There's an App for That

So, you know how it goes. You've just shot a cracking end. You know that was at least a 54. You swagger back to the target with the quiet confidence of someone who definitely hasn't miscounted. You peer at the arrows, start adding up... and somewhere between the second and third arrow your brain decides that 9 + 10 + 8 is... 29? No. 27. Wait. You start again. Someone behind you is already tutting. The judge is looking at his watch. Your shooting partner is doing that thing where they very helpfully count your arrows for you — incorrectly.

We've all been there. :o)

And if you're a typical archer, you've got a drawer full of crumpled score sheets at home that look like they've been used to mop up spilled tea, with arrows scores scribbled in margins and running totals that don't actually... run. To anything. Ever.

Well, here's the thing — one of your fellow Glasgow Archers has gone and built an app for it. TargetAce.

What is TargetAce?

even has weather built in.

TargetAce is a free archery scoring app, built right here by one of GA's own (yes, really — we do occasionally do things other than argue about compound vs recurve). It's now available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play, so whether you're Team iPhone or Team Android, you're covered.

The idea is simple: you score your ends on your phone as you shoot. No paper. No pencils that vanish into thin air the moment you need one. No trying to read your own handwriting three weeks later and wondering if that's a 7 or a 1 (it was a 3, obviously).

Here's what it does:

• Score as you shoot — tap your arrow values end by end, and let the app do the adding up. Revolutionary concept, we know.
• Running totals that actually work — unlike your shooting partner's mental arithmetic. (You know who you are.)
• Round tracking — shoot a full round and see your score, your average, your hits and golds. All the numbers you need to either feel smug or quietly delete and pretend it never happened.
• History — keep a record of all your rounds in one place, rather than scattered across seventeen different score sheets, a napkin, and the back of a car park ticket.

And it's free. No ads. No subscription. All the scoring, tracking, and round history you need without paying a penny. There is a PvE mode with more content in the works — a paid unlock that'll add a wee bit of competitive spice — but the core app is and always will be free. :o)

Coming Soon: The Ladder Goes Digital

The App even comes with built in opponents for H2H!

Now here's where it gets interesting for the club.

We're looking at using TargetAce for internal club competitions — and the obvious place to start is the ladder. For those who haven't been involved yet, the ladder is our ongoing club competition where you challenge the archer above you, shoot it out, and — if the archery gods are smiling — climb a rung. It's brilliantly simple, genuinely competitive, and the source of more "I want a rematch" texts than anything else in the club's history.

The plan is to use the app to record ladder scores, which means no more debates about what was shot, when it was shot, or whether that 10 was really a 10 (it wasn't — it was on the line, and the line belongs to the higher score, and yes we KNOW, you tell us every single time).

More details on that as we get it set up, but in the meantime — download the app and have a play. Get familiar with it, score a few practice rounds, and you'll be ready to go when we roll it out for the ladder.

Where to Get It

• iPhone / iPad: Search "TargetAce" on the App Store, or ask that one person in the club who somehow knows how to do everything on an iPhone (you know who you are).
• Android: Search "TargetAce" on Google Play.

It takes about 30 seconds to download and you can be scoring your first end before your bow's even out the case. Mibi give it a go at your next club night and see what you think.

And if you find any bugs, have suggestions, or just want to tell Gordon it's brilliant (preferred) or rubbish (less preferred but fair enough) — grab him at the club or drop a message. It's a labour of love and it's still evolving, so feedback from actual archers shooting actual arrows is genuinely useful.

Right. Now stop reading this and go practice. That ladder position isn't going to defend itself. ;o)

TargetAce is available now on the Apple App Store and Google Play. It's free, it's built by a Glasgow Archer, and it does maths better than you do. ;o)
Download it and fly the GA flag, it even links to our website.