What Causes A Slice?

A slice is one of the most annoying things in all of golf. We learn the grip, the swing, get the right clubs, pay all that money for the green fees and cart, got the shirt, the hat, and we get up to the tee and jack one into the woods. Frustrating, but fixing a slice is not really all that complicated. You must first understand how a slice is affected and what causes it.

The dimples on the golf ball causes the ball to react to the spin and it causes the air to push the ball in whatever direction the ball is spinning, just like a fan blade. The dimples act like the fan blades, or like cups (similar to when you cup your hands when you swim) and they are pushed along based on the overall rotation of the ball.

If your golf ball slices, then it must be spinning clockwise at an extremely fast rate. It does not always have to be spinning exactly parallel to the ground, the spin center of rotation might be off center, but this appears cloaked because of the lift forced by the club head. Nonetheless, if the overall or dominant push of the ball is a clockwise spinning rotation, then your ball will begin to push to the right. Have you ever noticed that the harder you seem to swing the more the ball slices? This is simply because of the rate of the rotation of the ball -- the faster that it spins, then the more it will 'cut' through the wind in the direction of that spin.

Okay, it is caused when the ball spins basically clockwise, so how do I fix a golf slice? The obvious answer is that the spin has to be eliminated. Not completely eliminated because many golfers use a small cut as part of their overall arsenal of shots. So, let's work on reducing the velocity of that spin down to a more useful rate. First step is to identify the cause of the spin.

In this website we will be examining your grip, your swing arc and your posture. All of these are the most basic causes and therefore can accept slight adjustments easily. Keep in mind that their are several possible reasons why you might be spinning the golf ball, and one particular answer is not always the one that will apply to or help you. The best advice for fixing a golf slice is often times the easiest, most basic adjustments. Normally, it is recommended that you attempt only one adjustment at a time, because if you attempt multiple changes then you will not be isolating the root cause of the problem and you will only be introducing more variables.