Clay Target Nation

The official magazine of the National Skeet Shooting Association and the National Sporting Clays Association

Kentucky State Skeet Championships

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Chief Paduke Gun Club was selected by the state association to host the 2018 Kentucky State Championships. A full slate of gunners attended, with participation being the highest of the last 10 years.

In Friday’s Doubles competition, Missourian Mike Galloway carded the best score with a 99. Barry Stevenson proved to be the best of in-state contestants with his 98. Class winners were Ron Thomas A1 (97), Dave Duncan B1 (95), Wayne Wiksen C1 (91) and Leigh Lesser D1 (82).

Troy Stevenson of Calvert City is pictured receiving a plaque from Dr. Kenneth Ford. Photo provided by Marshall County Daily.
Dr. Ted Hatfield receiving his Hall of Fame plaque from Dr. Kenneth Ford. Photo provided by Marshall County Daily.

As shooting resumed on Saturday, three shooters broke them all with the 12. Joe Charles, AA, was joined on the shoot-off field by two B-class entrants, Hobart Miller and Kevin Parrott; coincidentally, both are members of the Jefferson Gun Club Team, and it was the first 100 straight for each. Parrott prevailed in the Doubles shoot-off, leaving his co-competitors with first place in their respective classes. Other class winners were Barkley Lister A1 (99), Bob Toy C1 (96), Barry Garner D1 (96) and Milton Stevenson E1 (92). Miller and Parrott, joined by Wiksen, Rick Corneliussen and Andrew Amrhein, combined for a 491 to take the coveted club 5-man team trophy back to JGC for the next year.

Michael Schlarman prevailed in a three-way shoot-off of 100s for the 20-gauge championship. Joining him for the tie-breaker were Tom Selley, AA1, and perennial state champion Troy Stevenson. Dave Duncan broke 99 birds for first in A. Other class winners included Richard Ladd B1 (99), Johnny Evans C1 (97) and John Oliver D1 (89).

In appreciation of the stellar turnout, Chief Paduke hosted a fish fry on Saturday evening, a tasty offering prepared by Earl and Ann Yarbrough. Following the dinner, the annual KSSA business meeting was conducted. A highlight of this year’s affair was the introduction of the first class of the Kentucky Skeet Hall of Fame. Members of the first class were Gene Wentz, Keath Hammon, Troy Stevenson and Ted Hatfield. Ted traveled from Florida for his induction, and it was great meeting one of the true legends of skeet, both on the state and national level. The efforts of Ken Ford in getting the Hall of Fame effort started are much appreciated.

The sun kept shining on Sunday, as the competitors gathered for the final day of the shoot. Schlarman brought home his second gun championship of the weekend by busting all 100 targets in 28 gauge. Winning the classes were Troy Stevenson AA1 (99), Michael Wilkerson A1 (99), Wayne Lister B1 (99), Steve Brenningmeyer C1 (96) and Rick Gonzales D1 (92).

Ken Ford claimed an outright victory in .410, as he was the only shooter to break all 100 targets. Heading the classes were Dennis Burns AA1 (98), Barry Stevenson A1 (98), Jeff Pope B1 (94), Hobart Miller C1 (95) and Rick Gonzales D1 (95).

Burns and Schlarman tied for both open and state HOA crowns with 394s, with Schlarman prevailing in the shoot-off. Dave Duncan’s (390) consistency throughout the weekend won him the A title. Richard Ladd claimed HOA honors in B by hitting 390 targets. Mike Burrell seized first in C with 376 total. John Oliver bested his D-class competitors with 362, and Zach Kidd was victorious in E with a 288 total.

Chief Paduke Gun Club is blessed with a group of a dozen officers and keyholders, joined by long-time hard-working club members Mike Champy, Tom Collier, and Albert Marshall that each chipped in to make the shoot such a rousing success. A special note of appreciation to Wayne Wiksen, KSSA treasurer for his efforts in coordinating the shoot.

– Contributed by Bob Toy

Kentucky Lake Open

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Chief Paduke Gun Club (Paducah, Kentucky) hosted the 59th Kentucky Lake Open on July 20-22. At the completion of Friday’s Doubles championship, Dennis Burns Jr. of Fancy Farm, KY, topped the leader board with the only 99. Kevin Parrott of Louisville won AA with a 95. Tom Selley, Mt. Juliet, TN, led A by breaking 98. The B class was taken by Joe Marr, Troy, IL, with a score of 94. Dick Ferguson, Lake St. Louis, MO proved best in C with a tally of 86 hits. Nathan Harrington, Benton, KY, was first in D, with 89 Xs on the scoreboard.

At the end of the day’s shooting, many of the participants spent a fun-filled evening at Harrah’s Casino in nearby Metropolis as guests of the casino. This has become somewhat of a tradition with our out-of-town guests who look forward to the outing each year. This was the 24th consecutive year for Harrah’s to host our shooters, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Burns won the shoot-off of 100 straights in the all-gauge event, besting Rodney Reinier, a class B gunner from Lebanon, IL, who had just posted his first 100 straight. Perennial KLO contender Mark Presnell, Jackson, MO, was AA winner with a 99. Josh Beard, also of Jackson, led A class with 97, and Richard Ladd, Collierville, TN, bested C with his 96. Club officer Mike Hatler, Bandana, KY, was the D winner with 96. Harrington was the best in the E division with 92.

Burns kept rolling in the 20-gauge shoot-off, beating Vernon Shedd of Ludlow, IL, in the Doubles tie-breaker after both shot 100. Ken Ford, Calvert City, KY, came out on top of AA class with his 99. Class A first was taken by Barry Stevenson, Calvert City, KY, also with 99. Shedd was the B winner, while Harrington led C by smoking 90 clays. A 93 by Dennis Owen, Medon, TN, was good enough to top the 20-gauge D rank.

A new twist at this year’s event was the operation of the kitchen by Kathy Toy and her fellow members of the Paducah DAR chapter. It was agreed unanimously that both the appearance of the help and quality of the lunches served was vastly improved over the days when Roger Hazen attempted to perform this task! Another major part of what makes the KLO a great shoot was the efforts of B. J. Yates and her staff of top flight referees – Denny Edwards, Jay Byrd, Seth Crawford and Brad Felton.

After three events, the smart money was on Burns to run the table, but then the 28 gauge reared its head, and a 98 went on the scorecard; Ken Ford was the only entrant able to survive unscathed with his 100 straight. Presnell was the AA top gun again with an almost-perfect 99. Davis Minton, Dexter, MO notched a win in A, also with a 99. Richard Ladd didn’t cut them any slack in B, breaking 99. Pat English, Jackson, TN, took the top prize in C by busting 89. John Oliver, Kevil, KY, 87, was the conqueror of D.

Burns righted the ship in the .410 event, posting a brilliant 99, to take another gun crown sans shoot-off. Parrott wound up atop AA by virtue of his 96. Stevenson triumphed in A by squashing 97. Minton again prevailed over the B group by virtue of his 94. When the smoke cleared, Pat English and his 87 sat all alone at the top of the C heap. D class .410 first was taken by Ferguson with 80.

Burns added another KLO HOA crown to his lengthy string of major victories, by virtue of his 397. Ford managed AA1 with his tally of 393 markers. Larry Blount, visiting from Tuscon, AZ, was a great help in preparing for the shoot and also notched a nice 388 to lead the pack in A class. Stevenson bested the B category with his 385. In the C HOA race, Mike Burrell, Blodgett, MO, came out on top of the pack with his total of 362. Harrington beat Oliver, 349 to 341, to claim D honors.

We will be back again in 2019 for the 60th version of our shoot, third weekend of July. Plan now on signing up early.

– Contributed by Bob Toy

58th Kentucky Lake Open

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Dennis Burns, All-American of Fancy Farm, Kentucky, posted a sterling 398 to take top honors at this year’s Kentucky Lake Open. A rare respite from typical mid-summer temperatures kept the daily highs below the magic 90-degree mark. A good time was had by all, with many promises of “see you next year” upon our contestants’ Sunday afternoon departures.

Jerry Triplett, Rob Gyngard, and Burns broke 98s to start the shoot in Friday’s Doubles event. In a prelude of things to come, Burns vanquished his two foes for his first, but surely not last championship of the weekend. Ken Ford, Calvert City (95) led the AA class while Triplett settled for A1. Willie Taylor, Jr., all the way from West Point, MS, was the B-class winner with 94, and Kevin Hess took C by busting 87.

Three competitors broke them all in Saturday morning’s All-Gauge event, with Burns topping squadmate Tom Selley (AA1), and Joe Marr (B1) in the tie breaker. Ronald Blalock was best in A class with his 99 as Don Beard did the same in C with 97. Dean Rapp won D with 88, and Mike Hatler was best in E class with 93.

Three shooters had 100s with the yellow shells – Burns, Selley, and up-and-coming collegiate star Codey Dean. The youngster won the shoot-off, notching his first ever KLO gun championship. Burns settled for AA1. Mark Presnell was first in A class with his 99 while Barry Stevenson won B with 98. John Lawson won C with 92. New local shooter Jason Summarell led D by breaking a nice 89.

Burns apparently enjoyed the handshakes and congratulations he received after his prior conquests enough that he decided to do it again Sunday morning, but this time his 100 was the only red mark on the 28-gauge scoreboard. Glenn Rickman was AA1 by virtue of his 99. Bart Redman was best in A class with just one miss. Don Beard grabbed another class win, easily out-distancing the B field with his great score of 98. Bill Huffman was the C top gun with a total X count of 92. Mike Hatler marked again by prevailing in a tie breaker of 91s over Bob Simpson for the D-class crown

In the baby bore, Burns wrapped up his shoot with a strong 98 to take another uncontested gun championship. Selley won AA with a 97. Codey Dean took home more Kentucky Lake Open prize cash with his 97 in A class. John Phillips took home B1 money with his 96. Rodney Reinier won C with 93. Leigh Hanneken prevailed in D by busting 62.

Dennis Burns’s 398 took the HOA purse outright, leaving Selley atop AA with his 395. Mr. Dean, A-class HOA shooter, won his division with a nice 391. Barry Stevenson took B1 HOA honors with his 383. Bob Zimmerman made the trip from Indiana worthwhile by grabbing the top spot in C with 368. Bob Simpson was D-class HOA champ by virtue of his 354, with granddaughter Leigh Hanneken winning E with a 270.

The KLO continues to run smoothly each year, due mainly to the pitch-in-and-help attitude displayed by many club members. Chief Paduke Gun Club would also like to thank all those who supported and participated, especially Harrah’s, which hosted all competitors and their respective entourages in a complimentary buffet at Harrah’s of Metropolis, a KLO tradition in its 23rd year.

Plan now on signing up early for the 2018 version.

– Contributed by Bob Toy

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