Life Outside Spring 2018 - 25

For professional compound archers like Merritt,
events divide themselves neatly into either indoor
or outdoor, with archers generally favoring one over
the other (although excellence in both is required
for the top echelon of the sport).
"In indoor archery, it's a much higher pressure
situation because you're trying to not miss the
target," Merritt explains. "In indoor events, the
target is so close that everyone can hit it, so everyone
is just waiting to see if you mess up, and the moment
you miss the mark, then you're out."
Although Merritt prefers the outdoor format,
he competes in both, especially because popularity
(and bigger purses) are leaning towards the indoor
competitions. As he explains, "it's a lot easier to
watch indoor archery as a fan, especially if you're
watching on TV."
For the 2018 season, he has events lined up
in Pennsylvania, Alabama, Kentucky, Georgia,
and Illinois, although some years he travels
internationally to Europe and South America. In
making the switch to the professional ranks this
year, Merritt is now able to compete for purses
exceeding $25,000, instead of just several hundred
dollars, money that will allow him to not just offset
travel costs, but also, hopefully, help him turn
archery into a career and not just a hobby.

It's impossible to discuss professional archery
without asking about the big O: the Olympics. While
only recurve bows are allowed in the Olympics,
compound archers are aiming at inclusion in the 2024
games in Paris. Its popularity has boomed since the
1980s and, while there are still far more competitive
recurve archers than compound, compound archery
has found a global home in the Pan American games,
Asia Cup, and the World Archery Championships.

PRECISION
Archer Merritt
adjusts the
tension on a
compound bow.

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Life Outside Spring 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Life Outside Spring 2018
