 Minutes - John Dudley Archery Tips

The first thing and last thing to determine the flight of that arrow is your bow grip. And there is nothing more important to get right before you even pull the bow back than where this hand should be. There's two things I want you to think about. Does it look right? And does it feel right? So the first thing, does it look right? Here's the most important thing. On your hand, when you slightly squeeze your hand, you're gonna see this noticeable wrinkle right there on your palm. That is the lifeline of your hand. And what I want you to think about is if you draw that mark right there, anything on this side is gonna be a no. Anything on the thumb side is gonna be a yes. Ideally, what you want is the grip to be in the cradle of your thumb and index finger. And when you flatten that hand back to where you have perfectly even pressure from the top of that cradle to where your thumb is connecting to the wrist, that that bow grip is in there and you have not crossed over that lifeline like that. This is a yes, this is a no. And here's the reason why. Think of what this thumb is gonna be doing if you change your bow grip. As soon as you cross that lifeline, now this thumb is gonna be pushing on this bow and you're gonna be fighting that lean and that cant. The deeper you get in and the more contact you have, the more torque you're gonna have in that bow grip as well. Keep in mind, with the front bow hand and how you grip the bow, less is gonna be more. So again, I want you to think, does it look right and does it feel right? So think of this, does it look right? If I think about what John just told me about this lifeline, when I'm looking down at my bow and I see myself put my hand in that position, I know that I'm not crossing that line. Now when it comes to does it feel right, here's the second detail to having the perfect bow grip. You have to take your hand, slide it against the bottom of that arrow shelf and then relax the wrist back so that pressure is even from here to here. A hand placement that varies up and down is gonna give you groups that vary up and down. A hand pressure that varies left and right is gonna cause your arrows to go left and right. If you get both wrong, you got a double hazard, double opportunity to miss that target. So again, does it feel right? Grab that bow, slide it up, lean it down and then when you're looking at it, does it look right? Can I see that my hand's coming all the way across? I'm crossing that palm, if so, you're way too deep in that grip. So keep the grip light, less is more and even when you got a long bomb of a target like this in this thick canopy, if your grip is right, then the arrow's gonna be right too.