EYE Dominance

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reddog

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So have been shooting trap /skeet since 1972 and the last year has been a disaster for me. Shot the BC provincials and recorded some of my worst scores ever. Have been a consistant A class singles shooter but was having trouble breaking 20 at the front of the bus. Next Handicap one good trap 23 then a 14 what the hell .. Doubles the same run 30 straight then fall off to 6 or 7 on the last 2 stations. So went and talked to my eye guy who startled me by saying that my dominant eye (right) could be changing back and forth right to left .Huh ,really yup age has a factor but for us 2 eye shooters it can become an issue. I am asking somebody else finding issues with this? it is all new to me ,,frustrated..:(
 
Sadly it is called alternating strabismus and not always age related. Had a friend with it and he had to start shooting with one eye closed.

A couple posts on the trap shooting site about it also

It can, my son was diagnosed with this right before the Grand. His lowest ever score was a 67/100 in his first year of reg targets. In the past three years of shooting he improved and this year he had a 91% average over 2000 targets then a month after shooting 97/100 3 times and a 194/200 he fell to 32/100! Really struggled , and was frustrated. The Country Gentleman found this when he was fitting him with a different gun. He will be left eye for awhile then all of a sudden after a few shots he switches to right eye for a few shots then back to left eye. He is starting to run 25's again after putting a dot of chap stick on his glasses for the left eye so he can not see the end of the barrel.This has taken all month trying different things and the chap stick is working the best so he can be a one eyed shooter with both eyes open.

My least favorite is closing my left eye. I feel blinded on left angles and flinch too much. You can cut a small, round piece of opaque Scotch tape and place it over the lens of your non-shooting eye to blot out your gun's bead while your gun is mounted correctly. I prefer the Uni-Dot but have to be able to switch tactics in the middle of a shoot and be ready to put tape on my lens if need be.
 
Not an unheard of issue, as we age keeping up to date on glasses prescriptions is extraordinarily important for those of us in the shotgun sports. The stronger eye takes over when the brain feels it needs to, lots of other things can affect this as well(gun fit, weather conditions, etc).
 
So, I tried shooting 2 eyes open for about 12 rounds of 16 yard singles over about 3 weeks. It was a disaster. I shoot best with my left eye closed but when it opens It takes over. I see the left side of the gun and its a lost target. Lately I blank out the left lens of my shooting glasses and can get closer to 25 straight. With the left lens blocked out I can't see around the gun and can't see the target leave the house unless I hold a low gun.
 
Will try taping the left eye, friend gave me a trapshooting video which further explained this ,thanks for the advice gents guess I will have to adapt to a new style..
 
I have a long history of eye issues, with 20 eye surgeries to date, and at a few points along the way. my eye dominance shifted back and forth, which really messed up ,my shooting, and actually caused a flinch.
 
stubblejumper said:
I have a long history of eye issues, with 20 eye surgeries to date, and at a few points along the way. my eye dominance shifted back and forth, which really messed up ,my shooting, and actually caused a flinch.
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You sound like the club pro here who has since passed away. He went to a release trigger to combat the flinch. He did shoot the trap house a few times getting used to it but he was trap shooting machine.
 
After shooting right handed all my life I had to switch over to left handed shooting because my left eye became the dominant one over time. I struggled a lot just before switching over and people told me I would struggle for quite a while after I switched. That couldn't have been further from the truth. My scores immediately went up after switching over. It did take a while to get used to loading and unloading the gun with my left hand though. lol I always did and still do shoot with both eyes open. Closing one eye reduces your peripheral vision which is never a good thing especially in Sporting Clays which is what I shoot mostly.
 
dudelta said:
After shooting right handed all my life I had to switch over to left handed shooting because my left eye became the dominant one over time. I struggled a lot just before switching over and people told me I would struggle for quite a while after I switched. That couldn't have been further from the truth. My scores immediately went up after switching over. It did take a while to get used to loading and unloading the gun with my left hand though. lol I always did and still do shoot with both eyes open. Closing one eye reduces your peripheral vision which is never a good thing especially in Sporting Clays which is what I shoot mostly.
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I did the same after a car accident like 25 years right and then left but it took me like 3 years and I bet 50,000 rounds to get the scores back. But my eye dominance was not switching back and forth either like the OP that is a totally different animal and I can only shoot right handed guns weird I know
Cheers
 
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Dwayne Cyr said:
You sound like the club pro here who has since passed away. He went to a release trigger to combat the flinch. He did shoot the trap house a few times getting used to it but he was trap shooting machine.
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Actually, when my vision returned to normal, the flinch faded, it does show now and then, but nothing like it was at one point. I for one would never even consider a release trigger though, as I do too much shooting,with several firearms, and going back and forth, would likely cause even more issues.
 
Falconflyer said:
I know lots of good shooters who have to have a piece of tape over the left eye of their shooting glasses. I've never experienced this myself but there's enough shooters out there dealing with it to know that it's a real problem.
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the reason for the tape to protect is as well to avoid using left handed stock and kee^p business as usual which may affect the results.
 
I've shot right. eye all my life , 5 yrs. ago because of an accident I had
to shoot left eye .
With the change in short order & use I had better depth of field , range estimation
and sharper vision .
I am still right eye dominant just a better left eye right hand shooter.
 
medvedqc said:
the reason for the tape to protect is as well to avoid using left handed stock and kee^p business as usual which may affect the results.
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I'm not really sure what your trying to say here but if your a right handed/right eyed shooter using a left hand stock then you have more issues with fit than anything else. All the tape does is stop a right eyed shooter's left eye from taking over the sighting.
 
reddog said:
So have been shooting trap /skeet since 1972 and the last year has been a disaster for me. Shot the BC provincials and recorded some of my worst scores ever. Have been a consistant A class singles shooter but was having trouble breaking 20 at the front of the bus. Next Handicap one good trap 23 then a 14 what the hell .. Doubles the same run 30 straight then fall off to 6 or 7 on the last 2 stations. So went and talked to my eye guy who startled me by saying that my dominant eye (right) could be changing back and forth right to left .Huh ,really yup age has a factor but for us 2 eye shooters it can become an issue. I am asking somebody else finding issues with this? it is all new to me ,,frustrated..:(
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I think I have experienced the same phenomena. What I am doing to correct it may sound a little weird and I don't quite understand it either.
When I was younger I called the target and didn't seem to need any prep time to connect. No champion by any means but scores were respectable.
I'm right eye dominant but now need to concentrate almost as if I want to shoot left eye dominant. Both eyes open. Gun on right shoulder.
If I consciously do this before calling for the target I seem to do OK.
 
So ran 150 targets yesterday with left eye taped over, first 3 rounds from 16yds. low 20's .I will say it "felt " better like the bird was easy to pick up and I didn't seem to have the stress of tracking the bird that I have had in the past .Next 2,, 24/24 so ok this seems to be working .Last round used a different gun which was dumb but still 21 so am I convinced? ,not really but will carry on for a while Handicap and doubles next.cheers RD.
 
reddog said:
So ran 150 targets yesterday with left eye taped over, first 3 rounds from 16yds. low 20's .I will say it "felt " better like the bird was easy to pick up and I didn't seem to have the stress of tracking the bird that I have had in the past .Next 2,, 24/24 so ok this seems to be working .Last round used a different gun which was dumb but still 21 so am I convinced? ,not really but will carry on for a while Handicap and doubles next.cheers RD.
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Sounds like you are back on track good to hear. keep us posted
take care
 
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