How to Fix a Slice: The Real Cause, Not the Popular Guess

A slice — a shot that starts left of target and curves hard to the right for a right-handed golfer — is the most common miss in amateur golf, and also one of the most misdiagnosed. Understanding the actual mechanism makes the fix far more direct than most popular advice suggests.

The real mechanism

A slice happens when the clubface is open relative to your swing path at impact — not necessarily open to the target, just open relative to wherever the path is going. This almost always pairs with an out-to-in swing path, where the club travels across the ball from outside the target line to inside it through impact, imparting left-to-right sidespin (for a right-handed golfer).

Where the out-to-in path usually comes from

The most common source is an over-the-top downswing start — the upper body, arms or hands initiating the downswing instead of the lower body, throwing the club outside the ideal path (see our downswing sequencing guide). A second common contributor is an overly weak grip (see grip fundamentals) that makes it difficult to close the face through impact even with a good path.

Fixing the path: the alignment stick gate drill

Place one alignment stick in the ground just outside your target line, angled to mimic an out-to-in path, positioned so it would deflect a club swinging over-the-top. Place a second stick further inside, marking the ideal in-to-out path. Practice swings (start with half-speed, no ball) that avoid the outer stick and swing more toward the inner one. This gives immediate physical feedback that a verbal cue can't.

Fixing the face: check your grip and release

If your path is genuinely improved but you're still slicing, check your grip (a weak grip makes squaring the face at impact harder) and whether your trail forearm is rotating over your lead forearm through impact (a "release") — a swing that stops rotating through impact leaves the face open regardless of path.

A practical interim strategy while you fix it

While working on the actual fix, aim further left (accounting for your typical curve) rather than trying to aim straight and hope the slice doesn't show up — see our course management guide for how to build your target selection around a known, repeatable miss rather than fighting it on every shot.

When equipment can help — and when it can't

A draw-biased driver or stronger-lofted setup can reduce the severity of a slice, but it will not eliminate a genuine path-and-face swing issue. See our best drivers for high handicappers guide for equipment that can help at the margins while you work on the swing itself.