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One of the Best Shooting Drill

Updated: Feb 26



Build Real Skill with the Dot Torture Drill

How a Simple Paper Target Can Sharpen Every Core Skill You Need with a Handgun

The Dot Torture drill might look like a basic paper target—but don’t let the simplicity fool you. This drill is a complete functional shooting skills test, and one of the best ways to identify and improve the fundamentals that make or break performance under pressure.

What It Actually Trains

Each of the ten numbered 2-inch dots trains a different component of functional marksmanship. Let’s break it down:

Dot 1. Sight Alignment + Trigger Control

Dot 1 requires 5 slow, deliberate shots. This isolates pure marksmanship—your ability to break a clean shot without disturbing sight alignment. If you’re jerking the trigger, it shows up here first.

Dot 2. Presentation from Holster

Dot 2 has you draw and fire one round five times. The goal isn’t speed—it’s building consistent grip and sight picture on presentation. This directly impacts your first shot in a defensive scenario.

Dot 3–4. Target Transitions + Trigger Reset

Drawing and firing one round on dot 3 and one on dot 4 forces your eyes and gun to move deliberately. This is where poor transitions, snatching the trigger, or dragging the gun become visible.

Dot 5. Strong Hand Only Shooting

Shooting one-handed exposes recoil management issues. Weak grip fundamentals = misses.

Dot 6–7. Controlled Pairs + Recoil Management

Two rounds on each dot x3 (alternating) builds rhythm and recoil control under tight accuracy constraints.

Dot 8. Support Hand Only

Dot 8 shows how much you've practiced with your non-dominant hand. Weak-hand shooting is a common gap—and this reveals it fast.

Dot 9–10. Reloads + Target Acquisition

Draw, fire one on 9, speed reload, then fire one on 10. It’s about economy of motion, recovering your sights after a slide lock reload, and reacquiring target focus under time compression.

Why You Should Start at 3 Yards

Most shooters miss more than they think—especially when they don’t clearly track each round. Dot Torture eliminates guesswork.

Start at 3 yards until you can reliably shoot a 49 or 50 out of 50. That’s the threshold. Only then should you move back to 5 yards… and eventually 7.

Pro tip: Use a pen to mark hits between each string (e.g., circle each shot for dot 1 before starting dot 2). That way, you don’t mistake previous hits for new ones. Line breaks count.

Print. Shoot. Repeat.

Every shooter should revisit Dot Torture regularly. It’s not flashy. But if you want to develop:

  • Consistent draw stroke

  • Clean trigger control

  • Controlled transitions

  • Single-hand capability

  • Reload speed under pressure

…this drill gives you all of it in just 50 rounds.

Download the free target here:📄 PLC Dot Torture PDF Target (Free)

Want to Track Your Progress?

Fill in the information at the top of the target and keep it to track your improvement.

  • Date

  • Score

  • Distance

  • Notes (e.g., “shots dropped on strong hand only”)

It becomes a training log and diagnostic tool in one.


Final Thought

If you only had one range drill to run every month, Dot Torture would be a strong contender. It doesn’t just test what you can do—it teaches you how to get better.

Need help diagnosing your Dot Torture runs? Come to class and let’s run it together.

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