Question:
I’ve been shooting sporting clays in the mid 60″s and low 70’s. In studying my scorecard I miss the first or second bird more frequently than the other six. I realize it must be my shot plan but I’ve been unable to adjust. Can you help?
Answer:
I strongly encourage you, as I do all of my competitive shooters, to take a picture of your scorecard after each and every tournament. Once off the field of competition, you can study your scorecard and identify areas of weakness in your game. I discuss this at length in “Revelations of the Scorecard” available at www.doncurrie.com/revelations-of-the-scorecard.
As you correctly point out, repeatedly missing the first one or two targets at a sporting clays station likely indicates a weakness in your pre-shot planning process. After the first pair, you are consciously or subconsciously modifying your shot plan in response to a missed target or pair. I would encourage you to read up on pre-shot planning. Make sure you are properly identifying and “land marking” the hold point and breakpoint of your first and second targets of a pair on every station. By land marking, I mean using terrain features and/or vegetation as reference points for your hold points and breakpoints.
The shot plan you develop during pre-shot planning should, in most cases, remain the same throughout each and every pair you engage at a given station. If you plan carefully and correctly, you shouldn’t need to adjust your shot plan after the first pair. I’m not saying that you should never change your shot plan after missing a bird or pair of birds, however, changing your shot plan mid-station should be rare and is an indication of flawed planning.
In my experience, the top four flaws I see in shooters’ pre-shot planning processes are:
1) failing to plan carefully 2) failing to landmark 3) failing to carefully observe each target’s behavior AT THE BREAKPOINT 4) failing to commit to the shooter’s breakpoints and hold points.
So, plan carefully. Pay close attention to what the target is doing at the planned breakpoint. Landmark your hold points, breakpoints and visual pick-up points. Perhaps most importantly, commit to your plan.