# Curing a slice with an adjustable driver



## paulb1312 (Dec 12, 2013)

Hi, I have recently bought an Nike covert driver with adjustable head. I am right handed with a bit of a slice, and thought that closing the club face would help to cure this. Someone has told me that this actually encourages a slice. Does anyone know if this is true.


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## golfdub (Dec 12, 2013)

Only way to cure a slice is fix your swing, I don't think any club would cure a slice.


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## HomerJSimpson (Dec 12, 2013)

Get a lesson. Cure the fault, not find an Elastoplast fix


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## Pin-seeker (Dec 12, 2013)

HomerJSimpson said:



			Get a lesson. Cure the fault, not find an Elastoplast fix
		
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If a pro was to adjust the setting for you would that be classed as custom fit?


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## paulb1312 (Dec 12, 2013)

Have tried for years to cure it and had lessons but unfortunately it still sneaks in. Just wanted to know if closing the face would make it worse.


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## Pippo_T (Dec 12, 2013)

Pin-seeker said:



			If a pro was to adjust the setting for you would that be classed as custom fit?
		
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Adjusting the club face on an adjustable driver can alter the characteristics of a relatively straight shot, but it won't cure a slice. 

If you struggle with a bad slice, closing the club face will most likely lead to big pulls left on the occasions you don't slice.


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## Pin-seeker (Dec 12, 2013)

Pippo_T said:



			Adjusting the club face on an adjustable driver can alter the characteristics of a relatively straight shot, but it won't cure a slice. 

If you struggle with a bad slice, closing the club face will most likely lead to big pulls left on the occasions you don't slice.
		
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I appreciate that,just makes me laugh how it's frowned upon when people try to correct a swing fault with different clubs/settings, but it's ok if it's with a pro trying different shafts & heads.


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## Brian_C (Dec 12, 2013)

I'm in the same boat as you and I went and got lessons. Had 3 lessons now and it's the best thing I've ever done (at least in terms of golf).  Everything pointed out to me my the Pro, once explained was plainly obvious and I thought hey, why didn't I notice that.


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## Foxholer (Dec 12, 2013)

paulb1312 said:



			Hi, I have recently bought an Nike covert driver with adjustable head. I am right handed with a bit of a slice, and thought that closing the club face would help to cure this. Someone has told me that this actually encourages a slice. Does anyone know if this is true.
		
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It might help slightly. Then again, it might indeed encourage a slice. 

A suggestion - as an experiment to try on the range. Try setting up/aiming/aligning to the right and try and still hit the ball 'straight down down the middle'.


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## JCW (Dec 12, 2013)

Clubs and adjustments wont help , Lessons are the only way , the pro will adjust your swing to get you to start hooking the ball , its to do with swing path and your hands releasing the club  in the swing , once they get you hooking they work on getting you to hit it straighter or with a draw , I started with a slice then a fade , now I play with a soft draw ..........Good luck as it takes time ..................EYG


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## paulb1312 (Dec 12, 2013)

If the only way to change the ball flight is with your swing can someone explain to me the point of adjustable heads and why Phil Mickleson took two drivers to the masters one for draw and one for fade.


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## Airlie_Andy (Dec 12, 2013)

paulb1312 said:



			If the only way to change the ball flight is with your swing can someone explain to me the point of adjustable heads and why Phil Mickleson took two drivers to the masters one for draw and one for fade.
		
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I'm sure a ball flight laws expert will be along shortly but the slice is caused by swinging out to in with an open club face (to the path of the swing). If you close the club face enough to match the path of the swing, and therefore stop the slice, the ball will just go straight left. An adjustable head is more for fine tuning then for fixing a swing fault.


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## mchacker (Dec 12, 2013)

Adjustable clubs are to fine tune an already good shape to make it very good. If at impact your face is 5Â° open and you close the face 2Â° the face will still be 3Â° open and you will still slice. Does the ball start at the target and slice, or start left of target and slice?


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## paulb1312 (Dec 12, 2013)

It starts straight and then goes off to the right.


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## the smiling assassin (Dec 12, 2013)

My slice with my driver has been cured thanks to my fitting. 913D2 10.5 A3 setting (off the top of my head +1.5loft, +1.5lie upright). Used to hit a very low shot which could end up a long way right. Now hit a towering ball with rarely more than a couple of yards dispersion off the starting line. Alignment is the only thing I now have to worry about.


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## JCW (Dec 12, 2013)

the smiling assassin said:



			My slice with my driver has been cured thanks to my fitting. 913D2 10.5 A3 setting (off the top of my head +1.5loft, +1.5lie upright). Used to hit a very low shot which could end up a long way right. Now hit a towering ball with rarely more than a couple of yards dispersion off the starting line. Alignment is the only thing I now have to worry about.
		
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I got one off them adjustable drivers , fitted for me and my swing hence never even touch the settings ..............EYG


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## mchacker (Dec 12, 2013)

paulb1312 said:



			It starts straight and then goes off to the right.
		
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So your path is probably quite straight but the face is open to the path, but to cause a slice it needs to be very open and the adjustability in a driver head isn't going to fully correct that.  My guess is that your grip is weak at address and you aren't getting onto your left side at impact, purely because those are things I did when I sliced, but I'm not a swing coach and I haven't seen you swing so can't be sure.


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## SocketRocket (Dec 13, 2013)

It is posible it could change your slice.  Slices/Fades are caused by the swingpath being left of the clubface direction at impact.   If you can adjust the face so it is nearer the clubface direction you will reduce the slice spin on the ball.  It depends on how the ball starts off and how much it bends in fight.


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## Sledgehammer (Dec 13, 2013)

There are a few different cause to a slice so this may or may not be your problem:

I had been struggling with a slice for months and just couldn't get the face square at impact. I knew I had to roll my wrists but I couldn't figure out how. This video was a bit of an epiphany for me. Been hitting straight and long ever since.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knCWX_Wsttk


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## ArnoldArmChewer (Dec 13, 2013)

golfdub said:



			Only way to cure a slice is fix your swing, I don't think any club would cure a slice.
		
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+1 to this,  adapt your style not your equipment


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## Wildrover (Dec 13, 2013)

To the OP. All this advice about sorting your swing is ok and is the way to go in the long term but doesn't help you or increase your enjoyment in the present. However in the short term closing the face a little might straighten it out to a certain extent, it won't cure it but it might help to minimise it. Not sure how the adjustability on the covert works but adding a little loft will also make it a bit more forgiving. My advice is to get down to the range and experiment a bit. That's the beauty of adjustable drivers you can experiment and if it doesn't work just put it back to the original settings.


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## Foxholer (Dec 13, 2013)

paulb1312 said:



			If the only way to change the ball flight is with your swing can someone explain to me the point of adjustable heads and why Phil Mickleson took two drivers to the masters one for draw and one for fade.
		
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There's a huge difference between 'Change the Flight' and 'Cure a Slice'

Mickelson did the former - without, really, needing to change his swing.


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## Region3 (Dec 13, 2013)

mchacker said:



*So your path is probably quite straight but the face is open to the path*, but to cause a slice it needs to be very open and the adjustability in a driver head isn't going to fully correct that.  My guess is that your grip is weak at address and you aren't getting onto your left side at impact, purely because those are things I did when I sliced, but I'm not a swing coach and I haven't seen you swing so can't be sure.
		
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I think if the OP's shots are starting straight (ie on target) then veering off to the right then it's more than likely the problem is the other way round, eg face angle is good but the path is out-to-in.

If lessons are out of the question I'd start with the headcover drill.


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## Roops (Dec 13, 2013)

If you started to hit your 7 iron fat, would you take it home and cut two inches of the shaft, probably not. You would work on the swing fault. Same with the driver. For me the driver is all about good setup. I see so many players with the ball outside their left foot, hips pointing down the fairway, shoulders pointing left of hips etc etc, then they wonder why the ball goes in all directions. Get your feet, hips and shoulders all square to each other, and the ball inside the left heel. Club shaft then perpendicular to the ball, shoulders hips etc (it's all straight lines). You can set all this up at the range with a few clubs on the ground. If you set up the same way and have the same results then at least you can start to understand your swing path and club face position at impact. Lessons really are invaluable and a course of them are probably cheaper than an adjustable driver.


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## Dave B (Dec 13, 2013)

Roops

You've hit the nail on the head. Too many people over complicate driving and as you've said a good set up is essential otherwise you end up chasing the wind.

I used to have a quite a nasty slice when it crept into my swing and a lesson with my club pro sorted it out in 5 minutes. Over the last few years as my eyesight has deteriorated I have developed a parallax error. I thought I was set up  aiming directly at the target however when I was hitting my 7 iron it was 20-30ft right of target sometimes with a very slight fade. The pro told me to put a tee down 3ft in front of the ball and set up parallel to the line between the ball and tee. Every shot went dead straight.

The problem with self analysis is that we often don't know what we are doing so my advice would be to get a lesson first and then look at a driver second.

Altering the club face can reduce the effect as can more loft however rather than spending a fortune on an adjustable driver you'd be better of spending Â£100 on an end of range non adjustable model and spending the rest on lessons.


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## Beezerk (Dec 13, 2013)

Sledgehammer said:



			There are a few different cause to a slice so this may or may not be your problem:

I had been struggling with a slice for months and just couldn't get the face square at impact. I knew I had to roll my wrists but I couldn't figure out how. This video was a bit of an epiphany for me. Been hitting straight and long ever since.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knCWX_Wsttk

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That's a cracking clip mate, really explains it well and a great drill which on the face of it look simple yet effective.


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## mchacker (Dec 13, 2013)

Region3 said:



			I think if the OP's shots are starting straight (ie on target) then veering off to the right then it's more than likely the problem is the other way round, eg face angle is good but the path is out-to-in.

If lessons are out of the question I'd start with the headcover drill.
		
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Yep, my bad, wasn't concentrating while posting


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## Odvan (Dec 14, 2013)

Not one person mentioned the grip in all this!

I'll never claim to be a golf techie guru or indeed knowledgable but realising myself what was happening with my grip during the swing, I made a few tweaks/changes and its helped me loads!


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## London mike 61 (Dec 14, 2013)

I have only seen people who try to ' hit' the ball slice it , rarely have I seen anyone who is a ' swinger' slice the ball , in fact they usually hook or amazingly straight. This is always assuming that the grip is spot on and not contorted in any way.


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## SocketRocket (Dec 14, 2013)

paulb1312 said:



			It starts straight and then goes off to the right.
		
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Your clubface will be square then.  You will be swinging across the ball from outside to in, this creates the slice spin.

You need to keep the clubhead behind your hands as you come down from the top so the club approaches the ball from the inside to fix it.  As a band aid in the meantime you could close the clubface just a little at address by turning the club to the left and re- gripping.   This should create more of a fade than a slice.


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