By Iain Harrison

Since the first two seasons established a template for the finale that works, the producers seem loathe to change. So, last night we were treated to the spectacle of Mike, Gary, Chris and Dustin going head-to-head shooting dueling trees, playing HORSE and, finally, the all-in culmination of the show.

I must admit, I was surprised by Chris’ performance on the first challenge as he’s been very solid with a handgun all season. I guess that on the home stretch, pressure must have finally got to him. Despite only having shot a Glock three times previously, Dustin stepped it up and proved that it’s not the arrow that counts. I spoke to him yesterday about his performance on the show and he was every bit as upbeat and cheerful as  portrayed on the small screen, as you’d expect from someone who’s 100k richer.

Asked about his strategy on the HORSE challenge, he said: “I really didn’t want to go first as I’d rather someone else tell me what to do than make that decision & have to live with it. At home, I check zero my rifles using golf balls, so I had them set them up at 100 yards and they had no chance. They had no idea where that rifle was zeroed, they weren’t expecting it, but I surprised myself and hit it.”

The final shoot off started well for both men, right up to the point where Mike started missing with the Benelli. If you caught the behind the scenes episode that followed, you would have caught his explanation as to why that happened. It seems as if the wide variety of different firearms messed with his mental game and he buried the front sight at the bottom of the ghost ring and had no feedback to let him know that his shots were low. This proved to be his undoing, as from that point on, Dustin missed only three times, all with the S&W 500.

I asked Dustin about what he would say to anyone considering applying for the show. “I think my performance gives hope to the everyman, backyard shooters. I don’t claim to shoot the best; I just enjoy it the most. That enjoyment led to me not collapsing under pressure and gave me the edge I needed to pull this thing off. I hope that gives encouragement to the all the amateur, everyday shooters out there without any shooting resume like myself.”

The application for Season 5 of Top Shot is available at the History Channel website. What are you waiting for?