A slice is a golf shot that curves sharply away from your dominant side: left to right for a right-handed golfer, right to left for a lefty. It happens because the clubface is open relative to the path the club is swinging on at impact. It is the most common miss in golf, and it is fixable.
What causes a slice?
Every slice comes down to one relationship: the clubface pointing to the right of the swing path at impact (for a right-hander). Golf Digest's top-ranked teacher Mark Blackburn puts it simply: "Every slice is caused by the same thing: the clubface is open in relation to the path of the club."
Launch monitor company TrackMan calls this number "face to path." The ball curves toward where the face points and away from where the club is traveling. The bigger the gap, the bigger the curve. In TrackMan's example, a tour driver swing with the face 5 degrees open to the path curves about 44 yards to the right.
The usual reasons the face ends up open:
- A weak grip. If you see only one knuckle on your lead hand at address, the face tends to stay open through impact.
- An out-to-in swing path. Swinging across the ball from outside the target line adds more slice spin to an open face.
- Poor alignment. Aiming your feet and shoulders left of target encourages that across-the-ball path.
- Where you hit it on the face. Strikes toward the heel can add slice curve even with a decent swing.
Why do I slice my driver more than my irons?
The driver has the least loft and the longest shaft in your bag. Less loft means less backspin to counter the sideways tilt of the spin axis, so the same open face produces more curve. The longer shaft also makes the face harder to square. Plenty of golfers hit a gentle fade with a 7-iron and a big slice with the driver from the same swing.
How do you fix a slice?
- Check your grip first. GOLFTEC suggests a stronger lead hand grip where you can see two to three knuckles. It is the fastest change most golfers can make.
- Square up your setup. Feet, hips and shoulders parallel to the target line. Lay a club on the ground to check.
- Swing out toward right field. Feel like the club travels out toward the right of the target through impact instead of across your body.
- Control the face. Blackburn's cue is "knuckles down" at the start of the downswing, which bows the lead wrist and closes the face.
- Measure it. A lesson on a launch monitor shows your face angle and path in numbers, so you know which one to work on.
Can a different driver fix a slice?
It can reduce one. Draw-biased drivers move weight toward the heel so the face closes a little more easily. In Golf Digest testing of the TaylorMade M4 D-Type, 70 percent of average golfers hit it further left than their regular driver, by 13.3 yards on average, and 5.7 yards longer overall. Other features that can help include offset hosels, more loft and upright lie angles. A lighter shaft may help some players, but it is not a proven cure on its own. And the cause is still in the swing, so equipment works best alongside the fixes above.
If you want to try one without paying new prices, browse our used forgiveness drivers. Draw versions carry a D, Draw or HL in the name, like the TaylorMade M4 D-Type. Getting the right shaft flex matters too.
Slice vs fade: what is the difference?
They curve the same direction. A fade is a small, controlled curve that a player chooses. A slice is a large curve nobody asked for. Plenty of tour players hit a fade on purpose.
Where the term comes from
"Slice" was being used in golf by the late 1880s. The Online Etymology Dictionary records the noun for a slicing stroke in golf from 1886 and the verb, meaning to draw the clubface across the ball when hitting it, from 1890. The name describes the motion: the club cuts across the ball like a knife. Nobody knows who first used it on the course.
FAQ
What is the opposite of a slice?
A hook, which curves hard toward your dominant side (right to left for a right-hander). The controlled version is a draw.
What is the fastest way to stop slicing?
Strengthen your grip and check your alignment. Those two fix a large share of slices before you touch your swing path.
Is a slice the same as a push?
No. A push starts right and flies fairly straight. A slice starts near the target line or right of it and keeps curving right.
More golf words explained in our Golf Terms Glossary, including bogey and mulligan, two words a slice tends to bring with it.
By Benjamin Stromberg, Co-Founder, GolfRoots. Sources: Golf Digest, TrackMan, GOLFTEC, Online Etymology Dictionary.
