Dot Torture at 3 yds or 5 yds for diagnostics?

Question

Been running Dot Torture at 3 yards and passing consistently (49/50 to 50/50). Should I push to 5 yards or start layering other drills in?

Sarah Baird · Accepted Answer

Once you're passing Dot Torture at 3 yards, you should move the distance out, not switch drills.

**Why distance matters:** Dot Torture at 3 yards is mostly diagnosing trigger press. At 5 yards you start seeing grip issues. At 7 yards you see sight picture issues. Each yardage separates a different fundamental and shows you which one is your weak point.

**The standard progression is:**
1. 3 yards to 45/50 or better, consistently
2. 5 yards to 45/50 or better, consistently
3. 7 yards to 40/50 or better, consistently

At 7 yards, 40/50 is a strong recreational-level benchmark. 45/50 at 7 yards is what I'd call a trained intermediate shooter.

**Don't skip steps.** Shooters who "passed 3 yards easy" and jumped to 7 yards often find out their 3-yard scores were hiding grip issues that show up badly at distance. Going to 5 yards first, seeing where your weak groups are, and training specifically to close those weaknesses is the fast path to real improvement.

Once you're at 45/50 at 7 yards, Bill Drills, Failure Drills, and one-handed variations become the next productive layer. But Dot Torture at progressively longer distances is a productive drill for a long time — don't be eager to leave it behind.