The ASBA (American Sport Blowgun Association - defunct in 2002),
originated the idea of the Master (6 dan) level in competition
blowgun target shooting. This was adopted by all affiliated IFA
(International Fukiyado Association) national members. This year
(2005), the JSFA (Japan Sport Fukiya Association) was the last hold-
out to accept this recognition of excellence in the sport - and now
has agreed to include that level - but added that one of the scores
must be a 186 or above. The JSFA requirement was immediately
accepted by all other national organizations.

The NSBA (National Sport Blowgun Association - replaced the ASBA in
2003), is following in the footsteps of it's predecessor, and is once
again "raising the bar" for recognition of excellence in the sport.
New NSBA rules for higher dan levels have been announced. All the
rules for standard 10 meter competition (target height, and firing
line distance, etc.) apply - except as explained below:

Standard target - has 3 rings. Bullseye = 6 cm (7 points); inner =
12 cm (5 points); outer = 18 cm (3 points)
Standard scoring: iron (2 dan) = 120 points or above; Must be 2 dan
to qualify for the next level; bronze (3 dan) = 150 points or above -
Must be 3 dan to qualify for the next level; silver (4 dan) = 162
points or above; Must be 4 dan to qualify for the next level; gold
(5 dan) = 175 points or above;
Master = 3x gold (one of the three scores must be 186 minimum) in 1
year.
Silver and above scoring is only recognized as valid if attained at a
sanctioned NSBA Point competition.

Master target - has 4 rings. Bulls-eye = 3 cm (7 points); inner = 6
cm (5 points); middle = 9 cm (3 points); outer = 12 cm (1 point)
Master Scoring: Must be Master (6 dan) level to use the Master
Target face. Must use Master Target to achieve higher dan levels,
and only at sanctioned competitions. Standard target face can be used
to shoot for attempts at the World Record. The official Master Target
graphic will only be presented to those achieving the 6 dan level -
it will not be available for download from the NSBA website.

Bronze Master (7 dan) = 158 points and above; Must be 7 dan to
shoot at next level.
Silver Master (8 dan) = 168 points and above; Must be 8 dan to
shoot at next level.
Gold Master (9 dan) = 179 points and above; Must be 9 dan to
shoot at next level.
Grandmaster (10 dan) = 189 points and above.

Note: The inner ring of the Master target ranges from 3 to 6 cm -
this outer area as defined by the standard bulls-eye is only valued
at 5 points on the Master Target. If one shoots all 30 darts into
the 5 point ring (6 cm) on a master target, that is only 150 points.
On a standard target, it is a perfect 210 score. One needs 158
points to get the 7 dan. The current World Record at 10 meters on a
standard target face is 194 points. (This scores at about 148 points
in the Master format - depending on dart placement.)

In order to be considered a "Grandmaster" of any discipline, it is
expected that one's abilities must be flawless. Since this is the
goal of the higher Master levels, the target face and scoring were
designed specifically to reflect this intention. The degree of
difficulty is 66 % greater than the standard target face.

If you would like to try your skill at shooting with these
restrictions - download a copy of the NSBA practice target (available
on the "Forms" page of the NSBA website). Score the Orange inner
bulls-eye as 7 points. Score the yellow outer bulls-eye as 5
points. Score the inner (Red) ring as 3 points. Score the inner
(pink) ring as 1 point (these 2 rings are normally scored as 5 points
on the standard target face). Anything in "Blue" (normally scores as
3 points on the standard target) - counts as a Zero (0) for the
Master Target.