Darien

In the spirit of keeping a positive attitude, I didn't shoot as good at Darien Saturday as I did the last time there. I did get some good practice in on Sunday and left after running a round from my handicap yardage.

Quiet Eye

A friend of mine suggested that missing the first target too many times is usually because, "your eyes were not ready for you to call pull. You have to take your time and reset your focus at the start of every move." I tend to rush (everything) and I bet that I call for the target within a second or so of mounting the gun.

My friend told me about watching Harlan Campbell shoot at the Illinois State Shoot a few years ago and how he counted 3 seconds between Harlan shouldering the gun and calling for the target.

I remember working on this in the spring but somewhere along the way it got lost and forgotten. Probably after I shot a good score and figured I had trap shooting all figured out.

Here is a good article on the quiet eye and how it relates to trap shooting. I appreciate someone taking the time to help me, maybe this can help some other shooters as well.

Butt Kicked

Shot at Downer's Grove today, it was a nice day, humidity broke. They got a big turnout. I shot a 95 at singles, which is a target below this year's average. So not too bad but not great. I missed the first target out of the house. My friend Harv shot 100 straight as did another shooter on our squad. There were 7 100 straights today, so I was on a great squad.

I felt ready for handicap but missed the first target out of the house, again. Things went steadily down hill after that. I missed the first target out in the second 25 as well plus 13 other targets to end with an 85, my second worst round of handicap this year. I could see the targets clearly, I just couldn't seem to hit them. I shot better scores in practice the day before from the 25 and 27 yard lines. Maybe practicing that far past my handicap is a mistake. So a disappointing day, I was shooting good all week but my game just fell apart.

Fall League Started

St. Charles' Fall League started last night. We didn't get shooting til late and it was pretty dusky. I missed the first one out of the house (dummy) and then flinched at the third one to close singles out with a 23. I ran my handicap targets to end with a 48 which I am really happy with. I need to break at least a 46 every week to hit my goal of 370/400.

Holding lower on the house instead of holding high and looking down below the gun seems to help. Less chance for my eyes to play tricks on me. Holding high works for me when my eyes and mind are fresh but by Thursday my eyes are usually fried and I've shot some pretty poor scores holding high. I learned a good lesson from the wobble trap shooting, see below.

I've also gone back to basics, really trying to concentrate on the target as soon as I pick it up, repeating to myself, "see it."

Trapshooting USA this month had a nice article about a league that has been running in the Lehigh Valley area of Pennsylvania forever. My dad grew up there. This is a great magazine, you can browse thru old issues on their website.

Downer's Grove shoot this Sunday.

Practice/Grand

Shot a lot over the weekend, handicap, some wobble, singles, 100 doubles yesterday and then some handicap drills by myself after the club closed. I'm going to start practicing doubles more and get back to my handicap drills instead of just going out and shooting on practice squads. It was very nice in Northern Illinois yesterday.

Here is a good recap on the Grand, its nice to see that turnout was up.

I read that the winner (Devon Harris) of the $100K shoot-off at the Grand used a Perazzi MX2000RS (above). It said he was shooting 2-3/4 dram #8 Federal papers. A relatively light shell and not the 7-1/2s that conventional wisdom says to shoot from long yardage. Including the event he won and the shoot-off, he broke over 150 straight from 27-yards.

Dad and I at Grand

"The less tension and effort, the faster and more powerful you will be." - Bruce Lee

Grand American

I shot six events, one went well, the other 5 were sub-par. I got a third in my yardage category on our first day, tied at 94. We almost left and went out to eat but went over to check the scores and a friend of mine from Downer's Grove suggested checking the shoot-off lists. That's when I realized I was tied for third. So me and Ray from Arkansas shot off (above). He dropped three and I dropped two, I remember thinking on my last target, he shot first, that all I have to do is break this and I win. So first Grand trophy and first shoot-off. I was disappointed with how I shot the next two days but the third place was a nice surprise and we had a great time. It was hot but the humidity broke Friday and Saturday. Dad shot his first ATA targets, Cal had a good time. I thought Sparta was a tremendous place to shoot and am hoping to go back next year. The shoots started on time and ran great, the lines moved fast, you could print out your own pay-out checks and it was fun to look over all the vendors.

From Today's New York Times

Keep a Quiet Mind to Avoid First-Tee Jitters

We all get the first-tee jitters. We have all experienced the frustration of hitting it great on the practice range and then dubbing one when it finally counts.

There are techniques professionals use to defuse the tension. Dana Rader, one of Golf Digest’s top 50 instructors and one of the few women on that list, blames pre-shot routines. It’s not that you shouldn’t have one, but Radar believes golfers shouldn’t do them standing alongside the golf ball.

“The idea is to keep the mind quiet; you don’t want to be having any conversations with yourself standing over the ball,” said Radar, whose golf academy is in Charlotte, N.C. “So the last thing you want is to be standing next to it for a long time. Get away from the ball, go stand a couple steps behind it, then look at the target and breathe through your nose.

“Think about someplace calm or think about what you’re going to do for dinner that night. Take one practice swing. Make everything feel as normal as possible, like you felt on the practice range. Then with a quiet mind, go walk to the ball and hit the shot.”

Does that work? “Absolutely,” she said. “I tell people to think about being on the beach instead of the first tee.