A system and method are disclosed to generate and terminate clock shift modes during initialization of a synchronous circuit (e.g., a delay-locked loop or DLL). Upon initialization, the DLL is entered into a ForceSL (Force Shift Left) mode and an Onlx mode (i.e., left shifting on each clock cycle). The feedback clock that tracks the phase of the reference clock (derived from the system clock) is initially delayed in a coarse phase detector prior to applying it to the coarse phase detection window. Two delayed versions of the feedback clock are sampled by the reference clock to generate a pair of phase information signals, which are then used to establish an advanced phase equal (APHEQ) signal. The APHEQ signal is used to terminate the ForceSL and Onlx modes, thereby preventing wrong ForceSL exit due to clock jitter or feedback path overshooting during Onlx exit, and resulting in faster DLL locking time.