The Exposed Firearms Course of Fire
- Rounds fired
- 50
- Perfect score
- 250
- Minimum to pass
- 200
- Misses allowed
- 10
From 3 to 15 yards
5 points per hit
40 hits in the scoring area
Out of 50 rounds
50 rounds, 5 stages
| Distance | Rounds | Time | Conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15yd | 5 rds | 30 sec | Straight run |
| 10yd | 20 rds | 30 sec |
|
| 7yd | 10 rds | 20 sec |
|
| 5yd | 10 rds | 30 sec |
|
| 3yd | 5 rds | 10 sec | Straight run |
| Total | 50 rds | 250 points possible · 200 to qualify |
Each qualifying hit is worth 5 points. 200 of 250 is a pass, so 40 of 50 rounds have to land in the scoring area — you can afford to drop 10.
What each stage is actually testing
- 15yd5 rds · 30s
The longest shot you will be asked to make, with the most time to make it. Time is not the pressure here — sight alignment and trigger control are. Most points lost at 15 yards are lost to a rushed first round on a stage that did not need rushing.
- 10yd20 rds · 30s
1 reload
The stage that decides most qualification scores. Twenty rounds and a reload inside thirty seconds means the reload has to be a practised motion rather than a thought. This is the single strongest argument for prep-day range time.
- 7yd10 rds · 20s
5 dominant hand · 5 non-dominant hand
Non-dominant hand shooting is the stage people have never practised. Five rounds with your support hand inside the same twenty seconds is entirely doable — and almost impossible to improvise if the first time you try it is on qualification day.
- 5yd10 rds · 30s
5 standing · 5 kneeling
Getting to kneeling, shooting from it, and staying inside the time. Knowing how you will get down — and back up — before the timer starts is most of this stage.
- 3yd5 rds · 10s
Close and fast. Ten seconds is generous for five rounds at three yards, but only if the gun comes up the same way it has come up all day.
What to practise beforehand
The reload under time
Twenty rounds and a reload in thirty seconds at 10 yards is where most of the lost points live. Practise it as one motion — fire, reload, back on target — until it does not require thinking about.
Non-dominant hand shooting
Five rounds support-hand-only at 7 yards catches out shooters who have never fired a round that way. It is a skill, not a trick, and half an hour of deliberate practice covers it.
Standing to kneeling, and back
Work out how you get to kneeling with your own duty rig on, and how you get back up. Doing it for the first time on the clock costs time you needed for the shooting.
Drawing from your duty holster
Every stage starts from the holster you actually wear on post. A draw practised with a different rig is a different draw.
Accuracy at 15 yards
The longest stage has the most time and the least margin for a sloppy trigger press. Slow, deliberate rounds at distance are what confirm your fundamentals are there.
Shooting the gun you carry
Qualify with your duty weapon, and prepare with it too. Borrowed-gun scores do not transfer to the gun on your belt.
Want to be better prepared before qualification day?
- Run the course of fire before the day it is scored
- Work the 10-yard reload under the clock
- Shoot support-hand-only before it counts
- Individual correction on whatever is costing you points
