How to Play a Cut in Golf

Learning to hit a controlled cut shot is one of the most powerful tools you can add to your golf game. It’s what separates shot-makers from golfers who just hit the ball straight, giving you the ability to shape the ball around obstacles, attack tucked pins, and hold firm greens. This guide will walk you through the entire process, breaking it down into a simple setup adjustment and one core swing thought.

What is a Golf Cut and Why Should You Master It?

For a right-handed golfer, a cut shot is a ball flight that gently moves from left to right in the air. For lefties, it’s the opposite - a soft right-to-left motion. It’s often confused with a slice, but there’s a massive difference. A slice is an uncontrolled, high-spinning, power-robbing mistake. A cut is a controlled, precise shot with a slightly higher trajectory and a softer landing, making it an invaluable part of a smart golfer’s arsenal.

So, when would you use it? Think about these common on-course situations:

• Attacking Tucked Pins: The pin is located on the right side of the green, with a bunker guarding the front-right. Instead of aiming left and hoping for a straight shot, a cut allows you to start the ball left of the pin and fade it back toward the flag, using the green’s depth as a safety net.
• Navigating a Dogleg Right: Standing on the tee of a hole that turns sharply to the right, a driver that cuts will follow the shape of the fairway, putting you in a perfect position for your approach shot.
• Holding Firm Greens: Because a cut has a slightly steeper angle of descent and more backspin, it tends to stop much quicker on the green than a draw or a straight shot. This is a game-changer on fast, firm summer greens.

Far from being just a "get out of trouble" shot, adding the cut to your game is about creating better angles, playing smarter, and ultimately, shooting lower scores. The best part? It's not as complex as you might think.

The Setup: Building the Cut Before You Swing

The single most important part of hitting a repeatable cut is getting the setup right. If you do the work at address, the swing itself becomes surprisingly simple. Trying to manipulate the club during the swing to produce a cut is a recipe for disaster. Let’s build the shot from the ground up.

Step 1: Open Your Stance (Aim Left)

This is the foundation of the cut shot. Before you do anything else, you a need to adjust your alignment. Instead of aiming your body directly at the target, you're going to aim it left of the target (for a right-handed player).

Imagine two sets of train tracks. One set goes directly from your ball to the flagstick - this is your target line. The second set goes from your golf ball toward the left rough - this will be your body line. To hit a cut, you need to set your feet, hips, and shoulders parallel to this second set of tracks, pointing comfortably left of where you want the ball to end up.

How far left? For a gentle cut with a mid-iron, aiming your body about 10-15 yards left of the target is a great starting point. The more you open your stance, the more the ball will tend to curve.

Step 2: Aim the Clubface at Your Final Target

This step is where most golfers get it wrong, and it’s the primary difference between a controlled cut and a nasty slice. While your body is aimed left, your clubface must be aimed directly where you want the ball to finish - right at the flagstick.

Think about it like this: your open stance dictates the path your club will swing on (out-to-in), while the clubface determines the ball's final destination. The difference between your swing path (left) and your clubface angle (at the target) is what generates the left-to-right spin.

A simple routine to check this is:

1. First, stand behind the ball and pick your target.
2. Set the clubface down behind the ball, making sure that a leading edge is aimed squarely at that target.
3. Only then, set your feet, hips, and shoulders open to your body line (left of the target).

Your body will feel like it’s aimed in one direction while your club is pointing in another. This is the correct feeling!

Step 3: Other Minor Adjustments

• Ball Position: Maintain your normal ball position, or move it maybe half a ball's width forward in your stance. This gives the clubhead a little more time on its path across the ball, helping promote the out-to-in move. For a 7-iron, this would mean the ball is just slightly forward of the center of your chest.
• Grip Pressure: Keep your grip pressure neutral and light. A "death grip" will restrict your wrists and inhibit a smooth, fluid swing. A solid, neutral grip - where you can see two knuckles on your top hand - is perfect.

The Swing: One simple thought

With the setup dialed in, the swing itself requires just one simple thought: swing the club along your body line.

Forget the target. Forget where the flag is. Your only job is to make a normal, smooth golf swing along the path your feet and shoulders have already established. You pre-loaded the cut into your setup, now you just need to trust it.

The "Out-to-In" Feeling

Because your body is aimed left, a natural swing along that line will automatically create an "out-to-in" path relative to the target line. The clubhead will approach the ball from slightly outside the target line and exit to the inside. You don’t need to force this. Again, it’s a natural result of your open stance.

A good feeling to have during the downswing is to think about pulling the club handle towards your left hip or left pocket. This action encourages the body to clear out of the way and keeps the club moving across the ball on the correct path.

The finish will also feel slightly different. Instead of a full, wrapped-around finish, you might feel like your hands finish a little lower and more to the left - almost like you're "holding off" the a full release a little. This helps to keep the clubface from flipping closed too early, preserving that open face angle which produces the cut spin.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Learning any new shot comes with a few misses along the way. Here are the two most common problems when trying to hit a cut and how to diagnose them.

Problem 1: The Pull (The Ball Starts Left and Stays Left)

If your shots are starting left and not curving back, it means your clubface waswas not open to your a swing path at impact. Most often, this is because your instincts took over and you tried to "steer" the ball back toward the target by flipping your hands at the ball.

The Fix: Trust your setup! Go back to the setup essentials. Make sure the clubface is genuinely aimed at the final target. On the range, practice swinging at just 70% speed, a really focusing on feeling the club move along your foot line and keeping your hands passive through impact. Let the club do the work.

Problem 2: The Slice (The Ball Curves Way Too Much)

If you're hitting a huge, weak slice, your clubface is severely open to your swing path. This almost always happens when golfers set their stance open (left) and also aim their clubface open (right of the target) at address. The combination creates a massive curve.

The Fix: Be disciplined with your clubface alignment. Your body goes left, but the clubface must be a laser a aimed at your flagstick. Use an alignment stick on the ground pointing at your target. Address the ball and make sure your clubface is perfectly square to that stick before taking your open stance.

Final Thoughts

Mastering the cut is a matter of understanding and trusting a proper setup. By creating an open stance with your body while keeping your clubface aimed at the target, you build all the necessary ingredients for the shot before you even start your backswing. From there, it's just a matter of making a confident swing along your body line.

For those moments on the course when you're unsure if a cut is the right play to get to a tucked pin or navigate a tricky dogleg, we built Caddie AI to give you a clear, confident strategy in seconds. You can describe the hole layout and get an expert course management plan, or even snap a photo of a tricky lie in the rough to see which shot provides the best chance for success. Our goal is to take the guesswork out of these decisions, so you can commit fully to every swing.