Want to Cure Your Slice? Don’t Just Apply a Golf Band-Aid, Change Your Swing Path

Are you among the majority of golfers who struggle with slicing? Don’t just adjust your aim to play your slice, eliminate it.

There are numerous fixes we could explore, but we will focus on the Back-Foot-Back Drill because it is highly effective. If this drill straightens your shot, you won’t have to search any further or purchase new equipment. Just shoot straighter and score lower!

Here’s what you do: Take a 7-iron and address the ball with a narrower-than-usual stance. Take your back foot and shift it directly backward so that it is 12 inches behind your front foot. You may feel awkward at first, but take a normal swing while focusing on an inside-to-outside swing path. Make sure you release your arms through impact to promote a squaring of the clubface.

There are several potential reasons for slicing the ball; poor grip, improper alignment, wrong shaft flex, or outside-to-inside swing path. The Back-Foot-Back Drill makes it virtually impossible to cut across the ball from the outside. It is an exaggerated position that lets you feel how an inside-to-outside swing path feels. If you perform this drill regularly, you can ingrain the inside-to-outside path that eliminates slicing and enables you to hit straight shots or even draw the ball if desired. Good luck!

Putting Tip: Think Distance and Speed Control on Longer Putts

Let’s simplify putting into three basic elements; line,speed, and equipment (Let's leave putters out of the equation for now, and focus on line and speed). Golfers tend to concentrate on line more than distance, especially on breaking putts. But, does it make sense to practice that way? Read on and consider a different way of prioritizing your focus.

Did you know that professional golfers make no more than 50% of their 6 footers? If it seems like they make a lot more than that, it’s probably because the golfers we watch on TV are generally the ones on or near the leader board and are therefore the players who are hot that week. If you average in the entire field, you would see about half of their 6 foot putts missed. So, if you are practicing longer putts, do so with the intention of improving your distance control, not just making them. If you are expecting to roll in a high percentage of 16 footers, you will only dent your confidence. That doesn’t help anything. Instead, try the putting drill below and build your technique, touch and confidence.

Here's what to do; place 4 tees in the green in increments of 8 feet. Putt from one location to each of the tees. Putt one ball to 8’, the next to 16’, another to 24’, and finally one to 32’. Putt one ball only to each tee. This duplicates real golf more effectively; we rarely get two putts of the same distance one after the other. Next, repeat the sequence in reverse; putt to 24’, 16’, then to 8’. Or, mix it up. Just make sure each putt is a different distance. You will soon get a feel for the take-away distance required for each putt length.

The longer the putt, the more you should focus on distance control. Let’s face it, the odds of making a 40+ foot putt are slim. Long putts that are a fraction of a degree off-line will not threaten the hole. So, even though direction is important, there is more potential variance in distance. How many times have you putted too long or too short by 6 feet or more? That’s the stuff 3-putts are made of. Work on distance/speed control and significantly reduce those round-ruiners!

Golf Fuel

As golfers, we’re always trying to improve and find an edge; something that leads to shaving a stroke here or a stroke there. So we work on our various tools of the trade; our swing technique, our course management strategy, our flexibility, and of course, our golf equipment. But, how about nutrition? Since golf is not a running sport, it’s easy to underestimate the demands it places on your body.


Golf takes a lot longer to play than just about any other sport. Even marathon runners are on their third celebratory beer by the time we’re done with 18 holes.

Golf has not only the physical demands of walking and swinging, but also thinking. Even though the brain weighs roughly 2% of your body weight, it uses about 25% of the body’s glycogen supply. So without fuel, you are weaker, less coordinated, and you don’t think as well as the game requires.

Ever notice the frequency of late round blow-up holes? Now, to be fair, those could come from the notorious thought process of, “All I have to do is par the last three holes and I’ll have my lowest round ever!” But chances are your late round blow-up has a lot to do with your muscles and brain running on empty.

The goal is to keep your blood sugar level as steady as possible. You’ll want to eat quality food/fuel every 2 hours. So, you’ll want to eat at the beginning of each round; either on the way to the course or no later than the second or third hole. Make a commitment to eat something of substance every 4 to 5 holes after that.

What to eat? Think quality not quantity. What you need to do is power-snack. Heavy, fatty, or extremely sugary snacks are not good. Stick with fruit, nuts (almonds are my favorite), nutrition bars and lots of water; dehydration is also a very important concern, especially in warmer weather. Drink at least four 16 oz. bottles of water per round. More if you’re sweating.

Now you’re eating like golf is the physically demanding sport that it is.

Last word: Don’t forget that golf is a mental game to a very high degree. So keep your brain fueled with good nutrition and don’t ever, EVER think “All I have to do on these last three holes is…”