How You Respond to Pressure
Every shooter experiences moments of failure and pressure. However, successful shooters differentiate themselves by how they react to these situations. A common response to pressure is to speed up – in movement, conversation, and actions. This rush often leads to increased tension, faster hand movements,...
Why Are You Scrambling?
In our sport, lots of shooters impulsively close their gun and call “pull,” proceeding to hurriedly track the targets and trying to hastily correct their shot at the last moment. This often leads to confusion as to why there’s no improvement in their performance. We typically...
Refinement and Focus
Achieving mastery in clay or wingshooting is about more than just accumulating hours of practice or mastering the technicalities of the sport. It involves a deep understanding of one's own mental and emotional processes, as well as the discipline to refine and focus on the...
Analyzing a Master Class Scorecard
A thorough examination of a master class shooter's scorecard can uncover significant insights. Despite a high level of expertise, areas for improvement are often evident, such as unforced errors and inconsistencies across different pairs of shots. A detailed analysis can highlight the critical importance of maintaining...
Mechanical Fundamentals in Shooting
A key observation from years of coaching is the impact of cheek pressure on consistency and improvement in shooting. Excessive cheek pressure, often believed to provide a more aggressive approach, can actually hinder potential. This becomes more evident in older shooters, where balance and less body...
Understanding and Application of Knowledge
All skills start as mere knowledge. However, the crux of mastery lies in understanding when and how to apply this knowledge. Let’s apply this to skeet. Identifying and correcting specific issues, such as problems with High 2 or Low 5 shots, requires not only knowledge of...
Skill Development and Repetition
In the journey of mastering clay shooting, the mantra is clear: repetition breeds skill. Just like railroad tracks, which become polished and smooth with frequent use, shooting skills are honed through consistent practice. It's not just about firing rounds; it's about deliberate, structured repetition. This is how...
The Science of Skill: Building Blocks in Shooting and Life
Skill development is an intricate process rooted in biology and psychology, both in shotgunning and life itself. The key to mastering any skill, including shooting, lies in understanding how our brains evolve with practice. During adolescence, a protein called myelin plays a crucial role. It wraps...
Diagnosing Skeet and Sporting Clays Misses
Skeet and sporting clays both present unique challenges. Before you can even begin learning how to compete in skeet, you need to learn how to break targets in the same breakpoints on each station every time. It’s a more regimented game of the same targets over...
Beyond Targets: Life Lessons from Shotgunning
Shotgunning is about more than just hitting targets; it’s a gateway to invaluable life lessons. For young athletes, especially those in college, shooting can teach honesty, discipline, and how to learn from failure. But here’s the catch: you get out of this game what you put...