Benjamin and McMaster
Contributed
Nicholas Benjamin and Aliana McMaster out-shot more than 150 competitors on Sunday (February 12) to be crowned Highest Overall Champion and Ladies Champion, respectively, at the first Jackson Bay Hunting & Fishing Club Sporting Clay tournament in Clarendon in 25 years.
Benjamin was the only shooter to score in the 90s after shooting 90 and picking off all six targets on eight of the 17 stations on the course.
McMaster shot 78 to win the Ladies section ahead of Wendy McMaster 77 but had to engage Kashka Jones in a shoot-off to determine the Junior champion after Jones also shot 78.
Benjamin said afterwards that the challenging conditions made the victory sweeter.
"I am very humbled, very happy about the win today. It wasn't easy,” he said.
“The course itself was fair. It was not an overly difficult course but that combined with the conditions - it was very hot, it was very windy, wasn't any shade. The wind plays a big part in the course itself and all of those things put together made for not an overly difficult but a not very easy day.
“It's the first time I have shot by the sea as well. I think, more impactful than the ocean was the sea breeze. I think that made it harder than just the sea as the background."
Three shooters were engaged in a shoot-off to determine the runner-up and A Class champion after they all shot 89 in regulation time.
Shaun Barnes shot a perfect eight from eight to take the runner-up spot while last year's national shotgun champion Chad Ziadie scored seven form eight for the A Class first and Bruce DeQuesnay bagged six for A Class runner up.
Ray McMaster was third by way of 'long run' ahead of Ian Banks and Christian Sasso after they each shot 88.
McMaster and Jones had to shoot three rounds before a victor would emerge.
Both shot seven and six, respectively, in the first and second rounds but McMaster shot a perfect eight from eight in the third round to Jones' six.
“I enjoyed shooting the course and going through the different stations and observing the different presentations,” said McMaster afterwards, “however, I experienced a lot of challenges today; outside variables like traps breaking down or the walking with the sun or whatever it was, it was basically all coming at me at once so it was quite a difficult time but I pushed through."
She said experience helped her during the shoot-off.
"Going into a shoot-off, I have an idea from experience of what to do and what not to do,” she said.
“You just try to keep to yourself, you ignore every possible thing except the task at hand. It was a really good experience because no matter how experienced you are, you are still going get the nerves so it’s really nice I can experience that again. To come out the winner, honestly, it feels really great."
The following are the the top three shooters in each class: A Class: Chad Ziadie 89 (S/O), Bruce DuQuesnay 89(S/O), Ray McMaster 88 (L/R)
B Class: Michael Banbury 83, Najeeb Haber 78 (L/R), Brandon King 78 (L/R)
C Class: Ramon Pitter 83, Ricky DuQuesnay 81, Wendy McMaster 77
D Class: Matthew Sale 76, Marlon King 75, Noah Vaughn 74
E Class: Kashka Jones 78, Matthew Morin 69, Carlton Davis 68
Hunters or Beginners: Daren Gordon 79, Tariq Nembhard 77 and Andrew Clarke 72
Ladies: Aliana McMaster 78, Wendy McMaster 77, Lori Ann Harris 75
Juniors: Aliana McMaster 78 (S/O), Kashka Jones 78 (S/O), Lori Anne Harris 75
Sub Juniors: Che Rowe 61, Craig Powel Jr. 56 and Adam Clacken 51
Hunters or Beginners: Seymour Essor 75 (S/O), Lori Anne Harris 75 (S/O), Max Williams 71.
Near perfect Craig Simpson, Wendy McMaster emerge winners at Rangers Gun Club Sporting Clays Classic
Craig Simpson and Wendy McMaster toppled defending champions Nicholas Chen and Aliana McMaster to take the top spots at the recent Rangers Gun Club Sporting Clays Classic on at the Tru-Juice complex in Bog Walk, St. Catherine.
Simpson posted his highest-ever sporting clays score with an almost perfect scorecard of 97 out of a possible 100, after dropping just one bird each on stations two, four and fourteen.
"All year, it’s been a tough year. Been struggling with a lot of things mentally, technique, all of those things but, as usual, kept at it and everything came together,” said Simpson.
“It was 18 stations; first we have ever seen that here. The targets were technical even though there was something there for everybody. It was all about who was able to maintain the focus and I knew that.”
Roman Tavares-Finson's 95 earned him the runner-up spot.
Wendy McMaster scored 82 to win the Ladies category ahead of her main challenger, her daughter Aliana. She said the secret to her win was staying out of the heat, keeping hydrated and sticking to the game plan by focusing on her shooting only while on the course.
"I am very happy. I had a good day shooting the targets. I found a secret last week and I tried it out today and it really worked well so I am really happy that I ended up in the eighties."
Aliana was just three shots back on 79 in second place while Lori Ann Harris was third with a score of 77
The top three shooters in the various classes are as follows: A Class: Chad Ziadie 94, Christian Sasso 93 (L/R), Ian Banks 93 (L/R); B Class: Najeeb Haber 87, Brandon King 82, Aliana McMaster 79; C Class: Ramon Pitter 83 (S/O), Ricky DuQuesnay 83 (S/O), Eddie Depass 83; D Class: Zachary Chin 87, Justin Samuda 85, Kashka Jones 80; E Class: Lenin Thompson 81, Max Williams 80 (L/R), Luke Chin 80 (L/R); Hunters or Beginners: Lori Ann Harris 77, Stephen Silvera 75, Leanne McMaster 74; Ladies: Wendy McMaster 82, Aliana McMaster 79, Lori Ann Harris 77; Juniors: Roman Tavares-Finson 95, David Wong 89, Mark Desnoes 87.
Defending champions Jamaica to depart for Antigua and Barbuda for 2023 Caribbean Full Bore Championship
Team Jamaica will leave the island on Sunday (May 7) to defend their West Indies Full Bore Shooting Championship in Antigua & Barbuda between May 8-14 at the Crabb's Range.
The team to be led by Captain Phillip Scott will include the current national Full-Bore champion Nicola Guy, Jamaica’s first female national champion. Also on the team is two-time Amazon trophy winner and O Class champion Karen Anderson.
Major John Nelson, the president of the West Indies Full Bore Shooting Council and five-time Wogarth Cup winner, reigning Wogarth Cup winner, Captain Dwayne Ford, Canute CC Coley, Dennis Lee and Dr. Derek Mitchell complete the line-up.
George Hutton will serve as team manager.
Full Bore competition features competitors shooting from a prone position from distances of 300, 500, 600, 900 and 1,000 yards. Notably only Barbados, Guyana and Jamaica have 900-yard and 1,000-yard courses.
Shooters compete in three possible classes. X Class comprise the top 15-20 shooters in the Caribbean. T Class is any shooter participating in a regional shoot for the first time. Everyone else is in O Class.
Jamaica is considered to be a power house in Full Bore Shooting having won several championships and is always on the podium.
The Amazon trophy is awarded to the highest-scoring female while Wogarth Cup is awarded to the shooter who has the highest score in the team match.
Nicholas Chen & Aliana McMaster to defend Rangers Sporting Clays titles
Defending champions Nicholas Chen and Aliana McMaster are ready to defend their titles at the Rangers Gun Club and Family Fun Day which is set for Sunday, May 7 beginning at 10 am at the True Juice complex in Bog Walk, St. Catherine.
The Rangers Gun Club is expecting a field of approximately one hundred and fifty shooters along with family members to trek the lush walking course venue for a day of individual and team competition featuring the local gun clubs.
For the second year in a row four clubs will compete for the trophy; Driftwood Gun Club, Jamaica Gun Club, Rangers Gun Club and defending champions, the Trelawny Gun Club.
Competition for top honors will be stiff as some of the Jamaica Skeet Club's best shooters will be vying for top honors. They include nine-time national shotgun champion Ian Banks, six-time national shotgun champion Shaun Barnes, current national shotgun champion Chad Ziadie, his father Geoffrey Ziadie, Ray McMaster, Andrew Hopwood, Ryan Chen and Bobby Chung as well as the high performance family team of female McMasters - Aliana, Wendy (five-time national shotgun champion) and Abigail along with other well known female shooters in Renee Rickhi, who is part of the Jamaica Rifle Association's Alpha Angels lady shooters, Marguerite Harris and Tara Brown.
Shooters in various classes from A- E, Hunters or Beginners, Juniors, Sub-Juniors, and Ladies will be competing in order to win their classes and, in some cases, move up to more challenging classes. The course features a seventeen-station walking course.
Part proceeds from the event will be donated to the Food for the Poor organization.
The lead sponsor for the Rangers Gun Club Sporting Clays and Family Day is Sterling Asset Management. Worthy Park Select is the gold sponsor and there are several 'station' sponsors.
The club has rich a history of young business men and some of their fathers who loved shooting getting together in the mid 1980s to start the Rangers Gun Club at their Salt Gully base in St. Catherine.
They initially focused on bird shooting then took on sporting clays which is currently the most popular form of the sport and is said to be the favorite of the younger shooters. The tournament is being brought back by on their request. The club's archives show that Michael Ammar, John Ammar, David Shoucair and Wayne Srour took the leap with Michael Ammar Sr., Sameer Younis and Dr. Badih Shoucair to start the club.
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