Peel the covering (if any) off the small sticky tab at the tapered end of the inside surface of the overgrip. Once you have wrapped the overgrip, this sticky tab will hold the end of the overgrip in place until you tape it down. A few brands of overgrip don’t provide a tapered end. Peel the covering off the separate piece of tape. To have the tape handy, stick the end of the tape to a nearby table or to your shirt.

Hold your racquet in your left hand (if you’re a righty) with the butt end pointing straight up. Place the non-tapered end of the overgrip half an inch below the butt end of your handle, with the outside surface facing out. Starting the overgrip in this position will allow you to overlap it as you begin to wrap, thus keeping it firmly in place. Hold the end of the overgrip against the handle with your left thumb.

While you continue to hold the end of the overgrip against the handle with your left thumb, begin to wrap the overgrip so that its upper edge runs along the edge of the original grip underneath. Turn the racquet handle with your left hand while you pull the overgrip gently with your right. Apply a very slight stretch to the overgrip to keep it tightly wrapped against the handle.

At some point during the first wrap, it will become too awkward to keep your left thumb on the end of the overgrip, so carefully switch to your left forefinger. Once you have come all the way around and can begin overlapping, you won’t have to deal with any more awkward hand positions. Keep applying just a little bit of stretch to the overgrip as you do the second wrap and all subsequent wraps.

Once the top edge of the overgrip is aligned with the top edge of the original grip all the way around, begin angling the overgrip downward as you continue to wrap it. How much you overlap each wrap will depend on how long and fat your handle is in relation to the length of the overgrip, but an overlap of roughly one third the width of the overgrip is usually about right.

If you overlapped each wrap the correct amount, the tapered end of your overgrip should end up where your grip ends. The little sticky tab will keep the tapered end in place while you grab the tape. Apply the tape straight around the final edge of the overgrip so that it covers the tapered end and holds your overgrip in place.

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