80% of golfers SLICE the ball...
The reasons may surprise you! There are thirty million golfers in the United States and twenty-four million of them slice the ball; that is 80% or eight out of ten.

When your group goes off the tee next weekend, three out of four balls will probably be found in the right rough.

Perhaps you haven't considered why this ball flight phenomenon is in epidemic proportions. maybe it is the information being presented -- keep your head down, keep your left arm straight, drive those legs, tuck the right elbow in, have a firm left side, hit down on the ball.

If your efforts are one of these techniques, you are probably in that 80% category of golfers searching for the correct solution to eliminate this frustrating experience.

The following does not cover all situations but please allow me to address several typical problems and provide you with common sense solutions.

Clubhead moved straight back from the ball in the backswing.

With the grave fear of the slice, many golfers start the backswing outside the target line so that he/she can swing left in the forward swing.

The solution is to be aware of how the backswing starts. Make sure the club travels back on its circular path. To assist in this action, make sure you are tension free at address. And, be sure to swing the club away from the ball with your hands so the club goes over your back shoulder.

Left wrist too firm approaching the ball in the forward swing.

Quite often there is an emphasis on pulling the left arm and hand through impact in the forward swing. This rigidity (tension) impedes the clubface from squaring up at impact. Usually, the more right the ball is hit, the harder the effort which exaggerates the problem.

The solution to this situation is to have flexibility in your wrists. The flexibility is created when the arms and hands work freely. I often describe this as having very "oily" wrists. With this newfound freedom, the clubhead will travel faster in the forward swing and will have a sensation of being out of control. The controlling and pulling effort is what may emphasize the problem. Remember, it is critical to have flexibility and have the freedom of allowing the club to swing.

Driving the legs toward the target in the forward swing.

The effort to generate more speed in the swing is often interpreted by creating more leg drive. The action sends the body "very" forward of center and the resulting sensation, more often than not, is the club feels way behind when it arrives back at the ball. When this happens, the clubface will not arrive square at impact, unless you manipulate the clubface with your hands. so in effort to get more, you receive less.

The solution is to start the forward swing with your upper arms and the whole club toward the target. Allow the rest of the body to respond to the speed you have generated. The swing should be effortless power not powerful effort.

Restricting the backswing size with lack of body response. Many golf swings start with a deliberate address position and then, in effort to have a perfect backswing, become very deliberate in starting the club away from the ball. This situation generally restricts the fullness of the backswing and does not permit the body to be responsive to the weight and momentum of the club in the backswing. With tension, you lose the feel of the club and restrict the freedom of the body.

The solution is obvious; maintain flexibility at address and do not let tension creep in the backswing. Once again, the effort to be perfect restricts and impedes the club and the responsiveness of the body. An example of this is to try to walk making perfect steps.

There are "19" reasons why a golfer slices the ball...
Here are eight very common examples.

1. Turning the hips to try to get them out of the way.
2. Pushing off the right foot to start the forward swing.
3. Tilting the shoulders at the start of the forward swing.
4. Keeping the left arm straight.
5. Driving the legs toward the target.
6. Incorrect positioning of left and/or right hand.
7. Swing the club straight back in the backswing.
8. Swing the club back with a dominant left hand.