Slice problem

[RobC]

Among other problems, I need a simple drill to help cure/manage a slice off the tee with a driver. I thought I had it cured last year but it's back. I read and noted Johny Miller's article in Golf Digest this past winter and that doesn't seem to help. I'm a lefty. Anyone with a swing thought to help me here, please let me know. Should I exaggerate an inside take away, manage one arm over the other, give up golf, or what?

[stanley]

RobC,

By no means am I an expert, but I do know that often times slicing problems are due to grip problems. Perhaps your grip isn't strong enough. (by "strong" I mean showing a couple of knuckles, of course)

[Curious George]

I had a slice problem a long time ago, and yes it was grip related. Learn what a "strong" grip and a "weak" grip is (any golf book).

After strengthening your grip, if you still slice, but also occasionally pull, then its an over the top problem. Examine your alignment, body turn, position of your arms during takeaway, etc.

My best advice have a professional look at your swing. It will save you hours of frustration from poor habits, and years of learning how to remove the poor habits.

[larry]

Something that I have been trying this year and seems to be helping is when I am hitting my driver on the range, I hold the club so that the little and even the ring finger of my left hand (in your case your right) are actually off the end of the grip. I have a habit of not getting the club face closed at impact and blocking it to the right. This has helped me to get the feeling of my hands releasing through the ball better. I have even resorted to using it during a round when I star to slice.

[powerlefty]

I'm a lefty also. 6 or 7 years ago I had a slice, went to a pro and got cured...

My problem was I was coming way inside on the back swing, opening up the face and then going outside in on the downswing. The solution for me was to concentrate on taking the club back along the extended target line which prevented me from opening up the clubface and then looping on the downswing. It has resulted in an inside backswing and an inside downswing which produces a draw, or when it gets away from me a hook. But it is much easier to fix the hook than the slice...

Bottm line, spend 450 and take a lesson, it's well worth it.

[RobC]

Thanks. Your solution is exactly as Johny Miller recommends. That bit about inside path producing an undesired, open clubface helps. I will get a lesson but in the meantime have something to work with.

[ShaneOttawa]

I suggest people should be careful about taking slice-cure advice from a magazine or helpful onlookers. There are loads of different flaws that can generate a slice, and the cure has to be tailored to the specific problem. Applying the wrong "cure" can just make things worse.

Now I'll partially ignore my own advice and say that if you're slicing, try slowing things down. If that doesn't work, then go see your teacher. And if you don't have one, fine one.

[Curious George]

Agree with Shane: there are 20 things that can cause a problem, and a fix may actually be a FLAW balancing out a different FLAW. Spend 5 years accepting these flaws, and then one day, your game is gone, you don't know why, and golf is no longer fun.

See a pro, not a book, or on line advice.

[Darcy Tucker]

Here might be some helpful advice. Get a stronger grip... Also if it's an over the top problem just try to make your swing flatter and see what happens. But do try to get real advice because you don't want to practice bad habits over and over again.

[golfdoc]

If you are having trouble eliminating your slice look at swing path. An outside in path results in a slice or a straight pull.

Outside in means you are chopping accross the ball putting a side or slice spin on the ball.

It is not an easy thing to eliminate. Changing your swing path is a drastic move but obviously well worth it.