When Hollan Hicks got a better look at the archery target from the left side, it meant putting more arrows right where he wanted them to be.
That was four years ago when Hollan, now entering his sophomore year at Benton High School, was getting started in competitive archery and practicing with teammates at Hoot & Holler Archery in Bossier City. Hollan, the son of Jarred and Katherine Hicks of Benton, got his hands on a left-handed bow and, like his father said, the rest is history.
“I started shooting left-handed in 2022,” Hollan said. “We knew I’d always been left eye dominate. (But) I’d been shooting right-handed. Dad told them (Hoot & Holler coaches) I was left eye dominate.”
“We had a lot of help from Chip and Kathleen Hemphill,” Jarred Hicks said about the owners of Hoot & Holler Archery, noting Chip Hemphill was kind of frustrated by Hollan’s rate of improvement. “I went out (of the practice site). Chip gave him a left-handed bow to shoot (at practice). I got him a left-handed bow so the rest is history.”
Young Hollan’s scores immediately rose consistently into the 260s.
“They’re excellent coaches up there,” Hollan said. “Chip knows what he’s doing.”
The sophomore is splitting time this fall with another sport he has a passion for by playing outside linebacker for the BHS Tigers. Going into the season he was starting on junior varsity and third-string on the variety depth chart.
Getting started
As a fourth grader just getting into archery, Hollan shot a 229 for 25th in his first-ever archery tournament, an ALAS North Regional in January 2021. Since then he has toed the line in 60 more tournaments and notched some impressive wins and scores.
He shot his PB 294 as a sixth grader in November 2022 to win the Fall Invitational Butterball Shootout in Haughton. His first three rounds were perfect 10s to earn 150, then he buried four more bullseyes before missing with Arrow 5 in End (Round) 4, did the same in End 5 before hitting 10, 10, 10, 8 and 9 in End 6.
Hollan matched the 294 again as an eighth grader when he buried 24 10s during the 2025 U.S. Eastern Nationals NASP/IBO 3D Challenge in Louisville, Ky. He ranked first among 430 eighth-grade boys, third out of 1,385 middle school boys and 11th overall out of 3,336 boys.
His love for archery started early.
“Well, the elementary school team asked if I wanted to shoot with the team. I’d always shot with my family at home and decided to go for it,” he said, noting he took up the sport at a very young age when the bow was taller than him.
His older sister, Brynleigh, a Louisiana Tech sophomore, was on the BHS archery team as a senior and his younger sister, Maebry, a sixth-grade student this year at Benton Intermediate, won state as a fifth grader by shooting 276.
Goals for the future
Hollan’s overall goals as he approaches his last three years of high school archery competition, along with other NASP tournaments, include a perfect score.
“I’d love to keep up with what I’ve been doing and keep improving myself and how I’m shooting,” he said. “I’d always love to win first place at nationals or worlds and I’d love to shoot 300 doing it. That’s one of my biggest goals there.”
Hollan practices diligently. He knows his strengths and weaknesses.
“I feel like my nerves are pretty calm when I get out on the line, especially in big tournaments,” he said. “I just do something I enjoy. I enjoy shooting. I don’t have to worry about the nervousness or anything that follows.”
There’s room for improvement, he agreed, as he approaches future high school competitions and other NASP events.
“There’s always something I need to improve and it always differs here and there,” he said. “One of the things I need to do the most is staying focused and worrying about one arrow at a time.”
