[darkgael]

"Irons are the way to start with and end with".
I disagree (and I shoot with irons).
Easier to shoot better? Are they? Have the records increased substantially since optics were allowed? Bill Blankenship's record of 2674 stood for many years. Shot with irons. It was eclipsed in 1974 by Herschel Anderson's 2680. Still the National record - also shot with irons (iirc). Second place since 2012 has been John Zurek's 2679...don't know what sights Mr. Zurek used.
Are optics easier to use? Y'know, with irons one at least gets the illusion that the sights stop moving. With a dot sight, that never happens. The dot always dances. What the optic does is allow focus on the both the dot and the target together. That allows shooters with failing eyesight to continue to shoot when
their eyes will not accommodate irons. That is a good thing.
In any case, shooting well involves much more than the differences between iron and optical sights.
The magic is still trigger control.