The 2024 Dixie Match and NRA Day event were held at Gateway Rifle and Pistol Club in Jacksonville, Florida, on April 19-21. This annual National Rifle Association-sanctioned Regional Precision Pistol Championship continues to be a highlight for many Florida Bullseye Pistol shooters, and was also attended by military and civilian competitors from 11 states, along with one competitor traveling to Florida all the way from Puerto Rico.
There was a total of 51 shooters competing at the Dixie Match this year, with beautiful weather over the course of the three-day competition.
The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit (AMU) took first and second place with Jason Gregoire (Midland, Georgia) firing a 2640-109X to take the “Top Gun” honor, winning the NRA Regional Championship and being named the 2024 Dixie Match Champion.
Coming in second place was Gregoire’s AMU teammate, Greg Markowski (Fortson, Georgia), firing a score of 2635-120X. As for third place, it was earned by Jordan Kramp (Fairfield, California), who walked away from the match with a score of 2607-79X.
The top score in the High Master Class was Wes Fleming (New Philadelphia, Ohio) with 2588-105X. Top shot in the Master Class (Civilian) was Robert Fanucci (Mershon, Georgia) with 2557-85X and the AMU’s Mate Standard (Service/Police) firing a score of 2582-84X.
The Expert Class winner was Reinaldo Gonzalez (Ponce, Puerto Rico) with a score of 2489-49X.
As for the Sharpshooter Class, the title wen to by Jinsong Tian (St. Johns, Florida) with a score of 2376-35X.
Winning the Marksman Class was Jacob Milich (Jacksonville, Florida), who fired a score of 2326-36X.
Securing the .22 Caliber Only Aggregate title was Rand Albrecht (Phenix City, Alabama) with a score of 2472-54X.
Special Category Awards for High Civilian and High Veteran went to Jordan Kramp. This year’s Dixie Match Champion, Jason Gregoire, also won High Service and Open division. Winning the Metallic Division was Jinsong Tian. High Women went to Shelly Liu (Cary, North Carolina). High Senior went to Nestor Pena (Winter Park, Florida), while High Grand Senior was won by Tony Silva (Snowflake, Arizona). Special recognition for tying a Gateway Rifle and Pistol Club range record in the .22 Caliber Timed Fire Match with a score of 200-18X goes to AMU shooter and 2024 Dixie Match runner-up Greg Markowski.
A total of seven two-person teams competed this year at the 2024 Dixie Match. The AMU won the overall team match (a combination of scores from the .22, Centerfire and .45 team matches) with a final score of 1754-88X. Winning the .22 Only team match was the Florida Sport Shooting Association team with 1581-32X.
The NRA Distinguished Revolver Match had 19 shooters competing. Winning the match was the AMU’s Greg Markowski with a score of 285-8X, followed by teammate Jason Gregoire with a 280-6X. Taking “bronze” was Chase Turner (Atlanta, Georgia) with 263-5X.
The CMP Service Pistol EIC Match had 28 competitors and was won by Jason Gregoire with 295-13X, followed by Greg Markowski firing a score of 288-11X and Mate Standard (Waverly Hall, Georgia) finishing in third place with a 282-9X.
The CMP .22 Rimfire EIC Match also had 28 shooters participating. Winning the match was Greg Markowski with a score of 296-9X, followed by Jason Gregoire with 289-11X and, in third place, Ames Evans (Columbia, Maryland) with a score of 284-11X.
Now in its sixth year, air pistol was offered as an additional event for the competitors at the Dixie Match. The 20-shot air pistol fun match and a “closest to the center shot” competition both had solid participation. The air pistol events were fired in the Gateway Rifle and Pistol Club’s Bill Craig facility. Proceeds from the match—combined with donated prizes—brought in more than $400 to support the Florida Sport Shooting Association’s different shooting programs.
The annual Dixie Match remains a well-attended Bullseye match. There were 11 first-time Dixie shooters, several from Florida, along with several more coming from as far away as California, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Puerto Rico. Serving as the Match Director once again was Ted Carter. Calling a superb line for all three days of the 2024 Dixie Match was Chief Range Officer Larry Watkins. Assisting Larry and helping to ensure a well-run and safe firing line were Range Officers David Poole, Marion Estes, Dennis Faye and Robert Fanucci. In addition, Randy Erickson assisted as Jury Chairman. Recording and posting all scores were Chief Statistical Officer Sue Carter, who was assisted by Emily Puckett. The latter also assisted with administering the Air Gun range. There were multiple compliments from the competitors regarding the excellent facilities at Gateway and the friendly, professional and safety conscious staff.
Many thanks to all the competitors for their support, with the majority driving hundreds of miles to attend the match. A special thank you to our sponsors: Pardini USA, Magpul, Swab-its, Hornady, Ransom International, Mission BBQ, Zero Bullets, Starline Brass, Clenzoil, My Medic, Esca Tech, MidwayUSA, the National Rifle Association of America, Ruger and the Florida Sport Shooting Association for their generous support of our match. Finally, a well-earned thanks goes out to the Dixie Match staff, the Gateway Rifle and Pistol Club range officers, office staff, webmaster and the range maintenance folks who all made this another great shooting event. Planning has already begun for the 2025 Dixie Match, and we are looking forward to another exciting competition next year.
For a complete listing of scores and to see additional match photos, please visit grpc-jax.com.
