Help! Can't seem to pick a spot...

[South MS Bowhunter]

Alright Guys and Gals I have had a real slim season so far with very few deer seen and the the 2 I have had shot on, I wasn't able to complete the deal!  I shot at a doe 3 weeks back at 13 yards and manage to scape the pine tree she went behind and tonight I had a button buck at 15-17 yards and pulled the shot and hit a small vine (the only one in the area).  I can't seem to pick a spot for the life of me! I'm not nervous at least I don't seem to be and I feel in control all the way to the point of release and then I don't remember anchoring and picking a spot, so you know what happens a MISS    please help me figure this out       .

[lpcjon2]

Go back to the basics blind bale shooting and focus on your form.If you shoot instinctively then it's just like throwing a baseball(after you ran a mile)if you aim small you will miss small.When overcome with the fever,try and breath,relax, aim, stop release.do this when practicing it should be done in one breath.Then when ready while you focus on a point.look behind the front leg and don't worry you will succeed.

[unregistered]

I had the same problem this year with the same results, miss, miss and miss again. So I have been trying somethin a bit different at the range. Instead of trying to pick a spot I have been using my 3D Deer targets leg as a reference point. I judge distance by length of the leg and line my arrow up with the leg. My shooting has improved and the majority of my arrows land in the crease. Gonna try it this Spring on Black Bears.

[Dave McDaniel]

What lpcjon2 said. Also when you remove the blind practice up close for awhile it's easier to pick a spot.

[Fishnhunt]

Are you consistenly missing hi, low, L or R?
How heavy of a bow are you shooting?  I'm shooting light bow and can hold the string at anchor for a few seconds.  
I used to get very nervous on the shot but now I look at it like this: If I can get drawn undetected then everything after that is easy.  I still get nervous on the draw but once i come to anchor I lose the nervousness and hold for a sec at anchor, focus on that spot, and let it go. Are you following thru and trying to keep bow arm and string hand motionless afterwards and still staring at that spot and not peeking?

Hope you get it figured out

[Broken Arrow 1]

pick a spot within a spot within a spot!!!!!!!!

[South MS Bowhunter]

Thanks guys it's just when you know the shots you get are few and far between you need to make good on them! I need to get some hay bales or a blank burlap cover for my target, and practice up some more.

[LoweBow]

I put a sticker on the inside of my upper limb that says just that "Pick A Spot!"
May sound silly, but by just looking at this while in the tree or target shooting it makes me take the time to look for thas spot. It's like it embeds it in my mind that this ia a step of my form and forces me to do it.

[Ken Taylor]

It is probably due to a lack of concentration.

Along with the good prior advice, try telling yourself to "wake up", or to "be alert"as you are preparing to shoot and truly, truly concentrate on where you want the arrow to go before every shot. It takes effort and at times it may seem almost unpleasant.

Eventually things will come easier as you regain (or gain) confidence.

[Al Natural]

I'm guessing your shooting from a tree stand.  Pick a spot low on the target.  Aim low, miss high, dead animal.
Al

[SuperK]

Try going to as many 3-D shoots as you can this new year.  Once you start picking out spots and hitting them there, you're training your mind to do the same thing when hunting.  One of the big reasons that I sometimes don't pick a spot and stay with it nowadays is when I feel that the deer will see me and I rush the shot.  Most of the time I will shoot high and/or "hayhook" the string.  Having a lot of cover around me keeps me "cool" when its time to shoot so I can focus on that spot I want to hit.

[Renaissance Man]

Pick your spot, a clump of hair, a shadow of muscle curve, whatever is in your kill zone.
Once you commit in your mind to taking an animal you need to stop thinking about it. Your done. In your mind tell yourself this is the animal and from that point do not look again at anything except finding your spot.
take a couple of deep breaths thru your nose and out your mouth slowly.
Focus only on your spot.
There are no vines, no twigs, only your spot.
When you practice practice the same way. Three D shoots are great, but if you are mainly a tree stand hunter that should be your main practice.
Learn to utilize a second anchor point, often when guys are hunting and the heart is pumping away they do not come to full draw or they draw and pluck off the string.
To do a second anchor point pinch your pinky and thumb together when you shoot. Draw, think only pulling back your elbow, not your hand.
When you get to that spot that you put your finger for a anchor point, pull your elbow back further and lay your pinched down thumb along your jawbone and press it in there ( second draw point).
You will find that this will prevent you from short drawing which is the major thing that bowhunters do under stress.
They try to freeze time at the point where it looked like it was right, they release in different points and end up torqueing the bow string by plucking it.
The second anchor point as done by Hill and demonstrated by the great John  Shultz is the single biggest improvement for the bowhunter especially.
Try it, pinch down your pinky with your thumb, touch your corner of the mouth or whatever you use with your finger and lay your thumb right along your jaw.
Once you get that feeling and practice with it you will no longer short draw or pluck your bow off line under stress.
Also when you go out to your treestand bring a few judo points or field points and take a shot or two while your in the stand. Focus, draw back your elbow, not your hand, pick your spot, not some obvious bright leaf but a shadow behind a stump, pull your elbow back until you hit the first anchor, then the second, pull your hand back to release as you push towards your spot and you will have meat on the ground.

[South MS Bowhunter]

Thanks guys a lot of good advice and practical information that I've heard before and some new stuff i'll give a try. Several of you mentioned "plucking" the string and that is exactly what I did tonight, started my draw slow and easy and then 3/4 through I rushed the shot and plucked the sting.  The deer had already looked up at me (yes I was in a tree stand) 3 times and was a little on edge so I might of felt it would catch me.

[Shaun]

I find that breathing helps. Especially when they are close I tend to hold my breath. Make a conscious effort to take some slow very deep breaths when the deer is headed your way.

[Al Natural]

I you are in a treestand you are only seeing a portion of the deer. Depending on how far the deer is from you. As I earlier posted aim low on the deer, pick a spot and concentrate on the spot.  Aim low, miss high, dead deer. It works for me.
Al

[30coupe]

Once I decide I'm going to shoot a deer, I don't look at anything but the spot. Once the deer is in range, I draw, anchor and release, all while looking at the spot. If you are watching the deer watching you, you are not looking at the spot...unless of course, you plan to shoot it in the eye.

[fido dog]

I have the same problem. I get nervous....period. This is my first year and I have only hunted deer on the same ranch. There are rules...only mature deer are to be shot. It has given me the opportunity to draw (on that spot) and see it happen.

While I've NOT taken a shot yet, I feel more confident that when I do....I will connect. So far I've drew down on a young 8 point, a young 6 point, several does and that stupid Buffalo in my picture....he and I have unfinished business.

If you are able to go out and draw on them...do. It will help.

I'm a newbie so there might be better advise. =0)

[Roy Steele]

I've shot instinctive for 30 years and I learned alone time ago is to look at the crease of the deers front leg.This always gives you a conscent place to look at.

 DEAD IS DEAD NO MATTER HOW FAST YOUR ARROW GETS THERE

[Hedge Apple]

Train your eye with year round practice. By picking spots on objects it soon becomes second nature to look for them. Mail boxes, street signs, farm animals, the neighbors dog, its all good practice. The crease on a deer is a good starting spot but to big as a whole to shoot at, esp. at 17 yards. A few hairs sticking up in the crease is much better. If you cant remember picking a spot, my guess is you never did. In target practice (one arrow) I identify the smallest spot I can see, then take my eyes off it(against the grain). When Im ready to draw, I look for that spot and my eyes never leave it once they have found it. Once at anchor focus a little harder on the spot and let the arrow appear on it. Works for me.

[xtrema312]

I don't try to pick a spot after I set up for the shot and get drawn.  I pick a spot as soon as I know I will shoot.  This is often as soon as I get a clear look at the animal.  That way I don't forget to pick a spot just before I shoot, and I am on the spot all the way through the process.  I practice this by picking a spot as soon as I see an animal in any pic or video.  It just becomes habit to instantly go for the spot and not watch the animal.