In the thickets and woods of many hunting areas, a 1,000-yard rifle is lots more than needed. This hunter will rarely see a shot past 50 yards.

After the run was over he was checking the barrel to see if it was cool enough to put in its case when he discovered that the barrel was loose. Out of curiosity he and I shot it on the practice range. With factory hollowpoints it would do about 2 1/2 inches at 100 yards. Did Jerry need more accuracy? On that day, no.

I can almost hear someone muttering "If non-accurate rifles are just as good as accurate ones, then why do we make such a fuss?" Simple, accuracy is an easy variable to measure and is unlikely to change from one shooter to the next. And accuracy is good for confidence. A lack of it can be bad for confidence.

A customer of mine once bought a steeply expensive and imported sniper rifle. I happened to be out at the range when he was testing it, and found a distraught and unhappy client. "Pat, this thing won't shoot!" he said, waving a target at me. Poked in it was a group of five .30-caliber holes about 1 1⁄2 inches across. Not bad, but not what he expected after spending nearly $5,000.

I sat down to try it. After dry-firing the trigger a few times to get used to it, I shot a three-shot cloverleaf. "Seems all right to me, " I said, smiling. "I'll give you a hundred bucks for it." He grinned and waved me off. "Wait till you see what I can do with it."

Later that day he came over to the range I was on to show me his best group--three shots that would make any shooter happy, all clustered under half an inch. Before I shot the rifle, he had no confidence in it and couldn't shoot it. After I shot it, he had the confidence and proved it. When you are duck-walking down a draw to close the distance to a big buck, confidence in your rifle makes the stalking easier.

The important part of the equation is you and your ability to use the accuracy available to you. How can you improve your performance? You can practice range estimation or buy a laser rangefinder. You can exercise, so you will be less winded or tired at the end of a stalk.

This squirrel is not a big target, but you don't need a benchrest rifle to hit it. What you need is a rifle that responds quickly enough to take the shot before the opportunity is gone.

And you can practice.

Start by accurately zeroing your rifle. If you don't expect to shoot anything farther than 100 yards, zero your rifle at that range. If you think you'll be shooting out to 200 then consult the ballistic tables and sight your rifle in a couple of inches high at 100, then check it at 200.

Once you are zeroed and know how well your rifle shoots, shoot it a lot--not just from the bench but in realistic hunting positions. Or as realistic as your range allows. The state ranges in Michigan require one shot at a time fired from the shooting benches. Many of the gun clubs that have sight-in days do the same. Our club does not have these restrictions, so our members always have friends and relatives asking to come shoot as guests so they can practice kneeling, sitting and all the other field positions. On our No. 2 range they can practice 25-yard snap shots, from standing or sitting. In practicing from realistic field positions, you can see the pernicious effect our excessive emphasis on accuracy has. Let's compare two rifles, one of which shoots one-inch groups and the other two-inch groups. The one-incher is better, right?

Now, hand both rifles to a shooter who can hold a six-inch group at 100 yards offhand. With one rifle he will shoot seven-inch groups and with the other eight-inch groups. Both rifles will keep all their shots inside the kill zone of a whitetail at 100 yards and keep every shot on the 10-inch gong at that distance.

So, which one is better? The one that has the better trigger or the stock that fits you better.

If your club or shooting range allows it, use a target that gives you immediate feedback. Firing a five-shot group offhand and walking 100 yards to find four holes is not only discouraging, it is difficult to learn from. Which shot missed? If you are shooting at a gong, you know immediately which one missed. The gongs at our club are very popular and have to be replaced annually. And if the 10-inch plate becomes too easy, then there are the falling bowling pin plates. If you can go five-for-five on the pins at 100 yards, offhand, shooting while hunting is no mystery to you.

While you are working over the gong, learn to call your shots. If you miss, where was it? Did you see the sights at the moment the rifle fired? Can you tell where the miss was? The big advantage of paper is it records the misses, but if you have a spotter when you are shooting at a gong, the spotter can confirm your called shot. One huge and negative effect on shooting performance is buck fever. The stress of seeing your game and realizing that this is it, the moment you've waited for, can sometimes be too much. I have seen hunters at the crucial moment so stressed that their legs were shaking, and their hands were so numb they couldn't push the safety off.

Competition teaches you to deal with stress. Shoot in matches at your gun club. If you can't, shoot at a gong with a fellow shooter who is close to your skill level. Make the stakes small. Alternate offhand shots on the gong, the first one that misses loses. Or take turns picking a shooting location and field position. The winner is the one who gets the most hits in 10 shots.

Gunsite Academy has a course like this called The Scrambler. There are eight positions from "supported offhand" to "in a tree." The target is a steel plate of generous but realistic size. You take your shot and if you hit, you move on. If you miss, you get to take a second shot. If you miss the second shot, your run doesn't count. The winner is the shooter with the lowest time who has all their hits. It is fun, and it teaches you to deal with stress. If you have the room for it, or your club does, an afternoon spent shooting across such a course with your buddies will do wonders for your abilities. Accuracy is good, but it isn't the be-all and end-all of a successful hunt or a satisfying match. It is only a means to that end.