A lot of times people will see a professional player shooting from the hip, and typically it is one-handed so people look at it and assume it’s pure laziness. Little do they know that players do this for several reasons, so I will list my top reasons for shooting from the hip at certain times.

Reason #1 moves the gun further from my ears and allows me to not only communicate better but also hear my teammates more clearly while still holding a lane.

Reason #2 I am simply choosing a different angle to shoot so the opposing player may assume I’ve moved or that I’m in a lower position vs standing tall. Also, that angle may be able to cover two bunker's lanes vs shooting downward.

Reason #3 Pulling my gun from my face and lowering it allows me to have a more increased field of vision so I can get a better read of what is going on.

Reason #4 If it is raining or early mornings the smoke from the barrel rises and causes you to not see as well, so pulling it down allows the smoke time to clear away before it reaches your eyesight.

There are always more reasons and most of them are scenario-based but this should give you some good for thought when you see someone doing a hipshot next time!