Often the best position afield, sitting is quick to assume and keeps your barrel above most grass and brush.

By John Haviland

Your first shot at game is your best chance for success. To make that first shot count, though, takes preparation and then good judgment and shooting skill in the field. The following 10 tips will help you place your first shot where it counts.

1) Know exactly where your bullets hit at various ranges. If a hunter hasn't fired his rifle to determine the bullet drop and wind drift at 400 yards, he has little business shooting at that distance. Ballistic tables in ammunition catalogs provide a bullet's approximate trajectory. But they don't take into consideration the difference in bullet velocity from your rifle or slug gun.
 
From example, when I first bought a .25-06, I thought the velocity of its Speer 120-grain flat-base spitzer bullets fired with 49 grains of IMR 4350 powder was slightly over 3,000 feet per second. I sighted the rifle to hit 2 inches high at 100 yards and happily hunted with it for a couple of years, thinking the bullet drop was 5 inches at 300 yards and 17 inches 400 yards. I shot a couple of mule deer and antelope at ranges between 80 and 175 yards and thought I had a really flat-shooting rifle.
 
The third year, I shot the loads over a chronograph. The velocity was 2,848 fps. That made me think I'd better shoot the rifle at longer ranges to see how much the bullets actually dropped. The bullets dropped about 8 inches at 300 yards. Drop at 400 yards was about 23 inches, near as I could tell, anyhow. The large size of the group indicated I should not try to shoot a deer that far, which leads to the next words of advice.

2) Practice, practice, practice. Once your rifle is sighted-in, forget the bench. Rehearse your shots in the positions you'll use in the field. Shooting as much as possible not only makes you a good marksman, but also highlights a problem before a big buck steps out. It might be that your scope is set too far back to shoot in the prone position and get an instant full view through the scope. Practice also helps you become familiar with your rifle so you can load it, operate the safety and mount the rifle in one fluid motion so the crosshairs come to bear right on Mr. Big Buck.
 
Last summer, my youngest son shot 400 practice rounds through his 7mm-08. After a week of hunting the following November, Thomas finally got up on a herd of elk. Because they stood about 100 yards over the lip of a rise, his only shot was offhand. Still, his first bullet hit a bull right through both lungs. The meat from the animal more than made up for the powder and bullets that Thomas had shot during the summer.

3) Take a moment to catch your breath before shooting. During my brief career as an antelope guide, I frequently had to grab a hunter by the arm at the end of a stalk to keep him from charging up to the crest of the ridge to shoot. The hunter had dreamed for years of shooting an antelope buck, and he was excited and in a hurry. In that state, he would have been unable to hold his rifle steady, even for a close shot. To do it right, he needed to wait another minute and to kneel and catch his breath after making the stalk. The time also helped calm his nerves. With his breathing back to normal and excitement in check, he went the last few yards and fired with the crosshairs steady on his antelope buck.
 

One shot is all this hunter needed, but always chamber another cartridge just in case.

Stopping frequently and keeping your pace slow to keep your breathing normal is a good idea when still-hunting. Take your rest stops where you can shoot with a good view of a trail or stretch of country.
 
4) Get into a shooting position. When you spot a buck that might be the one you're after, get into position. Once you're ready with your rifle, study the animal with your binocular or measure the yardage with a range-finder. Then when the animal does present a shot, you can use the few seconds it's in the clear to flip off the safety and make a certain shot without fumbling. After the shot, chamber another round and remain ready in case you need to shoot again.
 
The last few days of elk season this past year, I noticed my freezer was nearly empty. That really put me in high gear to find an elk, and I headed out that afternoon. An hour before dark, I saw the black legs of an elk move through the trees at the far side of a small park. I rested my Winchester on top of a stump, and then pulled out my binocular. Every so often, a patch of brown moved in the timber. After half an hour, a cow stepped into the clear at about 80 yards. It was nervous, and I had about three seconds to shoot before it went back into the trees to wait for the safety of dark to fall. I leaned over behind my rifle and pulled the trigger. The cow nearly filled my freezer.

5) Be Patient. If you wait a minute or two, chances are a buck partially obscured by brush will take a step into the open. Then an iffy shot turns into an easy shot. Only you can tell, though, if the circumstances dictate that you should wait or shoot.
 
I was worried that cow elk last year was going to move off while it was hidden in the trees and I wouldn't get a shot. I had to tell myself several times to stay put because the elk wanted to come out and feed in the park. If I had tried to get closer to the elk in the timber the only shot probably would have been at a running elk.

6) Running shots are always a gamble. Every hunter remembers the unbelievable shots they've made on running game. However, we tend to forget the misses and fusillades that ran animals clear out of the country.
 

A solid rest, whether your knee or a nearby tree, makes shooting a lot more accurate.

A buck that has been spooked is difficult to hit because it's running all-out. Chances are you were unprepared, too, which makes it all the more difficult to snap off an accurate offhand shot.
 
Game that hasn't been scared out of its wits by bullets cracking over its head will often stop after a short run, presenting a standing shot. Whitetails usually run just far enough to get out of sight. Then they can be stalked again. Antelope may run a mile or two, and then settle back down. After a few hours, they often return.

7) Set up for a close shot. The farther the shot, the more likely you are to miss.
 
When picking a spot for a stand, choose a place that provides a dead-on shot at standing game. A 150-yard shot is about right for a rifle. Half that distance is good for a slug gun. Much closer than that, and chances increase that a bull elk with the biggest antlers you have ever seen will spot you, catch your scent swirling on the wind or see you bring your gun to bear. Then you'll have to hurry your shot.

Practice shooting long enough, and you'll be able to predict with a good degree of certainty where your bullet will strike a target. It's as easy as shooting at a paper target, mentally marking where you think your bullet hit and going downrange to check. A hard-recoiling rifle can make it difficult because we often flinch or blink in anticipation of the kick just before pulling the trigger.   The skill is indispensable in the field because game often shows no sign or leaves no blood trail indicating a hit. If you call your shot off the mark, shoot again. An extra bullet or two is much cheaper insurance than being the best tracker in the woods. - John Haviland

8) Take a rest. While practicing with your rifle, you'll notice the closer to the ground you get, the steadier your hold. But once in a while, offhand offers the only chance for a shot. Leaning against a tree or laying your rifle over a branch helps support your aim. Kneeling is somewhat steadier because the rifle is shored up by one arm on the knee. Sitting is the best position in the field because it's quick to assume and keeps your barrel above most grass and brush. From the sitting position, with your rifle supported by elbows against your knees, a shot at a deer at 200 yards is a piece of cake. Shooting prone is mostly limited to the prairie or farm fields where cover is short or a shot can be taken from a ridge top.
 
Add a rest for the rifle and these positions become even more stable. Your forward arm wrapped in a sling adds pressure to steady your aim. Wobbling crosshairs really settle down when your rifle is held by a bipod with its legs anchored to the ground.
 
9) Keep your mind quiet. When you start thinking about a shot, all of it will be worry that you are going to miss. So keep the mental sparring out of the equation. If you have practiced enough, your subconscious will know what to do.
 
Two years ago, a friend spotted a 6-point bull elk a mile away, trotting toward him across a flat. He took a good sitting position and told himself this was going to be almost too easy. As he watched the elk come, he started thinking maybe his scope wasn't set on the right power, so he fiddled with the scope dial. Then he thought he needed a seat against a tree to support his back. So he moved. Soon the elk was in range, and he tracked it through his scope. He couldn't decide if he should take the angling shot as the animal came toward him or wait until it was broadside. He waited a few more seconds until the bull was broadside at about 100 yards. Then he realized the elk would be in the trees in a few more steps. He hurried up and shot. You guessed it: He shot right over the bull!

10) Pick an exact spot on game to place your bullet. Failing to pick and aim at a specific spot is easy to do when a mule deer buck is nearly on top of you, and the only thing you can concentrate on is a rack of antlers big as the grill of a Texas Cadillac. The thought then is to get a bullet in the air anywhere before the buck escapes. But for the bullet to do its job, you have to take a moment to place the bullet in a vital spot.
 
Knowing game's anatomy is also essential to placing a bullet in a vital organ.
 
On an animal standing perfectly broadside, a bullet right behind the shoulder and about a third of the way up from the brisket will hit the lungs. A shot a bit low from that will hit the heart or forward a way will break the shoulders. But the same shot placement on game facing or turned away will miss the lungs entirely. Before shooting, chart the bullet's course through the vitals. You'll realize on a quartering-away shot, you must aim back toward the rear ribs before sending that one good bullet on its way to reach up between the front legs where the animal lives. 

John Haviland
GunHunter Magazine - August 2006