Remembering The 2010 NRA National Pistol Championships

Editor's note: 2010 was big for the NRA National Pistol Championships, with 770 total entries at the match that year at Camp Perry. Here's former Managing Editor Chip Lohman's coverage of the event as it was published in the Sept. 2010 issue of Shooting Sports USA.

2010 National Pistol Championships
By Chip Lohman

NRA National Championships are well-organized, run like clockwork and the pistol matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, are no exception. The punctual 7:30 a.m. cannon shot, the commanding voice of the tower talkers and the watchful eye of each volunteer line official give one the feeling of having walked onto an Olympic playing field—with one exception. Everyone gets to play. Thanks to a time-tested system of classification and squadding, shooters of all skill levels can shoot shoulder-to-shoulder. As is true for all shooting sports, tyros (new shooters) will be welcomed by fellow sportsmen who can help explain how many targets you’re supposed to take to the line or provide tips on filling-out your first score card. In fact, there are more marksmen and unclassified shooters than masters, as the table below reflects.

Brian Zins of Poland, Ohio, returned to the podium this year to claim his 10th win, a record of “most wins” that began with his seventh championship title in 2005. Zins’ 2650-134X score this year surpassed the 2009 winning score of 2646-141X fired by fellow shooter and friend, SFC Jim Henderson of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit.

Brian Zins (r.) on the podium at the 2010 awards ceremony.

Dr. Judy Tant (East Lansing, Mich.) won her third consecutive national title and sixth overall with a consistent 2565-69X. (Her 2009 title was won with a 2566-72X.) If you don’t already know about Judy, you can read her biography in the Nov. 2009 issue of SSUSA.

Eighteen-year-old Bryan Layfield (Clarksburg, W.V.) swept nine of the Junior and Collegiate categories in the .22 LR and .45 cal. matches, as well as the overall junior aggregate. Having begun his shooting career less than two years ago, it’s fair to call Layfield a “natural.” Credit Allen White, twice a member of the NRA's USA Civilian Pistol Team, for recruiting and coaching Layfield. Brian Zins, take note.

2010 Mayleigh Cup Team at Camp Perry.

Shooters from across the U.S. and 16 foreign countries descended on Port Clinton during Jul. 12-19, many using the preceding week’s regional match in Canton, Ohio, as a warm-up. Incidentally, the top three from the Canton match were SFC Jim Henderson (2667-148X), Brian Zins (2656-136X) and Lyman Grover (2655-124X). Not surprisingly, Dr. Judy Tant earned High Woman at Canton with a 2562-86X and Bryan Layfield earned High Junior with a 2582-86X.

2010 NRA National Pistol Championships Daily Leaderboard

Note that several hundred additional scores are listed in the online final results. This is what makes the NRA Nationals unique; everyone gets to play. In the words of President Theodore Roosevelt, “…It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena…”