 |
How to Fix Your Slice Completely
Most golfers slice. In fact, more than 80% of golfers are slicers according to the study.
When I started golf, I was slicing everything. I fought to fix slice for more than 10 years. I read all the books and magazines and took lots of golf lessons from PGA professionals but couldn't fix my slice completely.
It seems to go away for a few days. But by the time I noticed, it's back again. I almost gave up golf because of it.
But I overcame my slice and started to shoot in the 70's. In this site, I will explain how you can fix your slice completely.
The Position of the Golf Swing
Lots of teachers will tell you to check your golf swing positions and don't spend enough time fixing student's grip, ball position, posture and alignment.
But more than 80% of all the problems in your ball flight come from those basics of golf.
Also, those golf swing positions are usually just the result of your grip, posture, ball position and alignment.
When I ask players to fix their grip for example, they will automatically fix their faulty golf swing positions at the same time.
Changing Your Grip
All the players who fixed their slice changed the grip. I have not seen anybody who fixed their slice forever without changing the grip.
Here are articles about changing your grip. Please read these pages before we go on.
・Change Your Grip First, not the Golf swing
・How to Find Correct Grip for You
・How to Grip with Your Left Hand
・The Position of Left Thumb Determines the Ball Flight
・How to Grip it with Your Right Hand
・The Alignment of Your Shoulders and How to Grip a Golf Club
・The Correct Grip Position
Posture
Lots of slicers have a rounded back at address. This will cause them to swing on a steep plane or upright plane.
The Spine angle at address often determines your swing plane. If you stand up too tall, you will tend to have flat swing plane.
If you bend over too much or have a rounded back, you will tend to have upright swing.
When your swing plane is too upright, you will tend swing from outside in on the downswing causing the ball to slice.
To bend correctly at address, I want you to try below.
1) Stand up straight with your back nice and straight
2) Bend from hips. Don't bend from your waist because it can lead to rounded back
3) Hang your arms naturally
4) Lower your right shoulder and flex your knee a bit
5) Take your grip
The Position of Your Right Shoulder
If your right shoulder is level with your left shoulder, you are going to hit a slice.
Why?
Because we grip the club with our right hand lower than left, the right shoulder will be lower than left at impact.
So your right shoulder should be lower than left at address as well.
But if your right shoulder is higher than it should be, it will drop on the downswing to hit the ball. And in the process of dropping your right shoulder, your clubface will also open.
So you are going to work so hard not to open your clubface before impact.
This is almost impossible to do. Even if you are successful, you will lose all your power instead.
In this site, I will ask you to lower your right shoulder time and time again because it's very important for you to hit the shot far and straight.
Alignment
The alignment of your body is also very important in terms of fixing your slice.
Most players check their line of feet at address to see if they are standing square to the target.
But the line of your feet does not tell you the whole thing.
You need to check:
1) Shoulders
2) Waist
3) Knees
Slicers tend to have open shoulders and knees.
To check that, put your shaft against your shoulders or knees and see where it points to.
If you have open shoulders or knees, that may be the sign that your grip is too weak for you.
The correct grip is different from person to person. So some golfer's correct grip maybe too strong for others.
Keep changing your grip until your shoulder and knees are square to the target (parallel with the target line).
The Right Arm
If you right arm is much closer to the ball than your left arm at address, you will cut across the ball every time.
The reason why golfers have their right arm closer to the ball than left is because they don't lower their right shoulder at address before gripping.
So lower your right shoulder before gripping the club and make sure your right arm does not get ahead of your left arm.
Hands Position
Slicers tend to position their hands in front of a zipper. This is because they have weaker grip.
I want to see the hand more toward the inside of your left thigh.
For reasons why I recommend this, see The Correct Grip Position.
Ball Position
Slicers prefer to place the ball too far forward because they need more time to square the face.
However, by placing the ball too far forward, you will be forced to cut across the ball. When you do this, you either hit a slice or pull it left.
To fix your swing path, put the ball back in your stance. With a 7-iron, put the ball one to two ball length left of center.
When you put the ball back, you will first hit a push slice. But that's fine.
Next, you should change your grip.
So to fix your slice you need to fix your swing path and the face angle. To change your faulty swing path, work on your ball position.
To fix face angle, you need to change your grip.
Most players try to change their grip but forget to change the ball position (swing path). That's why they can't say good-bye to slice forever.