How to Brace for a Stronger Follow Through in Golf

This drill teaches you how to brace your body through the follow-through so your arms can extend without your posture and balance collapsing. Many golfers hear the phrase “firm left side” but never get a clear picture of what that should feel like. In reality, you are not trying to lock yourself up. You are learning how your body supports the outward force of the club as it releases. When you do that well, you can improve low point control, strike the ball more solidly, and avoid the breakdowns that lead to a chicken wing or a weak, unstable finish.

How the Drill Works

As the club swings through impact and into the follow-through, its momentum wants to pull your arms outward. That force is significant, especially at speed. If your body does not support that pull, you will usually do one of two things: either bend your arms to absorb the force, or lose your structure and get dragged out of balance. Neither option is ideal.

The goal of this drill is to teach the correct relationship between the arms and body in the release. Your arms extend from the weight and momentum of the club, while your body braces against that pull by working into the ground and stabilizing the lead side. This is the push-pull relationship Tyler often describes: the club pulls outward, and your body provides the support.

To train that feeling, you place the club in a very closed position and use a chair as resistance. As you move into the follow-through, the club will meet the chair and create a pulling sensation back into your body. Your job is to stay organized, brace with your lower body, and let the arms remain extended rather than folding in.

This gives you a much clearer feel for what a strong follow-through really is. It is not about forcing a pose. It is about learning how the body swings the arm and supports the club through release.

Step-by-Step

Set up near a chair. Stand in a safe area with enough room to make a slow practice motion. Hold the club normally, and position yourself so that when you swing into the follow-through with the face very closed, the club would run into or “hook” the chair.
Move into a follow-through position. Start by rehearsing the release and finish area rather than making a full swing. Let the club move out in front of you as your arms extend.
Use the chair as resistance. As the club reaches the chair, it will create resistance and want to pull you off balance. This simulates the outward force of the club during a real swing.
Brace with your lower body. Instead of letting your arms buckle or your body tip forward, feel your lead side stabilize and your lower body push into the ground. You are resisting the club’s pull with your body structure.
Keep the arms extended. Let the arms stay long through the release. Do not respond to the resistance by folding the lead arm or pulling the handle inward.
Repeat slowly. Perform several slow rehearsals, focusing on the blend of two motions happening together: the arms releasing outward and the body bracing against that outward pull.
Transfer the feel into a swing. After the rehearsal, make a slow or half-speed practice swing without the chair and try to recreate the same sensation. Then build toward hitting shots while keeping that same organized follow-through.

What You Should Feel

If you are doing this drill correctly, the sensation should be very specific. The club and arms feel as though they are being thrown outward, while your body feels like it is providing a stable base underneath that motion.

Key sensations

Pressure into the ground through the lead side as the club releases
Arms lengthening through the follow-through instead of collapsing
Your chest and torso continuing through, rather than stalling at impact
Balance and structure in the finish, even though the club is pulling outward

Checkpoints

Your lead arm stays more extended instead of folding into a chicken wing
Your body does not get yanked toward the ball or dragged out over your toes
The club exits with freedom, but your lower body still looks supportive and stable
Your finish looks athletic rather than forced or frozen

A good way to think about it is this: the club is not being held back by your hands. It is being supported by your body.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Locking the lead side too early. Bracing does not mean rigidly straightening the lead leg and stopping your motion. The body still needs to rotate and flow.
Bending the arms to manage the force. This is one of the biggest causes of a chicken wing and a weak release pattern.
Leaning your upper body backward. You want support from the ground up, not a reverse-tilt finish.
Trying to “hold” the club with the hands. The hands should not be the main source of resistance. Let the body organize the motion.
Going too fast too soon. This is a feel drill. Slow rehearsals are usually more useful than full-speed swings at the start.
Standing too far from the chair. If the club never meets resistance, you will miss the main purpose of the drill.

How This Fits Your Swing

This drill matters because the follow-through is not just what happens after impact. It reflects what your swing was doing through impact. If your body can brace correctly while the arms extend, you are much more likely to deliver the club with a better low point and a more reliable strike.

That is why this drill connects to solid contact so directly. When your body keeps moving and supporting the release, the bottom of the swing tends to occur after the golf ball instead of backing up too early. That helps with compression, angle of attack, and overall consistency.

It also fits the larger idea that the body swings the arm. In a good motion, the arms are not independently rescuing the swing at the last second. They are responding to the forces created by the pivot and the club’s momentum. Your job is to organize the body so those forces can work for you instead of against you.

If you struggle with a chicken wing, a collapsing lead arm, or a finish that feels weak and unbalanced, this drill gives you a practical way to train the missing piece. It teaches you how to let the club release fully while your body provides the support that makes that release powerful and repeatable.