Like any sport, clay shooting has its own terminology and lingo. Whether it’s a clay pigeon, which is neither clay nor a pigeon, or a trap, which — surprise! — is not a trap but rather a device to propel the not clay not pigeon, this helpful glossary will help you keep your terms straight and launch you into the exciting world of clay shooting. To learn even more about clay shooting, check out our feature on page 68.

Skeet Shooting — Simulates the crisscrossing hunting action of flying upland birds, such as doves. The shooter rotates through different stations along a semicircle as targets from both sides pass across the field.   

Trap Shooting — Dating back to the late 1700s, this is one of the major disciplines of clay shooting. Designed to simulate the flight path of flushing game birds to sharpen a hunter’s skills, the targets are thrown from a single location in front of the shooter, who moves in a semicircle to change the angle and difficulty of the going-away shot.

Sporting Clays — Set on a walking course in a natural environment, the shooter moves from station to station, where targets are presented differently at each station to mimic hunting situations for species such as quail, grouse, pheasant, dove, ducks, geese, and rabbits. This is often called “golf with a shotgun.”

Trap — The device used to propel the target.

Clay Pigeon — A saucer-shaped target made from petroleum pitch and, contrary to popular belief, not baked clay. Clay targets began to be used in place of live pigeons around 1875. Asphalt targets were later developed, but the name “clay pigeon” stuck.

Standard Target — The size for American trap and skeet is 108 mm in diameter.

Mini Target — The smallest size used in sporting clays at just 60 mm. Mini targets are very fast off the arm of the machine but rapidly lose their momentum because of their lighter overall weight.

Rabbit — A special machine launches this standard-sized clay towards the ground so that it rolls on its edge to simulate a bolting rabbit. This target has a tougher rim to withstand the shock of being tossed outward on hard ground.

Report Pair — On the sporting clays course, the shots are taken in pairs. A report pair occurs when the second trap is launched upon the shooter firing at the first shot.

True Pair — Two targets are launched simultaneously.

High House — On the skeet course, targets move from left to right from a trap situated about 15 feet above the ground.

Low House — Positioned directly opposite the high house, the low house launches a target at about 3 feet off the ground, moving from right to left.