The follow through is where your golf swing ends—but it’s also a window into everything that happened before. A balanced, complete finish tells the story of a good swing. An awkward, off-balance follow through reveals problems that started at setup.

Many golfers ignore the follow through, treating it as something that “just happens” after impact. But working on your finish position can actually improve your entire swing. Here’s how to master this crucial final phase.

Why the Follow Through Matters

The ball is already gone by the time you reach your finish position. So why does the follow through matter?

It reveals swing flaws. If you can’t hold your finish in balance, something went wrong earlier in the swing—probably a balance issue at setup, a rushed transition, or poor weight transfer.

It promotes full commitment. When you focus on completing your swing to a full finish, you’re less likely to decelerate through impact or “quit” on the shot.

It ensures full rotation. A proper follow through requires your body to fully release toward the target. Without this commitment, you’ll block shots right or flip your hands to compensate.

It builds consistency. Golfers who finish in the same position every time produce more repeatable results than those with inconsistent finishes.

The 5 Checkpoints of a Proper Follow Through

1. Belt Buckle to Target

At the finish, your belt buckle should face the target (or slightly left of it for right-handed players). This confirms your hips fully cleared through impact.

Common mistake: Hips stopping short, belt buckle facing right of target. This usually means you blocked the shot or had to flip your hands to square the face.

2. Chest Facing Target

Your chest should face the target or slightly left at finish. This shows your upper body rotated fully through the shot.

Common mistake: Chest facing right of target indicates restricted upper body rotation, often causing pushes or weak fades.

3. Weight on Front Foot

About 90-95% of your weight should be on your front foot at finish. Your back foot should be up on its toe with minimal pressure.

Common mistake: Weight staying back or falling backward. This costs power and often causes fat shots or topped drives.

4. Back Foot on Toe

Your trail foot (right foot for righties) should be up on the toe, with the sole of the shoe facing directly behind you. Some call this the “shoelaces to the sky” position.

Common mistake: Back foot flat or only partially lifted. This indicates incomplete weight transfer.

5. Balanced Finish You Can Hold

The ultimate test: can you hold your finish position until the ball lands? If you’re falling forward, backward, or catching yourself, your swing has balance issues.

The standard: You should be able to pose in your finish position for a photo—stable, relaxed, watching your ball fly.

Club Position at Finish

Your club shaft should finish across or behind your head, roughly at ear level. Your hands should be high, around shoulder height or above.

Full release indicators:

  • Both arms extended and relaxed (not tense)
  • Club shaft pointing down your target line or slightly left
  • Grip pressure light—you should be “finished,” not fighting the club

Signs of incomplete release:

  • Club shaft pointing right at finish
  • Arms bent or hands low
  • Grip still tight at end of swing

The Balance Test

Here’s a simple way to evaluate your follow through:

  1. Hit a shot with your normal swing
  2. Hold your finish position
  3. Count to three slowly
  4. Check: Are you stable? Falling? Catching yourself?

If you can’t hold your finish for a three-count, work backward to find the balance issue. Usually it’s:

  • Too much tension at setup
  • Overswinging (too long of a backswing)
  • Rushed transition (starting down before backswing completes)
  • Early extension (standing up through impact)

5 Drills to Improve Your Follow Through

1. Feet Together Drill

Hit balls with your feet just a few inches apart. This forces you to stay balanced throughout the swing—any balance issue will cause you to stumble.

How it helps: You can’t muscle the ball with your feet together. This drill promotes smooth tempo and proper sequence, resulting in a balanced finish.

2. Pose for the Camera

After every practice shot, hold your finish until the ball lands. Pretend someone is taking a photo—you want to look good and be perfectly balanced.

How it helps: Creates awareness of your finish position and builds the habit of completing your swing fully.

3. Impact-Forward Only Drill

Skip the backswing entirely. Start with the club at waist height on your trail side and swing through to a full finish.

How it helps: Isolates the follow through so you can feel proper weight shift, hip clearing, and arm extension without the complexity of the full swing.

4. Knees Touch Drill

Focus on your knees touching (or nearly touching) at finish. This ensures your hips have fully rotated and your weight has transferred forward.

How it helps: Many golfers stop their hip rotation early. Thinking about knees together promotes full release.

5. Right Arm Only Drill (for righties)

Make slow swings with only your trail arm on the club. This teaches proper club release and arm extension through the ball.

How it helps: Prevents the common flaw of “chicken wing” where the lead arm breaks down through impact.

Follow Through Fixes for Common Problems

Falling Backward

The issue: Weight stays on back foot, often causing thin shots or topped drives.

The fix: Feel like you’re “posting” on your front leg. Think of your lead leg as a post you rotate around—stable and firm.

Falling Forward

The issue: Lunging at the ball, usually from an overly aggressive transition.

The fix: Slow down your transition and feel the club “fall” into the downswing. Start with 50% effort swings focusing on balance.

Spinning Out

The issue: Hips slide rather than rotate, causing inconsistent contact and directional issues.

The fix: Feel your lead hip rotating back and around, not sliding toward the target. Think “turn,” not “slide.”

Abbreviated Finish (decel through impact)

The issue: Swing stops short, hands and club don’t reach full finish position.

The fix: Think “swing to the target, not at the ball.” Make practice swings that reach a full finish, then replicate that motion with a ball.

How to Use Video Analysis

Your follow through is one of the easiest things to check on video:

  1. Record yourself from down the line (behind)
  2. Pause at your finish position
  3. Check: Belt buckle to target? Chest facing target? Back foot on toe? Balanced?

You can see a lot about your swing by looking only at your finish. A balanced, posed finish usually means everything that came before was solid.

Record your swing with your phone and check your follow through position. Swing Analyzer lets you freeze frames at any point in your swing, making it easy to evaluate your finish.

The Finish as a Swing Thought

Sometimes the best way to improve your swing is to focus only on the destination. Instead of thinking about backswing positions or impact mechanics, simply picture a perfect finish and let your body figure out how to get there.

Try this: Before each shot, take a practice swing to a perfect finish—balanced, belt buckle to target, back foot on toe. Then hit the shot trying to match that exact finish.

You might be surprised how many swing problems fix themselves when you commit to a complete, balanced finish.

Connecting the Full Swing Sequence

The follow through is the final piece of the full swing sequence:

  1. Setup - Foundation for everything
  2. Takeaway - Starting the swing correctly
  3. Backswing - Coiling for power
  4. Transition - The change of direction
  5. Downswing - Unwinding in sequence
  6. Impact - The moment of truth
  7. Release - Extending through the ball
  8. Follow Through - Completing the motion

Each phase flows into the next. A good follow through is the natural result of everything that came before—but it’s also a checkpoint that confirms you did the earlier phases correctly.

Watch: The Finish Position Test

The Bottom Line

Your follow through reveals the truth about your swing. A balanced, complete finish position indicates proper weight transfer, full rotation, and good tempo. An awkward finish reveals problems that need attention.

The good news: working on your finish position often improves the entire swing. When you commit to a complete, balanced follow through, you naturally swing with better tempo, fuller rotation, and more confidence.

Your action item: On your next practice session, make every shot a pose for the camera. Hold each finish until the ball lands. Note which swings produce balanced finishes and which ones don’t—then replicate the ones that do.