How to Stop Slicing the Golf Ball

The slice is the amateur golfer's arch-nemesis: that weak shot that starts okay and then peels hard to the right (for a right-hander). The fix isn't a secret move — it comes down to two things you can actually control: your clubface and your swing path.

Why the ball slices

A slice is spin. When the clubface is open relative to the path the club is travelling at impact, you put left-to-right sidespin on the ball and it curves away. The bigger that face-to-path gap, the uglier the slice. So every real fix is about closing that gap — either squaring the face, straightening the path, or both.

Most slicers fight two problems at once: a clubface that's open at impact, and an out-to-in (over-the-top) path. Let's tackle the face first, because it's the faster win.

Fix 1: Check your grip

A weak grip (hands rotated too far toward the target) is the number-one cause of an open face. Strengthen it:

• With your lead hand (left, for a righty), rotate it slightly away from the target until you can see 2–3 knuckles looking down.
• Set the "V" formed by your thumb and forefinger on both hands pointing toward your trail shoulder.
• Keep grip pressure light — a stranglehold freezes the wrists and holds the face open.

This one change squares the face for a huge number of slicers.

Fix 2: Square the face through impact

Feel the toe of the club "catch up" to the heel through the strike — the sensation of the lead forearm rotating over the trail forearm just past impact. A great rehearsal: make slow half-swings and stop at hip height in the follow-through with the toe pointing up, not the face pointing skyward.

Fix 3: Straighten the path

If your grip and release are solid but the ball still starts left and slices, the path is the culprit. That's the over-the-top move — the club approaching from outside the target line. The over-the-top drills (pump-and-drop, the headcover gate, starting down from the ground up) shallow the path so the club travels more in-to-out. Pair a square face with an inside path and the slice becomes a gentle draw.

See what your face and path are actually doing

The hard part of curing a slice is that you can't feel clubface angle — and a "fix" that feels dramatic might barely move the needle. Recording your swing removes the guesswork. ProSwing AI breaks your swing into phases and delivers AI coaching on your setup, release, and path, so you can confirm whether the grip change actually squared things up or whether the path is still the problem. Track it swing to swing and you'll see the ball flight straighten for real, not just in feel.