Originally Posted by
megasupermagnum
The key element everyone is missing, is time. Given unlimited time, a person could shoot just as well with the gun upside down. I'm not joking about that, I'm fairly sure Jerry Miculek shot a balloon at 200 yards with a snub nose revolver upside down, pull the trigger with his pinky.
Yes, I can, and often shoot really well one handed, using my knee as a rest. With a backrest, I still prefer Elmer Keith's two hands in the knees shooting position, but that takes a little more set up to be comfortable.
Anyway, if you were asked to hit a 12" gong at 100 yards with a handgun against a similar skilled person, whoever gets more hits in 10 seconds wins. You shoot one handed, and they shoot two. You loose. It's just the way it is. Two hands is a more stable platform, and it allows you to handle recoil faster. You can hedge your bets. You could shoot a 22LR pistol, and have them shoot a 44 magnum revolver, and you very well could win then. Or you could put in way more time practicing, and simply blow them away in skill.
I think one handed shooting has value, both in the field, but mainly in self defense. As a standard practice though, no, I think you are handicapping yourself by doing so, with the sole exception of a game like Bullseye.