# Yardage Judging Tips



## 5280hunter (Sep 22, 2017)

Hello all.

I typically shoot known distance classes but am debating shooting unknown this year. I wanted to create this thread for people to share their best tips and tricks for judging yardage. When I judge I typically guess a number by looking at target directly. I then check that number by ground judging and finding the halfway point. 

Feel free to share any alternative methods or judging tips for specific targets such as those in shadows or tunnels.

Tyler


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## Nockonater (Oct 8, 2007)

Good topic. I completely missed 2 targets yesterday because of bad judgement one those targets. I could have sworn they were 30 yards, but they were 40...oops. i try to judge by ground judging and try to guess halfway too. Some times i get tricked by logs or uneven ground, or them little bobcat targets.. I'm thinking about carrying my range finder everywhere I go and just practice 24 hrs a day and then see how close I was.. 

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## jdoc (Jul 31, 2012)

I myself am working on getting better at this now that i am switching it up with a bare bow, any tips and tricks others have to say would be useful.


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## dper (Mar 16, 2013)

One of the best tips given to me was to put markers ( invisible dog fence flags work great) every 5 yards out to your class max yardage. Burn that 5 yd distance in your mind so you can see it without wondering. Every time you practice, judge the yardage even with the markers up. 
I have never been great at judging and match that up with a shorter draw length (slower speeds) that is not a good combination. But this has helped me improve my judging and scores 
You just need to find some method or combination that works for you and that gives you the confidence when you are at full draw that you made the right decision. 



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## Methodman (Feb 15, 2015)

The half distance is great advice. Look at the target, find the half way point, your brain is very good at that. Now cut it in half again. Try it with LONG distances and keep cutting it in half. You will be surprised how close you get

Burn a known distance into your head. KNOW what twenty yards is, or thirty. JUST KNOW that you KNOW that distance. Find an object that is THAT distance first. THEN look at the target. 

Trust your onboard computer! 

Practice all the time. Your yard. Your office. in the woods, at the golf course, in your car driving past a sign or building. Carry your range finder. JUST KEEP LOOKING AT STUFF and checking with your range finder. Pick ten things a day, and record your plus minus error, Keep doing that until your score gets lower.


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## huteson2us2 (Jun 22, 2005)

I have never been good at judging distances. Been doing it for over 60 years. I have used all the methods mentioned above including cutting the distance to the target in half and judging the distance to the half and doubling it. None works for me. I have seen others who can judge out to 80 yards and be within 1/2 yard. I envy those people. Sometimes I believe that you either have it or not. Some improve their ability by practice but not me.


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## Trackercasey (Dec 15, 2011)

My son and I "Bet" (just bragging Rights) who can judge the yardage better. putting a little "wager" on it makes us think a little harder and therefore take it a little more serious. It helps.


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## sagecreek (Jul 15, 2003)

It's always just a WAG.


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## 3D archr (May 17, 2014)

What ever you do stick with your first number and go with it don’t Second guess your number second guessing will make your mine wounder witch will take your focus off the target.


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## huteson2us2 (Jun 22, 2005)

I went out to the 3D course at my range. They have a 3D range set up 24-7. I took a man that was a 3D champion 5 years ago but does not shoot anymore due to age. I had him judge the distance to the targets thinking that he would be much better than I. In the first 10 targets, he was off on judgement by as much as 10 yards. Taking his judgement over mine on a couple of long ones, I completely missed the animal. Even though I am not good at judging, I was much better than him. I would have had at least an 8. Goes to show you that you have to keep up on your practice on judging distance. It has to be a maintained skill more that a learned skill. 

On the other hand, I shot a field round with a very good 3D archer last year. When we came to a 55 yard target, he told us that it was only 53 1/2 yards. We all shot it for 53 1/2 yards and hit the spot. When the group behind us caught up while we were shooting, he asked another good 3D shooter in the group if he saw what was wrong with the target. The man said yes it was a yard and a half off. I will never be that good.


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## Bpstainback (Jan 18, 2019)

huteson2us2 that takes serious skill


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## vahylander (Dec 6, 2007)

Learn 10 and 20 yds. Well. I typically judge the animal immediately upon arriving at the stake. Then look for 20 yds out since I know that well. Then I will also look at halfway or try to find a prominent structure near halfway- the tree, root, log, shadow that looks easy to ID at halfway or at 20 yds. Then I can add 10 yd/5yd increments to it to get a total. Doing all 3 of these in less than 20-30 seconds and then coming to a final calculation. I bought an entire ASA and IBO range last year at the events- and I'm getting ready to set them back up here on my farm. Nothing works as well as burning those animals into your subconscious in the woods and rangefinding to check and validate. Your brain will store all those calculations away.


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## wannaBelkhuntin (Jul 3, 2006)

I shot with a Senior Pro IBO and ASA and we talked about practice. I told him I tried to go out in my yard [8 3D targets] and shoot at least 20 arrows every night. He said he does the same [sort of], but instead of shooting he goes out and practices estimating yardage every night. Just goes for a walk and estimates objects he sees and then checks with a rangefinder. He was really good at it and a pleasure to shoot with. Plus he won a lot last year !!!!


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## Bpstainback (Jan 18, 2019)

Good alternative way to practice. I hadnt considered practicing yardage estimation w/o shooting.


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## Duvall2g (Mar 8, 2018)

i Need to try the flag trick


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## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

I have listed out all of my tricks in threads like this one over the years many times, search and you can find them. 

My thing is the tricks are nice but until you stick you range finder in your truck and every time you have 15 minutes to blow you get out and range stuff in a parking lot or back yard at someones house or behind the school your kid is playing ball at you are wasting your time. It is the bulk guessing and checking with the range finder that will make you really strong. 

In the years when I was good about working on my guessing I could walk around a asa course at the national shoots and easily stay in the 10 ring and that includes aiming directly at every stinking 12 ring regardless of distance. On the years where I don't commit to hours of practice with my range finder you will find nickles on my score card and some 8's.


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## Farfrumugen (Sep 27, 2016)

Good tips here. I suck at distance. Aging eyes doesn't help either


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## darkchild4life (Jun 12, 2018)

Also take in to account size of the animal your shooting and shadows, these things can change the yardage + or - a few yards


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## BoganOutdoors (Aug 4, 2018)

Thanks everyone for the tips. I too look forward to shooting unknown one day.


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## Quickstick_28 (Aug 22, 2016)

Good advice


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## Mustangtc65 (May 3, 2018)

Buy some expensive arrows. You will start taking your judging very seriously.


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## TxAgs97 (Feb 20, 2010)

Any suggestions for a good range finder?


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## geothechop (Feb 24, 2006)

Great info. Thanks for the tips!


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## Fdalebowhunter7 (Sep 1, 2016)

Great tips! Practice,practice, practice


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## bowhnt07 (May 5, 2010)

I try to find halfway then find a 10 yard mark. It works good for me out to 30 yards, after that I just can't see it.


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## 5280hunter (Sep 22, 2017)

TxAgs97 said:


> Any suggestions for a good range finder?


Leupold 1200


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## iammarty (Dec 29, 2010)

One thing that I’ve always found helpful: stand in your shooters stance and look at the target. Then look straight down. Close sour eyes and relax - wiggle your arms a little. Keeping your eyes closed, turn your head towards where you thought the target was, then open your eyes and notice the point where you feel you are looking at the ground. That point is usually 20 yards for me. Figure out what it is for you, and you will have a good reference point you can use. 


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## ThwackerPSU (Oct 26, 2015)

I watched the archers at foley. What is the method some of them use when the start raising there head? Like they point their chin down at the ground and raise it as they judge towards the animal.


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## Hunter Hines (Mar 7, 2019)

I use 1x4 stakes and paint them fluorescent red every 5 yards 
I have five different animals of different sizes
And set each one up different. One in pines, one in field, one with hidden ground or a rolling hill,one down hill etc...
Each target has markers, and I will shoot them all at 20 one week 25 the next 
All the way to 50
I have learned on large targets take a yard off. And small targets add a yard


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## Cpacha (Jul 18, 2017)

....


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## stringgun (Feb 6, 2012)

wannaBelkhuntin said:


> I shot with a Senior Pro IBO and ASA and we talked about practice. I told him I tried to go out in my yard [8 3D targets] and shoot at least 20 arrows every night. He said he does the same [sort of], but instead of shooting he goes out and practices estimating yardage every night. Just goes for a walk and estimates objects he sees and then checks with a rangefinder. He was really good at it and a pleasure to shoot with. Plus he won a lot last year !!!!


Thats what i do, I go for walks around my house and take my RF along and guess distances and then range them. Use valley, tree lines, up and down hill scenerios


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## archergirl24703 (Dec 27, 2018)

I judge by visualizing where i normally shoot. I've shot down the same path of the same driveway for the past eleven years so I am familiar with all of the distances there. At shoots I just picture the target down the driveway and try to section it off in ten yard increments.


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## ThackMan (Jan 10, 2017)

stringgun said:


> Thats what i do, I go for walks around my house and take my RF along and guess distances and then range them. Use valley, tree lines, up and down hill scenerios


That's kinda what I've always done. You can train yourself to guess quite well.


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## keepnitgreen (Feb 28, 2012)

I'm still trying to improve with this, but finding the halfway point is helpful for me, then working out that distance and doubling it gets me close most of the time. 
I feel like my 20yd estimation is good from all of my indoor shooting, so I try and use that as a base also.

When I first approach a new target, I make a quick estimation and adjust my sight. Once its my turn and I step to the line, I try and talk myself out of that first estimate. If I can't, then I go for it. Sometimes you see something you missed in your initial look and need to re-adjust, but most often I find that first guess can be quite accurate.


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## bignox (Oct 15, 2018)

Break it up into 10 yards increments and how large things appear at 10/20/30/40 yards. It is not how large animals or 3d targets appear. This will fool you. Look at the knots in trees, blades of grass, leaves and trust those scales. Also, take note of where the sun is when estimating.


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## Radieker (Feb 1, 2018)

I'm a big fan of my luepold. There customer service has been great.


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## Ned250 (Aug 10, 2009)

The halfway approach is a good verification technique, but I don’t like using it as the primary judge. If you’re off on your half, then your mistake is going to be doubled. Misjudge that half by 2, you’re now off by 4. No thanks. 

I shoot 50 max... I first look at the target and see if I get a number right away (sometimes I do sometimes I don’t). I then work on finding my 30 or 40. When I find that I judge from that mark to the target. Once I have that number I’ll look for the halfway and see if I come up with the same number. I use all 3 methods to narrow it down as best I can, but I won’t use just one (I do get lazy sometimes [emoji3061]). 

When I practice I work on memorizing the 30 and 40 targets on the club practice range. Then work on ranging random objects in the woods, fields, etc. judge it - Range it. If I’m off I reset and try again to see why I misjudged. Was it missing ground? Lighting?

One thing I’d suggest is to practice in varying lighting conditions. On a dark or cloudy day, I’ve found that I’m typically 2yds light compared to a bright sunny day.


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## Hitman6302 (Jan 26, 2018)

I like finding my 20 first then flip it(if that makes sense) then add or subtract from there.


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## mod-it (Apr 19, 2016)

I do what most have already stated. Practice judging and then verify with a rangefinder. Do this every time you think about it. I do this on weekends a lot, I spend a lot of time in the woods and try to always remember to throw the rangefinder in my pocket. Camping, fishing, mushroom hunting, etc. etc.
I first just look straight to the target and get a number. I look at the side of the target to try to avoid the size of the target influencing it. The more you practice at known distances the easier this becomes, as in you should be shooting every couple days as much as possible, even if it's just a few arrows. I find that this first number just looking straight at the target is usually my most accurate. I then find 20 yards and go out in 10 yard increments to the target for a second number. It might be a bit different than the first number. Then I find halfway. All of them are hopefully within 2-3 yards of each other. I then average them and shoot that number. As mentioned, second guessing is usually ALWAYS a bad idea, stay with the first number. Don't let other shooters all hitting high or low influence your own number.
One other thing I really think helps that I didn't see mentioned...I always show up to the shoot with time to go to the target range and shoot a few arrows. Two main reasons: It lets me loosen up a bit, and it also helps to freshen up in my mind what each distance looks like to start out the day. This last one may seem silly, but I see lots of folks show up, register, and then just head straight out onto the course.


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## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

Last week I finally got out each night all week long and worked on my ranging and it payed off on saturday because I shot 22 up on a decent course and only had two 8's, for me this was the first time this season that I didn't have multiple targets with 5 to 7 yard screw ups that resulted in 5's or a zero. On top of the nickles I had been having a good 7 or so 8's which topped off my sucky scores. 

I just took off and walked around my city block and I stopped when the next mail box looked like 40 yards and I checked with the range finder. I used cars and mail boxes and light poles as I walk around the block and this has been my go to training. I have also been walking with my head down in the yard and stopping in random spots and then ranging everything I can see from that spot, then I put my head down and walk to a different spot. For this I am mainly looking for the 24 to 38 yard stuff to try and get spot on guesses. 

I am in my full second week of doing this and am starting to see some major improvements already, my guesses are approaching plus or minus 1.5 yards and I am hoping in a couple more weeks to be within 1 yd. 

Right now I am not using the ground at all when training, I am looking directly at the object only and guessing within a couple seconds. I am not allowing myself to use any extra methods at all and am just training my visual guess.


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## Padgett (Feb 5, 2010)

Last week I finally got out each night all week long and worked on my ranging and it payed off on saturday because I shot 22 up on a decent course and only had two 8's, for me this was the first time this season that I didn't have multiple targets with 5 to 7 yard screw ups that resulted in 5's or a zero. On top of the nickles I had been having a good 7 or so 8's which topped off my sucky scores. 

I just took off and walked around my city block and I stopped when the next mail box looked like 40 yards and I checked with the range finder. I used cars and mail boxes and light poles as I walk around the block and this has been my go to training. I have also been walking with my head down in the yard and stopping in random spots and then ranging everything I can see from that spot, then I put my head down and walk to a different spot. For this I am mainly looking for the 24 to 38 yard stuff to try and get spot on guesses. 

I am in my full second week of doing this and am starting to see some major improvements already, my guesses are approaching plus or minus 1.5 yards and I am hoping in a couple more weeks to be within 1 yd. 

Right now I am not using the ground at all when training, I am looking directly at the object only and guessing within a couple seconds. I am not allowing myself to use any extra methods at all and am just training my visual guess.


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## AceProballer (Mar 25, 2019)

That's a fantastic idea. New to shooting (2 months) and shot unknown 30 in my first competition last week.. Shot 25 targets and was down 13, but was better average than my known shoots... Maybe less stress and more. relaxed.


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## Scottspot50 (Nov 21, 2017)

I like to judge a point on the ground that is at 10 yards. I usually start my practice sessions at 10 yards so I judge that pretty well. From there I flip that 10 yards to the next point on the ground, that’s 20. I continue to estimate 10 yards at a time until I get close to the target then I eyeball it. So let’s say I get to 30 and my next 10 to 40 should be a little past the target. Maybe I shoot it at 37.


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## Scottspot50 (Nov 21, 2017)

I like to judge a point on the ground that is at 10 yards. I usually start my practice sessions at 10 yards so I judge that pretty well. From there I flip that 10 yards to the next point on the ground, that’s 20. I continue to estimate 10 yards at a time until I get close to the target then I eyeball it. So let’s say I get to 30 and my next 10 to 40 should be a little past the target. Maybe I shoot it at 37.


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## Saney2k (Oct 14, 2017)

That's a great practice tip!


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## Saney2k (Oct 14, 2017)

Mustangtc65 said:


> Buy some expensive arrows. You will start taking your judging very seriously.


True story!


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## Bigwilly1210 (May 26, 2016)

good stuff


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