Aiming with one eye closed gives tighter groups than with both eyes open
3 studies · 72 archers measured
The summary today
Only two studies have compared the two conditions, and they say the opposite of each other. The first, on twenty-eight South African archers, had them shoot three arrows per condition at eighteen metres and found tighter groups with one eye closed: no statistical tests, the order of conditions always the same, and the authors themselves write that the result depends largely on one archer who shot a thirty-one centimetre group with both eyes open. The second is a crossover on fourteen university archers with thirty-six arrows per condition at thirty metres, and it finds nothing: total score does not change, the centre of the group does not move, and in no scoring ring does the number of arrows change, except the nine, where there are slightly more with both eyes open, across eleven uncorrected comparisons. What is certain is that the habit is widespread, so much so that several archers squint one eye and put camera-based eye trackers out of action, and that with both eyes open most of them switch their gaze between target and sight right up to the release.
Also phrased as: "closing one eye to aim"; "aiming with both eyes open"; "eye dominance and aiming"; "squinting while aiming"; "is it better to shoot with one eye or two"
In practice
In courses archers hear that closing the non-dominant eye removes the second image and helps centre the sight, and also the opposite, that keeping both eyes open shows the target better and tires them less.
Evidence
-
2010
For Archers Published later
28 South African archers aged 12 to 58, from beginners to experts, 3 arrows per condition at 18 m on a 90 by 50 millimetre sheet, compound and recurve (traditional archers excluded from this test): the norms the authors build give "average" groups between 52 and 90 millimetres aiming with one eye closed against 59 and 124 with both open, and "superior" ones below 14 against below 59. No statistical tests and the order of conditions was not counterbalanced.
The role of vision and visual skills in archery* · B. Strydom, J. T. Ferreira
-
2010
Context Archers Published later
The same study, in its discussion: one archer shot a 305 millimetre group aiming with both eyes open, and the authors write that excluding that figure could change the results. In this sample the advantage of the closed eye rests largely on that single archer.
The role of vision and visual skills in archery* · B. Strydom, J. T. Ferreira
-
2017
Context Archers Published later
10 archers from the British Olympic-level squad, 10 beginners from a university club and 10 non-archers, 24 arrows at 30 m: in pilot testing the camera-based eye trackers lost data because several archers close or squint one eye while aiming, and the authors switched to electro-oculography. It says the habit is common, not that it works.
Exploring the quiet eye in archery using field- and laboratory-based tasks · Claudia C. Gonzalez, Joe Causer, Michael J. Grey, Glyn W. Humphreys, R. Chris Miall, A. Mark Williams
-
2023
Against Archers Published later
14 archers from the Osaka university club, aged 20.7 ± 1.5, a crossover with 36 arrows per condition at 30 m on an 80 centimetre face: the total score is 257.6 ± 70.7 with both eyes open and 250.9 ± 72.5 with the non-dominant eye covered (p = 0.22, Wilcoxon). No difference.
Effect of binocular vision during target shooting in archery · Masakazu Hirota, Tatsuhiro Hanai, Takeshi Morimoto
-
2023
Against Archers Published later
The same study and the same 36 arrows per condition: the distance of the group's centroid from the centre of the target is 4.67 ± 2.81 centimetres with both eyes open and 5.33 ± 4.24 with the eye covered (p = 0.83). Covering the eye neither moves the group nor brings it closer to the centre.
Effect of binocular vision during target shooting in archery · Masakazu Hirota, Tatsuhiro Hanai, Takeshi Morimoto
-
2023
Against Archers Published later
The same study, counting arrows in all eleven scoring rings: no difference between the two conditions, except the nine, where with both eyes open the arrows are 11.86 ± 5.04 against 9.36 ± 5.41 (p = 0.047). In the ten they are 6.64 ± 4.78 against 6.50 ± 4.56 (p = 0.89) and in the eight 6.07 against 7.57 (p = 0.151). The eleven comparisons are not corrected, so the nine should not be read as an effect.
Effect of binocular vision during target shooting in archery · Masakazu Hirota, Tatsuhiro Hanai, Takeshi Morimoto
-
2023
Context Archers Published later
The same study, on 7 of the 14 archers with 240 Hz video-oculography: with both eyes open 5 out of 7 switch their gaze between target and sight right up to the release, against 2 out of 7 with the eye covered (p = 0.051, Fisher), and in the last second the pupil is smaller with both eyes (1.42 ± 0.01 against 1.64 ± 0.02 millimetres, p = 0.018). It describes how the looking changes, not the result.
Effect of binocular vision during target shooting in archery · Masakazu Hirota, Tatsuhiro Hanai, Takeshi Morimoto
-
2023
Context Archers Published later
The same study, a detail about the sample: in all 14 archers the eye used to look at the sight was the right one, and in all of them it matched the dominant eye measured with the hole-in-the-card test. The non-dominant eye was covered completely with a patch, to avoid binocular rivalry. So the test concerns archers already used to shooting with both eyes open.
Effect of binocular vision during target shooting in archery · Masakazu Hirota, Tatsuhiro Hanai, Takeshi Morimoto
Status history
- 2000 Not studied In the registry's bibliography nobody has yet had the same archers shoot with one eye closed and with both eyes open to compare the groups.
- 2010 Reported The first comparison comes from a study of twenty-eight South African compound and recurve archers, three arrows per condition at eighteen metres: the norms the authors build give groups from 52 to 90 millimetres with one eye closed against 59 to 124 with both open. There are no statistical tests, the order of conditions is not balanced and the advantage depends largely on one single archer. A single study, and a weak one: reported.
- 2017 Reported A methodological note in a study of experienced and beginner archers records that several of them close or squint one eye while aiming, enough to make camera-based eye trackers lose data. It documents that the habit is widespread, not that it gives tighter groups, so the status does not move.
- 2023 Contested The second comparison is done properly and points the other way: fourteen university archers, thirty-six arrows per condition at thirty metres, counterbalanced order, the non-dominant eye covered with a patch. Covering the eye does not change the total score, does not move the centre of the group, and across the eleven scoring rings the number of arrows stays the same except the nine, where there are slightly more with both eyes open. With two studies on archers pointing in opposite directions, and the better of the two against the claim, the status is contested.
Related
Related articles
- Eyesight and archery: how much acuity, depth perception and glasses matter for your scoreDoes eyesight limit your score? What studies on archers have measured about acuity, depth perception, uncorrected sight defects and how big the target looks.
- Aiming with one eye shut or both eyes open: what the studies measuredDoes closing one eye tighten your group? The two studies that measured it disagree, and the few measurements of gaze while aiming say it often does not stay still.
- Quiet Eye and Visual Training: the Science of Stable AimingQuiet eye in archery: what studies on archers have measured, why there is no right duration to chase, and how to work on the gaze before the release.
Research lines
If this idea shapes your training or your coaching, look at what your own data say before you change anything.
See the full assessmentCite
Campagna, M. (2026). Aiming with one eye closed gives tighter groups than with both eyes open (Version 1). In Evidence Registry. Retrieved 16 October 2026, from https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/technique/aiming-with-one-eye-closed
@misc{campagna2026_occhiochiusogruppi,
author = {Campagna, Matteo},
title = {Aiming with one eye closed gives tighter groups than with both eyes open},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Evidence Registry, matteocampagna.com},
url = {https://matteocampagna.com/en/registry/technique/aiming-with-one-eye-closed},
note = {Version 1; accessed 2026-10-16}
}
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