Slice
The shot starts near your target line, then curves hard to the right and lands well short of a normal drive.
Why it happens
A slice happens when the clubface is open relative to the direction the club is travelling (the swing path) at the moment of impact. The bigger that gap between face and path, the more sidespin gets put on the ball, and the more it curves, usually while also losing distance because the spin axis is tilted instead of upright.
Possible causes in your swing, and how to fix each one
Tap any cause to see its fix. Work through them one at a time, usually one or two are the real culprit.
01
Grip too weak
If your left hand is rotated too far toward the target on the handle, the clubface naturally wants to stay open through impact, no matter how good the rest of the swing is.
Rotate your left hand so you can see 2–3 knuckles when you look down at address. To groove it, grip the club with just your left hand's index finger and thumb first, feeling it settle into the base of your fingers rather than your palm, then add the rest of your fingers without letting it slide. This is the single highest-leverage fix for a chronic slice.
02
Swinging out-to-in across the ball (over the top)
When the shoulders and arms start the downswing before the lower body, the club gets thrown outside the ideal plane and cuts across the ball from outside the target line to the inside, adding left-to-right sidespin on top of any open face. It's the classic "over the top" move.
Feel like you're shallowing the club: let your hands drop straight down toward your right hip right after the top of the backswing, while your shoulders hold off turning for a beat. That delay gives the lower body time to lead and the club room to fall onto the correct path, instead of your arms throwing it out toward the ball immediately.
03
Ball position too far forward
Playing the ball too far forward, off the front foot, means the club is already moving toward the left of target by the time it arrives, which encourages the out-to-in path.
Move the ball back very slightly, aiming for it to sit just inside your left heel rather than off the front toe. Lay a second alignment stick on the ground, perpendicular to your target line, at that exact spot, and set up to it before every range ball until the position stops feeling unfamiliar.
04
Clubface staying open through impact
Even with a good path, if your forearms and wrists don't rotate the toe of the club past the heel through the hitting area, the face arrives open.
Practice slow "bat swing" releases with just your arms, no ball, feeling the toe of the club rotate over as you swing through, then add it back into the full swing.
Recommended video
5 Easy ways to STOP your Golf Slice (FOREVER)
Rick Shiels Golf
How do you compare to the pros?
Fairways hit
A Slice is one of the most direct hits to this number, since the ball starts or curves outside the fairway instead of down the middle.
Sources: PGA Tour driving accuracy stats (season average, about 60 to 61%); Shot Scope and Break X Golf amateur data aggregates (about 42 to 48% depending on handicap band).
When to stop self-diagnosing
If you've genuinely worked through two or three of these causes over several range sessions and the miss keeps showing up, that's not a failure since it usually means the real cause is something you can't feel or see in your own swing. A single 30-minute lesson with a certified instructor, who can watch you hit balls, will find it faster than any website. Bring this page along and tell them what you've already ruled out; it'll save you both time.