The Best Clay Grounds For Game Shots

Royal Berkshire Shooting School 

Dylan Williams, founder and managing director of the Royal Berkshire Shooting School, believes that being the one of the only grounds in the UK to still use manual traps puts it at a huge advantage: “It means that we can put far more variety into our clays, and make them much more realistic for game Shots.” The school also benefits from eight game shooting instructors – who, as Dylan puts it, “Might not be able to hit 50 straight at Skeet or Trap, but are masters when it comes to game birds. We believe that you need someone to tell you what you are doing wrong, not someone who’ll simply tell you where you are missing clays.” With such variety and plenty of stands that will put you on your mettle, RBSS believes in challenging the game Shot so that you won’t be phased when it comes to the real thing. 

The vital stats from Dylan

Hardest stand: “It depends very much on the shooter, but with our instructors, every stand can be conquered!”
Best for the game Shot: “I’d say the grouse sequence – we get clients coming down from North Yorkshire to shoot here before the season who say they are incredibly realistic.”   
Top tip: “Our instructors are great, but they aren’t magicians – I’d advise anyone going game shooting to have a few lessons before the start of the season.    
No. of stands: “We’ve got more than 150 manual traps and 50 automatic ones, but the reality is that if you don’t let yourself be restricted as we aren’t encumbered by cages or butts that you have to stand in. You can stand where you like, and by moving about you can replicate pretty much any shot you’ll find in the field.” 

Barbury Shooting School

Set in the Malborough Downs, just off the M4, Barbury Shooting School is open seven days a week. The school doesn’t only have a tough sporting layout, but there are also some fantastic coaches, including director Huw Stephens, who is not only a passionate game Shot, but also recently won the Sunseeker Boodles Cup Final, held at The Royal Berkshire Shooting School. Barbury has a frequently changing 100-bird sporting layout that will challenge the best of game Shots, and there is also the opportunity to arrange a simulated day. 

Five minutes with Huw:

Hardest stand: “Definitely the 110ft tower that sends midi clays flying fast and furious from an ABT trap, so you can adjust the angle. Beware of the long, high crossers!”
Best for the game Shot: “Most of our game Shots like the two high tower areas and three grouse butts – you can really prepare for the toughest drives on those.”
Top tip from Huw Stephens, Director: “Your summer clay practices are the ideal time to instil good practice as far as safety is concerned.”  
No. of sporting stands: “We’ve got around 30, which we’re constantly changing. I practice on the 100-bird sporting layout once a week and it’s never the same!”

E.J. Churchill 

This year’s winner of the Best Shooting Ground at the Time Inc. Shooting Industry Awards hosted the World Sporting Championships in 2014 and 2016, so is a safe bet for variety and quality. Set in no less than 40 acres of woodland and within easy reach of central London, E. J. Churchill offers not only a superb sporting layout that includes a famously tricky grouse butt, which is one of five, but also has a well-kitted out shop. With excellent tuition, and a sporting agency, it’s the perfect place to hone your skills.  

The vital stats from Rob Fenwick, Managing Director of E.J. Churchill 

Hardest stand: “They’re all as hard as you want to make them. But if I had to pick, it would be our specialist driven area. Particularly the clays at 50m, which can be spun to the left or right. Not only that, but they’re under power, so while most clays slow down, these really get going.”
Best for the game Shot: “It’s got to be the high driven stands. We’ve got 25 different driven targets, but some of the best ones as a game Shot are where you can take them as crossers. It’s not always the mega-high ones – it’s just as much about understanding lead, but lead at all heights and for all the various angles.”
Top tip: “Practice, then practice a bit more. You can’t practice enough. All the great Shots never stop practising. This whole thing of someone saying they don’t shoot clays is rubbish. If you want to be good, clays are a brilliant way of practising and getting better. You can learn so much like lead, the swing, moving your feet, how to address the bird and that can only be done with practice. It’s just like any other sport!” 
No. of stands: “We’ve got 200 stands in total, of which 40 are dedicated game stands – but all of these offer huge variation in targets.”  

These are the GunsOnPegs top 3 but there are of course many more places throughout the Country certainly worth the visit. What are your favourite grounds for sporting clays?