# I Need Good Advice As To How To Shoot Profesionally



## codfreak55 (Nov 6, 2015)

Hi, I've kept this question to myself as I didn't know who to ask a question such as this. I'd like some info from some people that know how to get a foot in the door to shoot competitively professionally. Any info you have Id love to know more about as I want Archery to be my career and I want to know how to pursue that and get my door in the door. Thanks!!
Kobe


----------



## Longlost (Jan 26, 2015)

Join a club to start with?


----------



## codfreak55 (Nov 6, 2015)

Like an outdoor club? I only have 2 in my area and neither are large clubs that do a lot with archery.


----------



## XForce Girl (Feb 14, 2008)

To shoot professionally as in, getting paid to shoot. You have to enter and win tournaments, ALOT. Then the manufacturers will start to sponsor you, then after you keep winning for a while one of them may put you on payroll. 
I don't know who actually is a full paid archer except maybe Reo Wilde. I'm sure there are more and maybe 1/10 of 1% of all archers are actually Professional Archers with archery as their only income.

Now, if you want to just shoot in the Pro Class all you have to do is pay the registration fees and shoot with the Pros. For NFAA, I think you have to be sponsored to be called a Pro.


----------



## Longlost (Jan 26, 2015)

Like an archery club. 

http://www.asaarchery.com/IP/index.php/asa-federation/current-clubs

http://www.teamusa.org/usa-archery/clubs/find-a-club


----------



## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

Well, get in your truck and go to the next asa in kentucky and enter the known 50 class and kick the crap out of all the pro shooters that are in that class. They are probably going to shoot around 50 up and you are going to have to hit well over 50% of the 12 rings for the weekend without hitting any 8's. That will get you noticed in a hurry. Then win the next two of them and go into the indoor season this winter and win iowa and lancasters and the midwest open and then smoke vegas, that will get you on the map. Make sure you save the earnings so that you can travel overseas and smoke nimes and and a few other international shoots and show reo who the new boss is. By the time you do all that you savings of the earnings you won this year will be gone because it is expensive to travel over there and you got to start doing this over the next year and basically win most of the big shoots out there. By the time two or three years of your domination your list of big wins might get you to the point where someone wants to put you on salary like a reo. Take a look at his resume sometime and see what he had to do to earn the right to be a full time salary guy, he was still working a normal job just a few years ago and had a resume at that time to die for.


----------



## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

In archery, it's pretty easy to become a "professional". Go to the NFAA website, find out the cost and requirements for getting your professional card, pay your fees, then go shoot tournaments in the pro class. As I understand it, you don't even have to own a bow to get a professional card, just pay the fee.

If you actually want to be a paid professional archer, XForce Girl gives you good advice. Usually pro's start with a local shop where they provide free labor and may get a T-shirt if they shoot pretty good. But you have to win. The more you win, the more chance you have of picking up more sponsors and getting money out of it. Most of the lower level pro's don't get much. Maybe a discount on equipment or a little help with travel. 

Very few professional archers can afford to shoot a bow as a full time career. For the vast majority, it's a money loosing proposition. They only do it for the love of the sport. 

One very good pro told me that his entire winnings for his best year about equaled the payout for one golf tournament for the 32nd place golfer. And this was the LPGA. 

Several sports pay huge amounts of money to the players. Archery does not. That same pro archer told me that if he had known that he could get this good at something, he wished that he had chosen golf instead of archery.

Good luck,
Allen


----------



## Boatman71 (Jul 16, 2013)

Padgett said:


> Well, get in your truck and go to the next asa in kentucky and enter the known 50 class and kick the crap out of all the pro shooters that are in that class. They are probably going to shoot around 50 up and you are going to have to hit well over 50% of the 12 rings for the weekend without hitting any 8's. That will get you noticed in a hurry. Then win the next two of them and go into the indoor season this winter and win iowa and lancasters and the midwest open and then smoke vegas, that will get you on the map. Make sure you save the earnings so that you can travel overseas and smoke nimes and and a few other international shoots and show reo who the new boss is. By the time you do all that you savings of the earnings you won this year will be gone because it is expensive to travel over there and you got to start doing this over the next year and basically win most of the big shoots out there. By the time two or three years of your domination your list of big wins might get you to the point where someone wants to put you on salary like a reo. Take a look at his resume sometime and see what he had to do to earn the right to be a full time salary guy, he was still working a normal job just a few years ago and had a resume at that time to die for.



So what your saying Shawn..... be more economical to purchase ax handles for a dollar and sell them for 50 cents? HAHA just ribbin ya!


----------



## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

You know, I played ball with Billy Mueller and he was just one of the guys and not even the best player at missouri state and he ended up winning a batting title and the world series with the red sox and he just got hired by the cardinals and I believe is the hitting coach and I even saw him coaching first base a week or so ago. There is not one day where I played with billy and felt like he was better than me at hitting a baseball but he had something I don't have, he simply could stand out and make it to the next level like nobody I have every personally been around at the highest freaking level. I am 46 now and I am still trying, I go out every day and shoot and practice judging and would love to show up to kentucky and put in a run at winning a national tournament in the semi pro class. It is what keeps me going out every day and putting in my time.


----------



## grantmac (May 31, 2007)

Everyone knows it's easy to make a small fortune with archery, just start with a large one!


----------



## LMacD (Mar 16, 2015)

grantmac said:


> Everyone knows it's easy to make a small fortune with archery, just start with a large one!


Nice - I needed a good chuckle after today's work tsunami


----------



## clifflowe (Sep 29, 2007)

Hey Padgett, the op may or may not be capable but he probably just doesn't understand. Kinda like when I was in the 6th grade and told my buddy that I was going to start practicing for the Olympics in the high jump. He said, Well you better be able to jump 7 feet. I looked up on the wall where 7 feet was and said, "I think I may change it to the 100 yard dash." I also played D1 baseball at Southern Miss. I was a starter, but after my senior year I realized that I was not good enough for the pros. There is certain kind of peace about this realization and I have no regrets. I did my best and it was not good enough. To push yourself to be the best that you can be is all anyone can ask. So op strive hard and let us know the outcome.
Cliff


----------



## thawk (Mar 11, 2003)

Questions.
How old are you?
What style of archery? FS, BHFS
What kind of competition do you shoot? Asa, ibo, fita, nfaa
How close are your scores to the pros now?

It's a tough road, I got my pro card in 1996, as xforcegirl said I had to have a current pro sponsor me into the class, now you just pay the dues.
One year (2001) I made a push to "make it" I'm self employed so I took off lots of time off work and spent it behind the bow, I already had all the sponsors I needed but didn't get any money, but plenty of equipment, some just to sell for my expenses. Ended up ranked 6th by the NAA but couldn't make the nationals cause I had a big job. I probably would have made USAT that year.
Ended up making about $4000 over travel and entry expenses that year.
My business was down $40,000 that year. So I settled for being a local pro who finished in the top ten at big shoots.

Today their are 10 time more people at the top then 15 years ago, I was a mid 550 shooter on field rounds and that wasn't good enough, now you better be pounding 558+ in the pro class. 
Indoors I just sucked, I got nervous and would drop my 30th arrow in vegas year after year, I just never had the mental game.

It can be done, but it won't be easy.
Some company's pay up front money to their elite pro staffers some just get equipment and large contingency money. Either way contingency is how you make the most money. The money in our sport is getting better but it's no where near other sports.
My good friend just won Redding pro female for the third year in a row, the win paid under $900 her bow contingency was $4000 but she still has a full time job. Her resume also has 117 world, state, and national records, not just wins but records.

I wish you the very best but like any sport it's tough


----------



## thawk (Mar 11, 2003)

118 I forgot about last weekend


----------



## offeringplate (Jan 31, 2016)

Padgett said:


> Well, get in your truck and go to the next asa in kentucky and enter the known 50 class and kick the crap out of all the pro shooters that are in that class. They are probably going to shoot around 50 up and you are going to have to hit well over 50% of the 12 rings for the weekend without hitting any 8's. That will get you noticed in a hurry. Then win the next two of them and go into the indoor season this winter and win iowa and lancasters and the midwest open and then smoke vegas, that will get you on the map. Make sure you save the earnings so that you can travel overseas and smoke nimes and and a few other international shoots and show reo who the new boss is. By the time you do all that you savings of the earnings you won this year will be gone because it is expensive to travel over there and you got to start doing this over the next year and basically win most of the big shoots out there. By the time two or three years of your domination your list of big wins might get you to the point where someone wants to put you on salary like a reo. Take a look at his resume sometime and see what he had to do to earn the right to be a full time salary guy, he was still working a normal job just a few years ago and had a resume at that time to die for.


thats a good way to put. sums it up pretty clear


----------



## Ky*Bowhunter (Aug 18, 2013)

I dont think anyone who has ever picked up shooting and became a pro did it because of the money or because they wanted to make a living at archery. Making money is just a byproduct of a serious passion and determination to become a great shooter. If you're doing it for the money you have failed before you even started. The greatest archers or any great sports player became great because the love of the game, not the money. Also when you start having to perform at an extremely high level everyday to make ends meet and pay bills, all of a sudden it isnt near as fun as it use to be.


----------



## duc (Jul 18, 2009)

codfreak55 said:


> Hi, I've kept this question to myself as I didn't know who to ask a question such as this. I'd like some info from some people that know how to get a foot in the door to shoot competitively professionally. Any info you have Id love to know more about as I want Archery to be my career and I want to know how to pursue that and get my door in the door. Thanks!!
> Kobe


Best advice, don't miss the X. Then the archery world is your oyster.


----------



## codfreak55 (Nov 6, 2015)

I dont want to do it for the money. Im a senior in high school and i shoot probably close to 100-200 arrows a day. This sport is my passion, very much so and I want to shoot alongside Reo and Levi! I have a passion to be the best, not a hunger for money.


----------



## AKDoug (Aug 27, 2003)

I never wanted to be a pro, but I did want to win NFAA nationals in both field and indoor as a BHFS shooter. I developed that goal after shooting leagues for a couple years. After about five years of putting the time in, I realized that I wasn't going to get there. A wife, three kids, and a business not related to archery resulted in me not having enough time to put into the goal. 

If your only goal is to shoot beside Reo or Levi, just pay the professional dues for whatever organization you desire to shoot in. Eventually you will end up shooting next to them. Either that or shoot a bunch of pro-ams  

If you truly want to be a professional archer that wins, you will need to do several things. Compete a lot, a tournament every weekend if possible. Get instruction from a reputable coach. Develop your mental game through that coach or an outside source such as Lanny Bassham. Number of arrows per day doesn't measure practice, the number of arrows per day with a purpose behind them is what matters. 

To achieve this it is easier to be employed in an archery related business that gives you time to practice, discounts on equipment and access to a range for free. Getting sponsored to get discounts is not hard once you reach the state champion/sectional champion level in the NFAA. Whip up a good resume' and just ask. Don't let it go to your head, there are thousands of "sponsored" shooters in this country.

BTW.. you have a TON of archery coaching options in Michigan. Get to googling.


----------



## subconsciously (Aug 22, 2009)

Sometimes it is not what you've done in archery, but what have you done for archery.


----------



## EPLC (May 21, 2002)

Padgett said:


> Well, get in your truck and go to the next asa in kentucky and enter the known 50 class and kick the crap out of all the pro shooters that are in that class. They are probably going to shoot around 50 up and you are going to have to hit well over 50% of the 12 rings for the weekend without hitting any 8's. That will get you noticed in a hurry. Then win the next two of them and go into the indoor season this winter and win iowa and lancasters and the midwest open and then smoke vegas, that will get you on the map. Make sure you save the earnings so that you can travel overseas and smoke nimes and and a few other international shoots and show reo who the new boss is. By the time you do all that you savings of the earnings you won this year will be gone because it is expensive to travel over there and you got to start doing this over the next year and basically win most of the big shoots out there. By the time two or three years of your domination your list of big wins might get you to the point where someone wants to put you on salary like a reo. Take a look at his resume sometime and see what he had to do to earn the right to be a full time salary guy, he was still working a normal job just a few years ago and had a resume at that time to die for.


Get real Padgett, most of the pros in existence would not be able to accomplish what you have laid out for someone interested in going pro. In fact there are only a handful in the world that could follow these requirements.


----------



## Longlost (Jan 26, 2015)

subconsciously said:


> Sometimes it is not what you've done in archery, but what have you done for archery.


What are you talking about?


----------



## dmacey (Mar 27, 2015)

Heck, I'm just trying to figure out how to shoot at all! 

DM


----------



## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

For most pro shooters archery is not their career, it is their passion. They have normal jobs and they train after work just like the rest of us. Many of the pro shooters that you think are archery only guys actually work for company that they are contracted with so they are working all day long also putting together the shooting staff etc. There are very few shooters like Reo that are archery only.

I wish our pro shooters were like the ones in baseball and basketball and football getting hundred million dollar contracts, when I shoot with our top dog pro shooters at a pro am I stand there only wishing I could be that freaking good and for the most part they are awesome people who love their sport and are only getting table scraps. I watched a little baseball last night and some pitcher I had never heard of basically won powerball lottery with his new contract and it made me want to puke.


----------



## yeroc (Jan 11, 2007)

follow your dream,even if you dont achieve it im sure you will find yourself alomg the way


----------



## RCR_III (Mar 19, 2011)

codfreak55 said:


> I dont want to do it for the money. Im a senior in high school and i shoot probably close to 100-200 arrows a day. This sport is my passion, very much so and I want to shoot alongside Reo and Levi! I have a passion to be the best, not a hunger for money.


Michigan has a really good archery program that Emily and Chris Bee are a part of. Emily just won a silver medal for Team USA in a world cup this past weekend. 

I'd start here. Talk with the coordinator at the university and ask his/her advice on what you need to do to get onto their team and their program and start traveling to shoots with their team. That'll get you some exposure both to the industry and tournaments. It'll also let you shoot with a good group of people that'll help you along the way.


----------



## RCR_III (Mar 19, 2011)

Oh! And don't let some of the comments in this thread get you down or get to you. Like yeroc said, follow your dream. You'll either achieve everything you've wanted, crash and burn, or have a heck of a lot of laughs and good stories to have for the rest of your life. While you're young like you are, no house payment, children, or big responsibilities, live it up man haha The nay sayers can watch you on YouTube at AZ cup, Redding, USAT's, ect.


----------



## thawk (Mar 11, 2003)

I didn't think any of the nay sayers were trying to discourage him from trying to go for his dreams. But he did say he wanted a career in archery, although he then said it wasn't about the money. I'm sorry 99% of the people in the world the money is what their career is about. I know if I stopped getting paid I would stop working.
I was trying to show a realistic look at what it takes and how tough it is. At this point I would say try your best but stay in school and plan for a good job.
A good friend of mine did just that, offered a signing bonus with a company before he was even out of school, then found out Hoyt was looking for an engineer, interviewed got the job, turned down the higher paying offer and got to spend his life working with archery equipment. Along the way his skills picked way up due to exposure to some of the best shooters in the world.


----------



## dk_ace1 (Mar 31, 2015)

codfreak55 said:


> I dont want to do it for the money. Im a senior in high school and i shoot probably close to 100-200 arrows a day. This sport is my passion, very much so and I want to shoot alongside Reo and Levi! I have a passion to be the best, not a hunger for money.


I'm not a pro shooter, but I have learned something about trying to make a living on a hobby that you're passionate about: it can suck the fun right out of it. I decided I was going to quit seeking any money for it and do it for the fun, the challenge, the sense of accomplishment, etc. I've been much happier ever since and it is fun again. I'm not talking about archery, but it would be no different.

You are much better off going to school and getting a great job that you enjoy that can fund your archery habit, and then shooting on the side for fun and to compete. Maybe you should learn to run a business and open a bow shop or something too so even more of your time is about archery. Maybe you could go to school and learn something that is useful to an archery company (sales, marketing, manufacturing, project management, engineering, etc) and try to work in the business that way.

Somebody gave me similar advice and I followed it. I'm glad I did. I've seen others that weren't so lucky.

D


----------



## tbs (Dec 17, 2015)

Archery as a career is something you have to cut your own path with to achieve. There isn't really a template. John Dudley, Levi Morgan, Reo Wilde, Dan McCarthy, etc. have each done it in their own different ways. Find yours.


----------



## jelmore (Sep 24, 2013)

Go for it kid. Good luck.


----------



## codfreak55 (Nov 6, 2015)

When I say I want a career in archery im not referring directly to shooting alone, I also do all of my own tuning and servicing. Completely self tought (with a little help from youtube lol) and now i can tear just about any bow down and put it back together again with no problem. But I am still young and I do know I still have a lot more to learn. I love servicing bows hell i work on all my buddies bows for freejust for the enjoyment. Ive thought long and hard my whole high school career, even trying automotive technology at my local Career Center for school and to me honestly it just isnt fulfilling. I have had a passion for this sport since I was knee high to a grasshopper flinging arrows from my 10lb recurve for hours pn end. So when I say I want a career in Archery I dont mind if its getting paid to shoot or simply being a technician. Some kids want to be doctors and lawyers, I just want to work for the sport I adore. I want a job I can be happy going to every day! Sure, its my dream to shoot professionally but I am realistic lol.


----------



## grantmac (May 31, 2007)

In that case go to university and become a mechanical or materials engineer. Then work for a bow company. While doing that shoot as much as you can and attend absolutely every competition available.

Grant


----------



## jim p (Oct 29, 2003)

Make a list of all the professional archers in the world and count them. Now take a look at all the doctors listed in the phone book and count them. Based on just the numbers which life goal is the easiest to attain?

To be able to shoot for a living you have to have exceptional talent and you have to train for many hours or maybe many years.


----------



## jim p (Oct 29, 2003)

I should have read your last post before I posted. 

If you just want to work in the archery industry, then you will be able to find a spot. It may be a tough life with little money but if it is what you want to do then you accept the sacrifices and live your life.

Only you know what you want to do with your life. I suggest that you get some career counseling to help you decide what all of your options are and then decide what you want to do by balancing all the pros and cons of each career.


----------



## codfreak55 (Nov 6, 2015)

Like I said I've attended my local Career Center which is basically constant job shadowing half the school day 5 days a week and they offer classes for too many career paths for me to count. None of them interested me other than Auto Tech and even still that's not something I feel I'd be happy with long term. For me personally I am persistent about finding a career I love and enjoy, not what pays out the most money. Like I said in a previous post I'm not money hungry, quite the contrary. If I hate my job and hate going to work every day it can be the best paying job out there and I'd still give it up for something that truly makes me happy. Happiness and success isn't in money it's what you do to make that money. If your job has no purpose to you then what's the point?


----------



## aread (Dec 25, 2009)

You might look at the skills that the bow manufacturers hire. One that comes to mind is CNC machinist. 

As you get older, you may find that archery is a great hobby, but not a great way to support a wife & kids. CNC skills can translate to many industries. So if you become disillusioned with archery, you can still make a living. Don't assume that you will be as enamored with archery in 20 years as you are today. Life tends to change our views. Having a skill that will get you a job is essential. It gives you flexibility in life.


----------



## jim p (Oct 29, 2003)

I totally respect your logic. There is some good news. You are young and you can change your career decision anytime that you want. I wish you the best life possible.

One of the tragedies in life is that an old man has to live with the decisions of a young man.


----------



## Lazarus (Sep 19, 2005)

codfreak55 said:


> Like I said I've attended my local Career Center which is basically constant job shadowing half the school day 5 days a week and they offer classes for too many career paths for me to count. None of them interested me other than Auto Tech and even still that's not something I feel I'd be happy with long term. For me personally I am persistent about finding a career I love and enjoy, not what pays out the most money. Like I said in a previous post I'm not money hungry, quite the contrary. If I hate my job and hate going to work every day it can be the best paying job out there and I'd still give it up for something that truly makes me happy. Happiness and success isn't in money it's what you do to make that money. If your job has no purpose to you then what's the point?


If you really want to make archery a career (not just shooting,) my suggestion would be to talk to as many people as you can who are actually "doing it" and find out how they did it. Everyone's path will have been different. It will be up to you to find your own path. The advice/information coming from those who are actually doing it will be a huge aid in doing so. 

On the flip side, if you wanted to make golf a profession would you get advice from a lawyer, banker, machinist, or auto mechanic who golfs on weekends on how to do so? Think about it. :wink:


----------



## carlosii (Feb 25, 2007)

yeroc said:


> follow your dream,even if you dont achieve it im sure you will find yourself alomg the way


That is very Yoda-like.


----------



## timduvall (Mar 18, 2008)

comparing the money issue with archery and other sports is comparing apples and oranges....don't forget professional ball players make their big money because 20-30K fans are paying money to come watch them. The more people they draw, the more valuable they are to their organizations which equals bigger contracts. Archery just isn't that popular. I've watched some competitive archery tournaments on youtube and the first thing I notice is the stands are empty...who is watching? Where is the money coming from to pay out? Just like anything, you have to find a way to the get the masses interested enough to pay to watch and from what I have observed, they just aren't there.


----------



## oldpro888 (Dec 31, 2010)

Padgett said:


> Well, get in your truck and go to the next asa in kentucky and enter the known 50 class and kick the crap out of all the pro shooters that are in that class. They are probably going to shoot around 50 up and you are going to have to hit well over 50% of the 12 rings for the weekend without hitting any 8's. That will get you noticed in a hurry. Then win the next two of them and go into the indoor season this winter and win iowa and lancasters and the midwest open and then smoke vegas, that will get you on the map. Make sure you save the earnings so that you can travel overseas and smoke nimes and and a few other international shoots and show reo who the new boss is. By the time you do all that you savings of the earnings you won this year will be gone because it is expensive to travel over there and you got to start doing this over the next year and basically win most of the big shoots out there. By the time two or three years of your domination your list of big wins might get you to the point where someone wants to put you on salary like a reo. Take a look at his resume sometime and see what he had to do to earn the right to be a full time salary guy, he was still working a normal job just a few years ago and had a resume at that time to die for.


Beautifully said, as always. You don't seek them out, when your scores are good enough, they will seek you. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


----------



## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

I have a new buddy that is traveling with us and he is just over one year into shooting, let me say that again. HE IS ONLY ONE YEAR INTO SHOOTING. Last winter he showed up with a target bow shooting a hinge at our league nights and was competitive and a wonderful guy to be around and he put up some nice rounds as a first year guy.

He went to his first couple asa's this summer and he won out of open c with a nice weekend score and I fully expected him to just go to known 45, NOPE. He dove right into known 50 and found him tied for 4th place with Jesse Broadwater, he ended up getting 7th I believe because of 12 rings but to me shooting a clean round without eights is more impressive than shooting more 12's and getting some eights. Regardless, this young man stepped up and battled with some of the best out there on a tough course and that is what you do to get noticed.


----------



## thawk (Mar 11, 2003)

oldpro888 said:


> Beautifully said, as always. You don't seek them out, when your scores are good enough, they will seek you.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


really?? That's beautifully said?? Do the impossible, something that no archer in history has ever done, and then you will be ready to be a pro? I would have thought someone that is or has been a pro would have thought that was about the most ridicules guideline anyone could have thought of.


----------



## oldpro888 (Dec 31, 2010)

Thawk22 said:


> really?? That's beautifully said?? Do the impossible, something that no archer in history has ever done, and then you will be ready to be a pro? I would have thought someone that is or has been a pro would have thought that was about the most ridicules guideline anyone could have thought of.


I like humor, certainly not answering to what I find well said. I guess that blunt approach suits me.
I was/have seen pro talent discovered. The first year I bought a target bow, shot 300 nfaa the first week. Won State, mid Atlantic, clean at nationals the first year. Never had a lick of coaching. Shot a lot for 10 years, never bought any equipment, won a lot. In thirty years I haven't made as much as my current job salary in one year.I have seen Jimmy Despart (first one that comes to mind) be a prodigy at 14. Watched both of Dee's boys destroying everyone coming up.
My point, to be a top pro, the separation is quick and obvious. This btw is true for any sport. Also true, once you pass 50, you lose ground, Father Time never gets beaten. Hard to have a career that doesn't pay and ends early.
Archery is a great "hobby" for all but a few, even this old timer.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------

