You might be surprised to find that I consider a very short shot from a tree to be one of the toughest.

Whitetail hunters tend to set up for, and expect, 20-yard shots. However, during the rut, bucks are likely to take the most direct route to where they are headed, regardless of trails. They may come past at 40 yards or 4 yards. Not many bowhunters practice five and 10-yard tree stand shots, yet they are nearly as likely as 20-yard shots.

Shooting straight down forces you to use form that is radically different from what you are used to. Medium to long tree stand shots require only slight changes in body angle from level ground shooting, but short shots require you to bend in ways you never will on the range.

There are two keys to making great short shots from a tree. First, focus just as hard as you would on longer shots. It just seems too easy and you’re already thinking about putting your tag on the buck’s rack before you ever let the arrow go. You need to bear down and try to split a single hair because there is little margin for error your shot placement has to be prefect.

Second, Spread your feet, open your stance and bend fully at the waist to maintain the proper 90-degree angle between your bow arm and your upper torso. This can be uncomfortable on shots under ten yards, and bowhunters tend to cheat by merely lowering their bow arm without bending at the waist. .This changes all the important relationships (eye to pin, draw length, bow arm to release arm, anchor point) that you have developed during practice. The likely result is a poor hit.