Action Target's TopShot Aims to Revolutionize Shotgun Sports

PROVO, UT – January 19, 2026 – For generations, the crack of a shotgun and the sight of a shattered clay pigeon against an open sky have defined sports like trap and skeet. But those traditions have always been bound by weather, daylight, and the need for vast tracts of land. Now, a Utah-based company is betting it can bring the entire experience indoors, transforming it into a high-tech, all-weather social event that it believes is the future of shooting sports.

Action Target, a nearly 40-year veteran in shooting range design, has officially launched TopShot™, a comprehensive indoor shotgun range system. The company is billing it as "the Topgolf of shotgun sports," a turnkey platform that combines hyper-realistic clay target simulation with a gamified, multiplayer environment designed to attract a new generation of enthusiasts while boosting revenue for range operators. The first-of-its-kind system is already operational at the acclaimed Lake Erie Arms facility in Ohio, serving as a powerful proof of concept for an industry hungry for innovation.

The 'Topgolf Effect' Hits the Shooting Range

The comparison to Topgolf is not merely a marketing slogan; it represents a fundamental shift in business strategy. The global experiential entertainment market, valued in the tens of billions and growing, has demonstrated a powerful consumer appetite for social, interactive, and technology-driven activities. Topgolf successfully repackaged a traditional sport, making it accessible and entertaining for non-golfers, families, and corporate groups. Action Target is positioning TopShot™ to do the same for clay shooting.

"We’ve taken everything we’ve learned from building thousands of the world’s most engaging commercial ranges and channeled it into creating an entertainment and training destination that appeals to hardcore competitors, families, corporate groups, and first-time shooters alike,” said Kevin Tomaszewski, Sr. Vice President & General Manager of Action Target.

The system is built around semi-private shooting suites, each accommodating up to four people. This design immediately transforms a typically individual pursuit into a social outing. Integrated digital controls, on-screen guidance, and automated scoring lower the barrier to entry for novices, who might otherwise be intimidated by the complexities of traditional clay sports. By adding features like glow-in-the-dark clay sessions under black lights and a variety of pre-loaded games, the experience moves beyond simple target practice and into the realm of pure entertainment.

This approach directly targets a changing market. Recent industry data shows significant growth in shooting sports participation, with newcomers making up a substantial portion of the market. These new shooters are increasingly female, urban, and drawn to the social aspects of the sport. By creating a comfortable, climate-controlled, and engaging indoor environment, TopShot™ aims to capture this expanding demographic that may never have considered visiting a traditional outdoor gun club.

A New Blueprint for Profitability

For commercial range operators, the appeal of TopShot™ extends far beyond its novelty. The indoor shooting range market, which accounted for the largest revenue share in the industry in 2024, is projected to grow steadily. However, operators face significant challenges, including high initial capital investment, substantial fixed costs for ventilation and insurance, and the constant need to maximize lane utilization to achieve profitability.

TopShot™ is engineered to address these economic realities head-on. By enabling up to four shooters per bay, the system dramatically increases "revenue density" compared to a traditional single-shooter lane. The platform’s high degree of automation—from digital scoring to large-capacity clay carousels—minimizes the need for constant staff intervention, keeping labor costs low and session turnover high.

The success of the world’s first TopShot™ installation at Lake Erie Arms in Milan, Ohio, offers a compelling case study. The 94,000-square-foot "guntry club" features eight TopShot™ suites and earned the prestigious NSSF Five-Star rating faster than any range in recent memory. According to Action Target, the facility has experienced sold-out weekends and rave reviews since its opening in late 2023.

"Lake Erie Arms is the first range to incorporate this new product, and the results speak for themselves: packed bays, rave reviews, families and competitive shooters returning multiple times per week," Tomaszewski noted. This early success suggests a powerful return on investment for operators willing to adopt the new technology. The ability to operate 365 days a year, regardless of weather, in prime metropolitan locations where outdoor ranges are impossible, opens up entirely new markets.

Engineering the Indoor Hunt

Bringing the dynamic, three-dimensional challenge of shotgun sports indoors required a significant technological leap. Unlike a static paper target on a pistol range, a clay pigeon follows an unpredictable flight path, demanding instinctive aiming and tracking from the shooter. The core of the TopShot™ system is a proprietary platform that replicates this experience with remarkable fidelity.

The system can deliver hyper-realistic simulations of classic disciplines like trap, skeet, and five-stand, but its flexibility is a key feature. Operators can choose from up to eight fully customizable courses, creating unique challenges that keep customers returning. The technology can simulate everything from standard clays to fast-moving "rabbit" targets that skim along the ground.

This is all managed through a suite of digital tools designed for seamless operation. A central console allows staff to supervise the entire range, while in-bay screens guide shooters through games and display scores automatically. This "zero operational friction" design is crucial for managing high-throughput entertainment venues where efficiency is paramount.

“Outdoor clay sports have always been constrained by weather, land, and daylight,” said Michael Birch, President and CEO of Action Target. “We’ve removed every barrier. Now operators can offer a premium shotgun experience 365 days a year, in any climate, in the heart of major metropolitan markets.” This removal of traditional constraints is perhaps the system's most profound innovation, fundamentally changing where and when people can participate in the sport.

The system is also scalable, with configurations ranging from six to 48 throwers, allowing it to be adapted for different facility sizes and budgets, from boutique additions to large-scale entertainment destinations. This flexibility suggests a broad potential for adoption across the leisure and entertainment industry, moving beyond dedicated shooting facilities into broader family fun centers or even as standalone attractions. By creating a controlled, repeatable, and endlessly variable environment, Action Target has built a platform that serves both as a serious training tool for competitors and an accessible, adrenaline-fueled game for everyone else.