Improve Golf Swing Follow Through

The moment of impact was perfection. Your body was properly aligned and you struck the ball while aligned in the perfect impact position. You just completed your perfect swing. Right? Not so fast. After the impact comes the golf swing follow through. Failure to follow through properly will result in a shot that loses speed and accuracy. It has little chance of finding its target. Worse, you risk injuries to your arms and torso which are still completing their forward motion after unwinding. This article looks at the proper way to finish a golf swing.

How to Follow Through in Golf

Much of follow through is about restoring a balanced position to your body as it completes the golf swing. It unleashes the full discharge of power and energy into the ball as you send it sailing triumphantly toward its destination. Always visualize your swing, including a smooth, powerful follow through to your swing after the ball lifts into the air.

What are the clues to a good golf swing follow through?

In general, check these three positions:

Did your hands finish in a high position?
Did your right shoulder (left for lefties) finish parallel to the target?
Is your head down and behind the swing?

If they are correct, chances are that your golf swing finished on target.

Make sure that the follow through aims the club head toward the hole and that you finish with your hands high. This indicates that they were straight as they moved through the impact position and then swung out toward the target. If they finish below and beyond the left shoulder, your swing probably was too flat or your wrists rolled over excessively at impact.

At the same time, the right shoulder should stay down and lower than the left. This indicates that you have hit straight through the ball rather than pulling the club face across it.

Finally, keep your head down and behind the flow of the swing.

A proper follow through makes it almost impossible to pull the ball. Watch the video to learn a valuable golf follow through drill.

Golf Follow Through – Finishing the Shot

Improving your swing requires developing a repeatable pattern of proper, connected movements. Follow through is the last stage of a good swing; it is the completion of your momentum through the ball. The goal is making a good swing rather than just hitting the ball; a good swing that contacts a ball in the proper position within its path will speed it toward its destination.

At the finish:

Your head and chest face the target.
The back heel is up with only the toes of your shoe connecting with the ground.
The right forearm (left for lefties) lies flush across your chest.
The right shoulder (left for lefties) has completed the circle begun during the downswing. It is parallel to the left shoulder and facing the target.
The arms and club are folded behind your head.
Your weight has shifted almost entirely to the front foot.
Your back is straight and upright.
Your entire body is balanced.

It is a total release of the body and golf swing.

The Golf Swing Follow Through Position

This great infographic by Lumen Interactive demonstrates the golf swing from beginning to end, including the positioning for golf swing follow through and finish.