Sporting Clays is a challenging clay target game designed to simulate field shooting. On a Sporting Clays course, shooters are presented with a wide variety of targets that duplicate the flight path of gamebirds, such as flushing, crossing, incoming and other angling shots.

Courses are laid out in natural surroundings and typically include five to fifteen shooting “stations” with shooters moving from one station to the next to complete the course. Each “station” presents shooters with a different type of shot. At a “grouse station,” for example, shooters might face flushing “birds” that zip in and out of the trees. At a “decoying duck” station, incoming targets may float in toward the shooter.