The golf swing has been dissected, broken down, over-analyzed, nit-picked and just plain destroyed. With so many ‘experts’ offering their advice, it is a challenge for many amateurs to sift through the minutia. I know I am challenged regularly to ensure I do not follow ‘The White Rabbit’ down the rabbit hole in to the a Wonderland of craziness. Understanding that the golf swing is very complex, I find that the follow through is often overlook as a core fundamental movement when swinging any golf club.

I am not an expert by any means, but I do know when I complete my swing well because of how my follow through feels. For those wondering, I believe the follow through starts at impact and continues until my club head hits my lead knee. After that, the club continues up to the finish position in order for me to maintain my balance.

After much research, I found this video by Chris Ryan that explains the four (mainly three) components of a solid follow thorough. Here is a video from Chris:

When playing, I do not think of the four components of a golf swing. I try to focus on a fluid movement from contact to when my club rests on my left shoulder. To do this, I do the following three things that allow me to create the perfect follow through for my game.

First, immediately after contact I count to the one before lifting my eyes and eventually head to watch the ball flight. This forces me to complete my rotation on my swing plane before any other movement.

Second, I push or release (you pick the word that works for you) my club head along my chosen aim line. My club head will follow this direction until it hits the height of my left knee, then it will start to rotate around so I can finish with my club up high or on my left shoulder.

Third, I ensure my belly button is pointing to my target. This is an important aspect the follow through often forgotten. For me, pointing my belly button at my target allows my weight to shift to my front (left) leg. It allows me to say balanced throughout the finish.

The three aspects I described work for my swing. I have focused on developing my count, club head position, and belly button point over the years because it helps me maintain my full swing tempo. These concepts are not unique to my swing, but how I rationalize them might be. You will have to develop your own swing thoughts to produce a solid, repeatable follow through.

On side not, the above description of a follow through is only for full swings. In my case, it is 100 yards and farther from the green. The closer we are to the green, the more modifications are required to the follow through complete your golf shot. For instance, I do not point my belly button at my target on a 10 yard chip. I mainly use my arms and as such if I rotate to point my belly button, I pull the ball left. So, this is something you will have to work on as you develop your own follow through.

The follow through is an often overlooked, but important, part of any golf swing. Developing a repeatable follow through that allows you to effectively move the club head through contact on your intended line is an extremely valuable skill. It does take time to develop a proper follow through for your swing, however I think you will be happy you spend the time practicing when you see better results on your scorecard.

I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!