IDPA Scoring

Your score for a stage begins with raw time. That’s the time that elapses from the moment the buzzer sounds until you fire your last shot on the stage. If you get good center-mass or head shots on every target, your raw time will be your time for the stage. If not, you’ll be assessed... 

The IDPA target is divided into three scoring zones, marked -0, -1, and -3. These numbers refer to “points down,” from the total points available for the target and are used as a convention to simplify scoring. All you need to know is that each “point down” adds 1 second to your raw time for the stage. Put all your shots in the -0 zone and you are assessed no penalties. If you have one shot in the -0 and one in the -1, you have one point down and 1 second added. A hit in the -3 zone (3 points down) adds 3 seconds, and so on. A complete miss on a target earns a 5-second penalty. 

Don’t shoot the unarmed guy (the target with open hands). Each hit on a non-threat target adds 5 seconds to your time (for example, 2 hits on a non-threat adds 10 seconds). Also, if a round goes through a threat target and strikes a non-threat target (a “shoot-through”), you get credit for the hit on the threat, but you will be penalized for all hits on the non-threat. 

Procedural errors (PEs), usually referred to as “procedurals”, add 3 seconds to your raw time. Most procedurals are assessed because a competitor doesn’t follow the instructions as outlined in the COF description and walkthrough. That could mean engaging targets out of order, not following proper reload procedures,  shooting while your foot is over a fault line — the list goes on and on. If you make sure that you are familiar with IDPA rules and that you understand the COF, you’ll be OK. You’ll still get procedurals — everyone does — but you’ll be OK. 

The Flagrant Penalty (FP) is similar to the PE but is a 10-second penalty. It is assessed for a shooter action that violates a rule that would normally earn a PE but that actually benefits the shooter by saving more time than the penalty adds. For example, a shooter performs an action that saves 5 seconds with the knowledge that the action will earn 3-second PE. In this case, the shooter is "gaming" and will be assessed the more severe 10-second FP penalty. 

Some example of FPs are:

• SHO/WHO strings / stages shot Freestyle.
• Not going prone when required.
• Overloading rounds in magazines above limited division capacity. 

The Failure to do right (FTDR) is a 20-second “match-killer” penalty added to your raw time. Quoting from the IDPA rulebook:

A 20 second Failure To Do Right penalty is assessed for gross unsportsmanlike conduct.  Non-inclusive examples of this conduct are: Swearing at or intimidating an SO, throwing a piece of equipment on the ground, throwing a tantrum for any reason or violating the shooter’s code of conduct. The FTDR is also intended as a penalty for acts on the part of the shooter to circumvent or violate the rules and by doing so gain a competitive advantage.

FTDRs are rare, but they do occur. Just follow the rules and abide by the principles of fair play and you’ll be fine.

A shooter may be disqualified from a match for a number of safety-related violations. For example:

• Pointing a gun, loaded or empty, at yourself ,  any other person, or up-range of the "180".
• Dropping a loaded gun.
• Handling your gun when you are not the shooter and are not either in a safe area or under the supervision of a safety officer.
• Accidentally discharging your gun when you are not engaging targets.

A reckless disregard for the safety of yourself and others will also result in disqualification. 

The last thing we want is to disqualify a shooter from a match, but the safety of everyone who shoots with us is our first priority.  Accidents do happen and even experienced shooters get disqualified.  If you are disqualified, you will not be allowed to continue the match, but we do encourage you to stay and watch.  Use the DQ as a learning experience so you'll do better next time.

Brock's Gap IDPA matches are scored using Practiscore software running on Apple tablets. Final results are uploaded to the Practiscore website (www.practiscore.com) as soon as the squad tablets are collected and synced after the match. Competitors can find their scores on their Practiscore dashboard under "Recent Matches" or by searching "Scores" for "Brocks Gap."