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The effective cathode flow field design can realize the internal water balance and higher current density output of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC). Therefore, a segmented water management flow field is proposed in this study, i.e. a half separated-half coupled cathode (HSHC) flow field which has two inlets but just one outlet. A 3D numerical PEMFC model is applied to study the effect of the HSHC flow field on PEMFC performance and its operating strategy in terms of operating conditions. The study results are shown as follows: Compared with the two conventional cathode flow fields, the HSHC flow field improves the water balance along the channel and increases the current density by 17.1% at a cathode stoichiometry of 3.25. It is because the HSHC flow field can overcome the water loss at channels upstream and the water accumulation at channels downstream. The draw water phenomenon (DWP) in the HSHC flow field is observed, which is mainly affected by the water vapor pressure of channel. Based on the DWP, cooling channel inlet flow rates can be used to adjust water balance, but severe water loss should be avoided. In addition, the inlet temperature control in HSHC flow field should be that cell temperature>cathode channel inlet temperature>cooling channel inlet temperature> ambient temperatures for better water balance.