Bowling pin shooting is a shooting sport (primarily for handguns) in which the competitors race against one another to knock standard bowling pins from a table in the shortest elapsed time. Pin shooting is often described as one of the most enjoyable shooting games and one of the easiest means of introducing a new shooter into regular competitive shooting. Pin shooting appeals to both genders. There are many female pin shooters and many distinguished female pin shooters. History Massad Ayoob credits the origin of bowling pin shooting with Richard Davis in the mid-1970s. The sport peaked in popularity between the mid-1980s and the late 1990s. Rules Depending on the caliber of handgun used and the table employed, the pins must be knocked backwards up to to be knocked clear of the table and onto the ground. The pin shooting tables typically consist of one of the following varieties: 3 pins placed on a waist high table, with 2 additional pins placed on a second tier over the others at each end, forming a crude "U." 5 pins placed on a flat table, with the pins being placed from the back edge, or rear of the front edge. Targets used can vary, but are usually tenpin bowling pins. Steel targets or electronic targets are also sometimes used. Pin shooting is conducted with both revolvers and semi-automatic pistols in calibers ranging from .22 Long Rifle to .500 S&W Magnum, among many others. Bowling pin competition is often recognized to be a big-bore event in which large caliber or high-power handguns such as the .38 Super, .357 Magnum, 10mm Auto, .41 Magnum, .44 Magnum, .45 ACP, and .45 Colt. Other large-bore handguns have the greatest advantage in removing the pins from the table. Frequently, no allowance is made for shooters who shoot lower-power handguns, though some range officers may permit the distance to the back of the table be reduced to for "minor" calibers like 9mm Luger and .38 Special so that these "minor" calibers can approximate head-to-head equivalency with "major" calibers. While handloaded ammunition is regularly employed among pin shooters, it is considered a serious breach of etiquette and sportsmanship for a shooter of a "minor" caliber to handload "minor" ammunition to levels approaching "major" calibers, thus taking unfair advantage of a rule intended to allow novice shooters to participate. Shooters who shoot "hot" "minor" ammunition should declare such to the range