How to Shoot a Battue
The battue is thrown on edge and rolls flat at its apex, showing its full face for a moment before it dives. You wait for that apex — where it's fully turned — and break it there. Don't chase the line up to the apex; you can follow it down after.
Right-handed
Left → Right- Stance
- Pivoting leg oriented toward the apex of the target.
- Gun position
- Just below the flying path of the bird.
- Waiting position
- Just before the spot where the target twists.
- Head
- Slightly turned left.
- Visual
- Between the trap and the gun, closer to the gun (soft focus).
- Timing
- Move the gun to the apex, where the bird is fully twisted. Don't follow the trajectory up to the apex — but you can follow it as it drops after.
Left-handed
Left → Right- Stance
- Belly button on the trap, pivoting foot oriented at the apex.
- Gun position
- Just below the flying path of the bird.
- Waiting position
- Just before the spot where the target twists.
- Head
- Natural.
- Visual
- Between the trap and the gun, closer to the gun (soft focus).
- Timing
- Break it at the apex, fully twisted. Don't ride the line up; follow it down after.
Right-handed
Right → Left- Stance
- Belly button on the trap, pivoting foot oriented toward the apex.
- Gun position
- Just below the flying path of the bird.
- Waiting position
- Just before the spot where the target twists.
- Head
- Natural.
- Visual
- Between the trap and the gun, closer to the gun (soft focus).
- Timing
- Break it at the apex, fully twisted. Don't ride the line up; follow it down after.
Left-handed
Right → Left- Stance
- Pivoting leg oriented toward the apex of the target.
- Gun position
- Just below the flying path of the bird.
- Waiting position
- Just before the spot where the target twists.
- Head
- Slightly turned left.
- Visual
- Between the trap and the gun, closer to the gun (soft focus).
- Timing
- Break it at the apex, fully twisted. Don't ride the line up; follow it down after.
Double battue is shot the same as singles — take the lower bird first, then the higher.
Set up right and you'll break more of these. The library has the same breakdown for every other target — crossers, incomers, going-aways, teal, rabbit and more. See all guides →
About the method. These guides come from the coaching system of Bill Erdőss, an Olympic clay shooting coach — built on the fundamentals that decide every shot: gun fit, mount, stance, vision, and timing, with a precise, repeatable setup for each target.