GolfForever Review: Worth $199? 18 Workouts Later

I wanted to hate GolfForever.

It had everything I distrust in a golf product: the Instagram ads, the celebrity endorsement, the before-and-after photos that look like two different people. Scottie Scheffler is an investor. Justin Leonard hosts course management videos in the app. The company does over $100 million a year selling resistance bands with a golf label. Every instinct I have as someone who has bought and regretted a dozen training aids told me this was a $200 stretching routine with better marketing.

I was wrong. Mostly.

I bought the GolfForever Swing Trainer three weeks ago. I have done 18 workouts. My back does not hurt after 18 holes anymore. My balance over the ball is noticeably better. And I hit three drives over 250 yards in my last two rounds, which for a guy who normally maxes out around 240 is either a statistical anomaly or an actual result. I think it is the latter.

What GolfForever Actually Is

GolfForever is two things: a set of physical equipment and a subscription app with 500-plus workout videos. The equipment is the GolfForever Swing Trainer, which costs $199.99. You get a 44.5-inch training bar, two resistance bands with nylon safety sleeves, two weighted ball attachments that screw onto the end of the bar, a door anchor, two carabiners, and a carrying bag. You also get a 30-day free trial to the app.

The app is where the program lives. After the trial, it costs $24.99 a month or $199 a year. That is the part that makes people angry, and I understand why. More on that in a minute.

You can also buy bundles. The Birdie Training System runs about $349 on sale and includes the equipment plus a one-year app membership. The Eagle System adds a wall anchor for about $404. The Albatross System throws in mini bands and a stability ball for about $454. But the entry point is $199.99 for the hardware. That is the number most people are googling.

The whole system was designed by Dr. Troy Van Biezen, a chiropractor who works with tour pros. The philosophy is simple: golfers lose distance and develop back pain because they have tight hips, weak cores, and lousy rotational mobility. Fix those things with golf-specific exercises. No argument from me on the premise.

How It Actually Works

You download the app, answer questions about your age, weight, fitness level, and injury history, then do a movement assessment. The app builds a personalized daily workout based on your results. Each session is 35 to 45 minutes: a 15-to-20-minute fundamentals video followed by a 20-to-25-minute rotational power video.

The exercises use the training bar with resistance bands anchored to a door. You push, pull, rotate, and hold positions that mimic golf movements. Lots of core work. Lots of shoulder mobility. Lots of swinging the weighted bar. None of it is revolutionary. A decent personal trainer would have you do the same things. The difference is that it is packaged as golf training, and that matters more than I want to admit.

The app tracks your Golf-Fit score. Eight points per workout, five bonus points for an extra session, goal of 70 per week. After each workout you rate the difficulty and the algorithm adjusts. By week three, my workouts were noticeably harder than week one.

I did the program four to five times per week. When a workout felt too easy, I clicked “too easy.” The next day was harder. The system works if you are honest with it.

What Changed

The biggest change was my back. I am 42 and I sit at a desk eight hours a day. By the back nine I used to feel a dull ache in my lower back that made me rush my swing. After three weeks of GolfForever, that ache is gone. I played 36 holes last Saturday and my back felt fine on hole 36. That alone is worth $200.

The second thing I noticed was balance. After about 10 workouts, I felt more stable over the ball. Less swaying. Less of that feeling where you are half a step off balance at the top and have to compensate on the way down. My contact has improved because my lower body is more stable. Better contact means more distance with the same swing speed.

What Did Not Change

My swing speed. I checked it before starting and I checked it after three weeks. Same number. 96 mph. No gain. I hit a few longer drives, but that was better contact from improved stability, not actual speed. Maybe it takes eight weeks. Maybe it takes six months. But if swing speed is your only metric, you will be disappointed in the short term.

The Price Problem

$199.99 for a resistance band and a plastic bar. Then $24.99 a month forever. I get why people see this and get angry. But one chiropractor visit is about $60 with insurance. One physical therapy co-pay is $40. If GolfForever prevents three of those visits in a year, it has paid for itself. If you are 55 and your back hurts after nine holes, $200 plus $25 a month is a rounding error compared to the medical bills you are heading toward.

The subscription is the harder sell. You can buy a $20 resistance band set on Amazon and watch free yoga videos on YouTube. That works if you have the discipline to build your own program and stick to it. I do not. I bought bands in 2021 and used them twice. The GolfForever app removes every barrier between me and a workout. I open it, it tells me what to do, I do it, I close it. That convenience is worth $25 a month to me. It will not be worth it to everyone.

GolfForever vs. the Alternatives

GravityFit TPro costs $150 to $200. It is a posture trainer with a resistance cord system. No app. No workout library. No personalized daily program. If you are a low handicapper with a coach who prescribes specific drills, GravityFit wins on posture mechanics. But for the rest of us, GolfForever wins on ease of use.

The Orange Whip costs $119 to $169 and is a great warm-up tool. It is not a fitness program. If your only goal is warming up before a round, buy the Orange Whip. If you want to fix the flexibility and strength issues that make you need a warm-up in the first place, GolfForever addresses the root cause.

Generic resistance bands cost $15 to $40. Pair them with YouTube and you have a free fitness program. This works if you have the knowledge to build a golf-specific routine and the discipline to do it without an app reminding you. I know exactly one person who fits that description, and he is a physical therapist.

Who It Is For

If you are 55 or older and have noticed your flexibility and distance declining every year, buy GolfForever. The injury prevention alone will pay for the cost 10 times over.

If you are a desk worker between 30 and 50 who sits all day and feels stiff on the first tee, buy it. You need the mobility work and you need the motivation that a golf-specific program provides.

If you are a 25-year-old who can touch your toes and already works out three times a week, skip it. Buy a $20 resistance band and add rotational exercises to your existing routine.

If you are a single-digit handicap with a dedicated strength coach, skip it. Your coach already has you doing everything GolfForever does.

The Verdict

GolfForever is a genuinely good product wrapped in genuinely annoying marketing. The ads overpromise. The Scottie Scheffler association implies you will gain tour-level speed, which you will not. The subscription model feels aggressive.

But the program itself works. My back feels better. My balance is improved. I am exercising four days a week for the first time in years because the app makes it easy and the golf angle keeps me motivated.

At $199.99 for the equipment, about the price of three rounds at a decent course, plus $25 a month you can cancel anytime, it is a fair deal. If you buy the Birdie bundle at $349, you get the equipment and a full year of the app for about $29 a month. That is cheaper than one lesson per month, and it addresses the physical limitations that make those lessons not stick.

I wanted to hate GolfForever. I ended up keeping it. My back and my ball striking are better for it. If your back hurts after 18 holes and you have not exercised in years, this is the best $200 you will spend on golf this year.\n

Where to Buy

• GolfForever Swing Trainer — Check price at Amazon

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