How to score IDPA matches

Stan · September 18, 2001, 07:37 PM

Me and a friend shot a IDPA match the other day. I was wondering how they scored individuals. I know it is scored by misses, and time, but which is more important. Should a person put more effort in speeding up or accuracy. I'm new at this, any info will be appriciated.

P.S please excuse my spelling

MacDaddy · September 18, 2001, 09:00 PM

I'll speak in very general terms here. IMO it is better to take that little extra time to make your shots count. Spraying and praying can eat your lunch in a hurry. If you see your shot was a -1 it isn't worth it to take another shot. If you are half ways quick and you shoot a -3 than you might want to take another shoot and make it a 0 hit. Also notice I said, if you see your hit, because that takes time. The fast guys know if the shot wasn't there when they break the shot. Hope this helps.
Steve.

Mikey · September 18, 2001, 09:16 PM

IDPA scoring is based on penalties for points dropped rather than rewards for points scored. If all your shots fall in the 8" center-of-mass circle or the 6" square head (zero points down or -0), then your score is simply the time it took you to shoot the stage. Lowest score wins.

If you have hits outside the central circle and head they are counted for points down (number of points less than perfect). The first area just outside the central circle counts one point down (-1) and the outer area counts three points down (-3). You would add 1/2 (.50) second for each point down.

For instance, say you shot a stage that required at least 2 shots on each of three targets. After firing the stage your time was 12.53 seconds - if all your shots are in the -0 zones, your final score is 12.53.

Now, the same stage and the same time but you have a -1 on the first target and a -1 and a -3 on the third target. That's -1, -1 and -3 for a total of -5 points. Then multiply 5 x the .5 second penalty for each point down and you get 2.5 seconds in penalties that you add to your original time. You actual score would be 15.03 instead of the original time it took.

You can also incur penalties for precedural errors (add 3 seconds), hitting a non-threat target (add 5 seconds) and so on.

The .5 second penalty doesn't sound like much but they add up quickly. In IDPA you will almost always be better off taking the small amount of extra time it takes to get good hits rather than shooting blazingly fast with several points down.

Mikey

September 18, 2001, 07:37 PM	#1
Stan Junior Member Join Date: March 26, 2001 Posts: 11	How to score IDPA matches Me and a friend shot a IDPA match the other day. I was wondering how they scored individuals. I know it is scored by misses, and time, but which is more important. Should a person put more effort in speeding up or accuracy. I'm new at this, any info will be appriciated. P.S please excuse my spelling

September 18, 2001, 09:00 PM	#2
MacDaddy Junior Member Join Date: February 22, 2001 Location: Dallas Posts: 7	I'll speak in very general terms here. IMO it is better to take that little extra time to make your shots count. Spraying and praying can eat your lunch in a hurry. If you see your shot was a -1 it isn't worth it to take another shot. If you are half ways quick and you shoot a -3 than you might want to take another shoot and make it a 0 hit. Also notice I said, if you see your hit, because that takes time. The fast guys know if the shot wasn't there when they break the shot. Hope this helps. Steve.

September 18, 2001, 09:16 PM	#3
Mikey Senior Member Join Date: November 14, 1998 Location: Tennessee Posts: 885	IDPA scoring is based on penalties for points dropped rather than rewards for points scored. If all your shots fall in the 8" center-of-mass circle or the 6" square head (zero points down or -0), then your score is simply the time it took you to shoot the stage. Lowest score wins. If you have hits outside the central circle and head they are counted for points down (number of points less than perfect). The first area just outside the central circle counts one point down (-1) and the outer area counts three points down (-3). You would add 1/2 (.50) second for each point down. For instance, say you shot a stage that required at least 2 shots on each of three targets. After firing the stage your time was 12.53 seconds - if all your shots are in the -0 zones, your final score is 12.53. Now, the same stage and the same time but you have a -1 on the first target and a -1 and a -3 on the third target. That's -1, -1 and -3 for a total of -5 points. Then multiply 5 x the .5 second penalty for each point down and you get 2.5 seconds in penalties that you add to your original time. You actual score would be 15.03 instead of the original time it took. You can also incur penalties for precedural errors (add 3 seconds), hitting a non-threat target (add 5 seconds) and so on. The .5 second penalty doesn't sound like much but they add up quickly. In IDPA you will almost always be better off taking the small amount of extra time it takes to get good hits rather than shooting blazingly fast with several points down. Mikey